My friends from work invited me to join them in their food trip and to this music/art event they saw online. I thought I should join since I feel I have been working myself to death lately. A little time off wouldn’t hurt.
We decided to grab some bite to eat first before taking off to this open mic event they were so excited to go to. It’s called “Hugot Night 2”. We imagine something like a karaoke/videoke bar where people take turns singing their heart out and belting songs to express their angst or to make fun of their own misery over some heart break or something.
But more on that later.
First we went to Sweet Ecstasy where we heard the burgers are really good. Based on some online sources that I checked, they cook the beef fresh and not from the freezer.
There is a marked difference in the meat’s texture and taste although there’s mixed opinion within our group as to whether they like it or not. Some do not find it juicy enough, which is their standard for a good burger. I personally liked the burger but I feel like I should have ordered more if not for the fear of being judged “matakaw” (glutton), haha! Some of the things I think could be improved are the lack of space and the customer service. The lady at the counter has been scrimping on the ketchup and gives me stoic looks everytime I ask for more. There’s seven of us who ordered burgers and she only gave us like four packets/sachets (do the math).
After having our tummies filled, we headed to Sev’s Cafe. Traffic was a bit heavy Saturday night. Good thing my friends are creative and talented enough to find ways of entertaining themselves while on the road. They would actually be thankful that they did, as you would find out later on. So, the entire time we were on the road, they were already starting with their version of the hugot concert – a never-ending playlist of songs hugot-themed (or not), loud and chaotic mostly, with matching medleys and sound effects to boot. It was pure… noise. Haha!
Like I said, it’s good they enjoyed themselves early because when we arrived at the location, we were (well, some of us), were kind of thrown for the loop as they never expected the event to be a little on the serious side (serious artistic side, that is). I’m not sure if it’s the nerves that got into them, like stage fright maybe, or is it the crowd, the artsy/artistic crowd, they’re not really comfortable with. To cut the story short, they left. Some of us though were quite curious as to what this whole thing is about, so we stayed. It’s a different perspective, a different kind of entertainment. To sum it up, it’s like watching an indie film or some indie art – raw and unapologetic. The place is a seedbed of creative minds similar to undergound art events I see in American films, like Begin Again, only it’s not confined to just songs and music but also poetry, drawings, even dance, as what I’ve seen on YouTube in one of my searches. All art forms, basically. There was even a portion in the program where drawings were auctioned off. One of us even tried her hand in bidding. All of these is for a good cause by the way, proceeds of which go to the “Piso Para Kay Toto” fundraiser, which would help patients of the Philippine Children’s Medical Centre.
Below are some of the pictures of the performances.
The more intense and more profound however, I think, were the last 2 to 3 acts before we left. So profound in fact that I wasn’t able to take pictures because I was so absorbed with it and because I don’t want to create distraction. Everyone was so quiet listening. The poem “Pindrop Silence” by Words Anonymous, is probably our favorite. It’s the ultimate HUGOT! Search for it yourself online. Perhaps you would like it too 🙂
As I mentioned earlier, I felt a little underfed with the burger, so by this time I’m beginning to feel like eating something more filling and heavy, like rice, maybe. We decided to go to Solaire Resort and Casino since they have available food purveyors open 24/7 and it was a bit late already.
Solaire is awesome! Just look at their lobby. We will definitely go back. We will play hard and burn some cash (naks!). As if I have cash to burn, LOL! Paging Lady Luck. Now is the best time to have yourself felt.
Anyways, our main purpose here is to be fed. And fed we did with our multicultural dishes. I ordered “dak galbi” (Korean spicy chicken) from Namsam and I would have to say it was really good. I was really satisfied.
Two thumbs up to this amazing place. Really nice 🙂 I would have helped myself with the desserts if I wasn’t so full already, haha!
And here are the photos of the other dishes.
Zero Ain't Hero 