hubby's birthday celebration - Linden Suites

Since hubby's birthday fell on a Monday, we decided to celebrate the weekend before that by checking in at The Linden Suites and having dinner at Mannang in SM Megamall. We like staying at The Linden Suites because of the homey ambiance of the hotel. Their rooms and suites have a small kitchen where you can cook, and they are not strict about bringing food inside the hotel. Actually this is where we had our wedding preparations when Jeff and I got married and we have been satisfied clients ever since. I also think that they have reasonable rates and so whenever I have a chance, I would buy Linden Suite vouchers. We have also decided that Jeff's birthday celebration this year would be a family affair, so that the family will have more bonding moments. I tried booking for a two-bedroom suite a week before, but they were fully booked. They just informed me that they have an available three-bedroom suite at their new wing, which I can still use the voucher for and just add P3,000. We arrived at the hotel at 3 p.m on Saturday for the check-in. Their new 3-bedroom suite was enormous, but the hallways in their new wing were a little cramped. I liked the ambiance of their old suites better.

(picture courtesy of http://www.swiss-belhotel.com/ - but this is exactly how the living room/dining area of our suite looks like - except for the plants and the flowers)

Our suite had 3 bedrooms - 1 master's bedroom with a queen size bed and 2 bedrooms with 1 double size bed each. There were 2 bathrooms - 1 with a bathtub and 1 with just a shower area. There was a small kitchen with a stove, refrigerator and microwave. The floors were not carpeted compared to the suites at their old wing. I had noticed that there were still a lot of wasted space in the living room - which for me could have been placed with another sofa or a coffee table set. Another downside of their new wing was the view from the windows. All we could see were buildings. When we had our wedding preparations there, our room had a stunning view of the Ortigas Center. I was excited to show Joaqui the view from the window but when we opened the curtains - there was no view at all. Now I know why the curtains were always closed.

The next day, I wasn't happy with our breakfast at all from the new restaurant Taberna Barcelona Tapas y Vinos. We used to have breakfast at the Azzurro and we have always been satisfied with the international dishes served. Well, maybe they were doing a little cost cutting ; ) The breakfast here consisted of plain rice, toasted bacon, scrambled egg, french toast, salad, small burger steaks, some cold cuts, bread, butter, fruits, and 2 kinds of cakes.

The big difference in our stay this time was we spent a lot of time in the swimming pool because of Joaqui. He loves to swim. From the time he woke up the next morning, he would say, "Swimming! Swimming!"

Overall it was a very pleasant overnight stay for us because we celebrated Jeff's birthday with the whole family. But then if we should ever stay at The Linden Suites, we would be staying at the suites in their old wing instead - a second honeymoon perhaps for me and hubby ; )

Note: The dining experience at Mannang to follow.