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Showing posts from September, 2014

Press Release: Unilever Food Solutions Presents Culinary Festival 2014

Leave your toques and aprons behind and join us on October 8! Unilever Food Solutions invites chefs, restaurateurs, caterers, and cooks to join its first-ever culinary festival to help shape the Philippine dining landscape. The food industry is one of the key areas for growth identified in the Philippines. The steady influx of restaurants – from  hole-in-the wall concepts to foreign chains – shows how dining out has become a staple in the Filipino’s lifestyle. With the growing competition in the food industry, Unilever Food Solutions (UFS) – the food service arm of Unilever, maker  of Knorr, Lady’s Choice, Best Foods and Lipton – finds it a very opportune time to equip restaurateurs, chefs, caterers, and restaurant operators with product solutions coupled with the skills and knowledge needed to run an efficient  commercial kitchen. 

Kool Kids Ice Cream and Co

Note: This establishment is already closed. This is a story about a girl and a cup of ice cream, on how they met and she fell in love.  After a hearty ramen dinner on one fine evening, my friend and I walked around Mega Fashion Hall to look for dessert (well, it was only me craving for a dessert, my friend was too full to eat more), and alas! We found Kool Kids Ice Cream and Co.  I looked at the screen displaying the flavors that day, and Nuts 4 Nutella (Php 120, regular) caught my attention.  Kool Kids current menu And the ice cream lady started creating my ice cream, and made it magical by adding liquid nitrogen on the mixture. Oh, boy, was it a lovely sight. 

Family Fiesta by Dekada Historic Filipino Cuisine

My foodie friends and I were invited to a lovely Filipino restaurant in Glorietta interestingly named Dekada Historic Filipino Cuisine .  Opened on June 12, 2013, Dekada is a tribute to the country's historic events and Filipino heroes. The place is also a tribute to historic decades, from the Spanish era to the 90s.  cassette tapes, cassette players, plaka and VHS on display Owned by the same owners of Teddy's Bigger Burgers , Boqueria and Sumo Sam, Dekada serves traditional Filipino food creatively named after popular figures in our history. 

A Foodie's Guide to TV: The Series I Love

Here's the thing: I watch a lot of TV shows. As much as I enjoy watching comedy shows (like Big Bang Theory, 2 Broke Girls and the recently-concluded How I Met Your Mother), I also love watching foodie and travel shows. I will be sharing you the foodie shows that got me really hooked. You might want to watch them too. ;) 1. MasterChef US (Seasons 1 - 5) - MasterChef is a reality competition of really talented home cooks across the country. I particularly love the US version, with judges Joe Bastianich, Graham Elliot and Gordon Ramsay. I have watched from seasons 3 to 5, and I love the diversity of culture of the contestants, from Asian to European. The way they create dishes from each challenge was fascinating, and encourages me more to take cooking a lot more seriously.  Other spin-offs I like: Junior MasterChef Australia 2. Top Chef Just Desserts (Seasons 1 - 2) - Like MasterChef, Top Chef is another reality cooking competition; but Top Chef

Overwhelmed: 3rd Anniversary

A lovely view in Pre Rup Temple, Siem Reap, Cambodia This blog's anniversary is July, but it's not too late for an anniversary post, right? :) A lot has happened since the last time I wrote an anniv post. I have gone to my first out-of-the country trip late last year in Brunei , followed by a trip to Siem Reap, Cambodia .  I have yet to ride a plane this year, but I was happy to have quick getaway in Subic . And I was invited to lovely spots such as Casa San Pablo, Club Manila East and many more. Will be flying again in a few weeks, and can't wait to share my experience with you.  Empire Hotel, Brunei Darussalam I have also decided to become more health conscious and drastically changed my lifestyle, and it also includes my food choices. I have replaced my sweetener to Stevia (you can find it in major groceries and Healthy Options), added more fruits and veggies to my diet, and try to move more (and push myself to do more exercise, hey, I'm stil

Savor Filipino Cuisine, Revisited

Note: This restaurant is already closed.  See my previous post: Savor Filipino Cuisine My workmates and I make it a point to treat ourselves with a hefty lunch every payday. Our cravings for Filipino food brought  me back to Savor Filipino Cuisine , which is a stone's throw away from my workplace.  We wanted some hot broth, so we ordered Pancit Molo (Php 179). Pancit Molo There wasn't much meat and wanton on it, but the broth was flavorful. The serving is enough for three people. 

Oh, Salad Mamas!

As I get older, I became more conscious of my health. Moreover, having gained a lot of weight the past year has made me realize that I should maintain a certain balance by eating healthy food whenever I get a chance. I have lessened my sugar intake (I use Stevia most of the time), and try to eat more fruits and veggies.  I used to wake up a little early to prepare my salad lunch, but since I don't have a lot of time to do it every day, I was glad that there's a new salad delivery service that caters to my work area called Salad Mamas . :) I ordered a week's worth of salad lunches and tried all of their five salads. And here they are: Taco Salad The Taco Salad has iceberg lettuce with tomatoes, onions, seasoned ground beef with crushed tortilla chips, and taco dressing. I loved their version of taco salad. The taco dressing was amazingly delicious!

Slammin' Mini Burgers + Fries + Dips

I dropped by Promenade Greenhills last week to try this cute burger joint named Slammin' Mini Burgers, the revamped version of Slammer Burgers.   The place is quite simple, with a few tables and a counter table.  For the Mini Burgers, we tried their limited-edition mini burgers: Black Box Creations (Php 185 for double, Php 265 for triple). The server suggested that I order Triple so I can try all flavors: John Candy, Romeo and Juliet & The Big Kahuna.  

Jjimjilbang Experience at Lasema Spa

Note: Lasema Spa has moved to 8846 Sampaloc Street corner Estrella Street, San Antonio Village,  Makati City I was introduced by a good friend to a Korean spa located in Makati named Lasema Jjimjilbang Spa . I was able to visit the place twice, both visits were very relaxing. So what is Jjimjilbang? Jjimjilbang is a Korean style sauna and spa. Moreover, Lasema is a multi-leisure health facility with sauna, jjimjilbang and massage. my locker key Before you enter the facilities, you will be given a locker key, which is also a tracker for the food and other purchases you will make inside the facilities. We were also given a shirt, shorts and a pair of towels. A robe will also be given if you are going to avail their massage services. inside the locker room The locker rooms are gender-segregated. The locker room is also connected to the shower area and sauna room. I wasn't able to take a photo of the sauna room (because the guests should be nake

Back to Maginhawa: Friuli Trattoria

After years of not visiting the foodie haven Maginhawa , my blogger friends and I found ourselves walking around this popular street looking for someplace to hang out. We ended up at Friuli Trattoria because it was still open at around 11pm.  The place doesn't really look like the Italian restaurants that I visit. The walls are simply adorned with pictures of the dishes they serve, with chairs and tables that affordable restaurants use. 

Ippudo Opens in Manila on September 10!

I was one of the lucky foodies who were invited to the pre-opening dinner of Ippudo Philippines last night.   Ippudo was founded in 1985 by internationally-renowned ramen king Shigemi Kawahara in Hakata, Japan. With branches in New York, Hongkong, Singapore, Taipei, Kuala Lumpur, and many more, Ippudo will finally open its first store in Manila tomorrow, September 10.  Entering Ippudo felt like being transported to Japan, as the interiors aren't seen from the outside. You can actually peek the kitchen and watch the chefs create your ramen. 

Frankie's New York Buffalo Wings, Revisited

Almost a year after we last visited Frankie's New York Buffalo Wings , my workmates and I found ourselves back to satisfy our chicken cravings.  It was incredulous how this wings joint has kept the crowd going. We almost didn't have any table, as the place is full of yuppies, and even college kids.  Appetizer junkies that we are, we couldn't resist having Fries (Php 80) and Nachos (Php 100), both good for sharing and quite generous for its prices.  Fries Nachos

Genji M's Special Lunch Promo!

Note: This restaurant is already closed.  I returned to Genji M last weekend to try their promo lunch buffet.  The queue outside the restaurant was quite long as everyone wants to take advantage of their Unlimited Sushi & Rolls for Php 100 and Lunch Buffet (which includes Japanese and Korean dishes) for Php 150.  We opted for the Php 150 lunch buffet, which also includes unlimited iced tea and juices.  Here are some of the dishes included in the promo lunch buffet:

Subic Wonders: A Tavola

Our last food stop during our last trip to Subic was A Tavola, located behind Subic Bay Venezia Hotel , where we stayed. The resto has smoking and non-smoking areas -- of course we asked to be seated in the non-smoking area.  We were served complimentary pizza bread with butter.  The bread is homemade. They even have a glass window from the outside so you can watch the kitchen crew as they prepare your pizza.

Mien-San Noodle House

Rainy days make me crave for something hot, like noodle soup. So Mr. B and I went to Mien-San Noodle House for late lunch. This place is so popular that it's always packed even on late nights.  For starters, we shared Steamed Kuchay Dumplings (Php 108, 8 pcs). Steamed Kuchay Dumplings We also ordered Fresh Buko Juice (Php 48) for drinks.