"Thanksgiving" Dinner @ Nando's Peri-Peri Chicken (Guildford)

November 23, 2017 (Thursday). It was Thanksgiving Day in the US. Though hindi kami taga-doon, naki-thanksgiving na rin ako kasi talagang grateful ako that Nathan was already ok and back to his usual energetic and makulit self. Halos six days din kaming di napakali at nakatulog nang maayos dahil nga he got sick.

Nag-sink in na sa akin ang exhaustion that day so I asked Ford to bring me to Dollarama so I could "breathe" (aka shop) a little. Mababaw lang naman talaga ang kaligayahan ko dito, makatingin-tingin lang sa dollar store ay ok na.

When Ford suggested that we eat out na rin. Haha, alam ko namang gustung-gusto na niyang kumain sa Nando's kasi may coupon siyang nakuha from our mail box. Pero naisip ko, hay kain sa labas na naman! We've overspent na this month (because of our California trip) kaya ayaw ko na muna sanang gumastos ng gumastos. Kaso ako nga itong naunang mag-aya sa Dollarama, di ba? Haha, sige na nga. Thanksgiving na rin kasi nga feeling better na si Nathan.

There's a Nando's branch near our place, mga 3 minutes away lang siguro, pero first time naming pinasok yun. When we discovered kasi na there's a Nando's sa foodcourt sa Metrotown Mall, doon na lang kami kumakain. Aside from fast service, iwas-tip pa haha.

Ford loves Nando's. I introduced it to him in March 2016, when we were still living in Edmonton. Kabubukas lang ng first ever Nando's noon doon kaya na-excite ako (may 3 branches na yata sila ngayon). Una ko kasing natikman ang peri-peri chicken nila sa Malaysia at na-appreciate ko talaga. I am glad na nagustuhan din ni hubby. In fact, madalas siyang kumain sa foodcourt sa Metrotown nung nagbakasyon kami sa Pinas ni Nathan.

Bagong renovate ang Nando's Guildford na ito eh. It closed for a while (palagi kasi naming nadadaanan kaya alam ko) and I even thought na for good na. I am glad nirenovate lang nila talaga.

I instantly liked the restaurant's interior pagpasok namin. Maaliwalas. Hmm, parang hindi naman maaliwalas dati sa Edmonton ah (at saka sa Malaysia).

Hindi gaanong maraming tao because it was a Thursday. A server guided us to a table and gave us the menu.

More or less alam na naman namin ang oorderin namin haha. Dapat around $30 lang kasi ang coupon namin ay "less $10 for $30 bill."

We ordered the Classic Share Platter (whole chicken + 1 side and garlic bread) na ok na for two people. Pero dahil $28.95 lang siya, we added a small sized side (peri-peri vegetables) pa worth $3.75.

After looking at the menu, you need to go to the counter to order and pay. By the way, I paid $26.70, including the 12% tip.

Then you get your preferred sauces and dressing sa isang corner. Nandun na rin ang pop (soda) dispenser if you ordered some.

They first served the garlic bread. Hay, ang sarap! Di talaga namin na-resist. #cheatdayforthenthtime

It didn't take long for the chicken and the vegetables to arrive. Haha, nagkatinginan kami ni Ford nang makita ang gulay. He knows me too well, alam niyang hindi ko kakainin yun. Kahit siya hindi nya rin type yun (pero kinain niya pa rin kasi sayang). Buti na lang we didn't get the bigger size.

Medyo matagal bago dumating ang corn pero masarap sya ha. Four pieces yan eh, nakalimutan kong picturan bago kainin. Namiss ko talaga ang inihaw na mais. Talagang pikit-mata kong kinain kahit na ma-carbs. I liked it more than the chicken haha.

Nathan didn't eat. Panay pa-cute lang ang ginawa. Hay, ganun naman talaga siya, matumal kumain. He's three pero ayaw pa rin talagang kumain masyado. More on dede talaga.

Oh well, basta super happy ako that night because Nathan's good health has been restored. Ang gaan-gaan ng pakiramdam ko.

I have this feeling na madadalas na kami sa Nando's na ito. Kanina lang nagtatanong na si hubby kung may bagong coupon ba eh, haha!

PS. Katulad ng Max's, mas mura ang Nando's dito kesa sa Edmonton. Yung platter na inorder namin na $28.95, $30.45 sa Edmonton. 

Random Chika # 5

1.  Falling Prices of Oil. This pretty much illustrates Alberta's economy.

Picture taken from the net (credits to the owner)

It's so ironic. When I was in the Philippines, I kept on praying for the price of oil to drop. Our family operates a transportation business so the price of fuel impacts our operation the most. Now that I am living in Alberta, syempre gusto ko mataas ang presyo ng langis para "mayaman" ang lugar namin.

Oh well, again we are having a scary economy here. When will this end?

2.  New Buddy -- Handheld Vacuum.  At long last, may sariling vacuum na ako! Pod has a lot of "big" vacuums (addict siya dun) at ang tagal ko ng sinasabing bilhan niya ako nito. It took a while kasi wala siyang bilib sa akin. Dati kasi nagpabili ako ng walis tambo sa isang Pinoy store dito, hindi ko ginamit. Nakakatamad kasi. Ayun winarningan ako na kapag hindi ko raw ginamit ito eh never na raw niya akong papakinggan sa mga pinabibili ko.

But I've proven him wrong. Sulit na sulit ito sa akin. Nathan loves eating biscuits kaya yung mga kalat niya ang palagi kong vina-vacuum haha! I love it talaga! This is very cheap though. Less than $30 lang yata. When it breaks down, saka na daw ako bibilhan ni Pod ng mamahalin.

3.  Plastic Cover for Dining Table. Haha, this looks so cheap I know! Pero bakit ba kasi hindi uso ang glass na pang-protect sa table? People here use table cloths all the time. Kaso nadudumihan at namamantsahan naman. Even if you use placemats, di pa rin maiwasan na hindi matuluan o malaglagan ng ulam.

The only solution is to put a plastic cover. I bought one at Dollarama, saktong sakto ang size sa dining table namin.

Ford and I have not been using our dining table for a while. Sa counter lang kami kumakain para madaling linisin. But we have house guests now, at may parating pa next week, kaya mapapasabak ang table namin sa napakaraming kainan.

4.  Nando's to Open Soon. We were driving in the south area last Sunday when Ford made a wrong turn. And I couldn't believe what I saw, Nando's! I asked my driver to stop a bit so that I can see for sure. Pucha, Nando's nga! The restaurant is still under construction but by the looks of it, I knew that it is opening soon.

I love Nando's. I would always eat there whenever I visit my BFF Raxie in Kuala Lumpur. Mahilig ako sa grilled chicken eh.

Pero hindi lang dahil sa peri-peri chicken kaya ako happy. Again, whenever a new familiar franchise restaurant opens here in Edmonton, nadadagdagan ang hope ko na mas dadami pa ang makakainan namin in the future. Mas maraming options, mas masaya. Sana someday hindi ko na tawaging "Deadmonton" ang Edmonton hahaha!


5.  Dairy Queen's $7 Meal.  It was my first time to eat  DQ's "fan food." Puro vanilla ice cream cone lang kasi palagi ang binibili ko. But since McDonald's WEM Foodcourt is closed for renovation and I was craving for fries, sa DQ ako bumagsak.

Hmm, for $7, sulit na rin. The sundae in the picture is medium-sized. Dapat small lang talaga pero dahil kilala ko yung server, inupgrade nya haha.


Kaso gusto ko pa rin ng french fries ng McDo.