Entries Tagged 'Appetizer' ↓
September 26th, 2011 — Affairs, Appetizer, Beverage, Cravings, Dessert, Foodie Information, New Brews, Promos / Events, Restaurants
On it’s 8th year of publishing the Philippines’ Best Restaurants Guide, premiere society magazine, The Philippine Tatler, with partner San Miguel Corporation, is once again organizing its annual Charity Week for a chosen charity.
Philippines' Best Restaurants
Philippines’ Best Restaurants Guide
This handbook is a product of months of reviews of the current 157 restaurants and finest dining places in the country. It has served as a pocket guide for foodies, gourmands, and discerning diners for the best 100 restaurants.
“Restaurants are evaluated on their cuisine, ambiance, service standards and price. The reviewers follow a standard rating procedure that encompasses the different facets of a restaurant – from the range of the menu and the wine list, as well as the competence and etiquette of the wait staff.“
The Philippines’ Best Restaurants 2011 also included new sections such as the Best lists of restaurants excelling in various categories such as the Best for Tourists, Best for Wine Lovers, Best Chinese, Best Vegetarian and Best Steaks, among others.
Philippine Tatler's Best Restaurants Guide
Seven of the country’s best chefs were also featured in “Chef Talks.” They are Juan Carlos de Terry of Terry’s Bistro, Tonyboy Escalante of Antonio’s, J Gamboa of Cirkulo, Colin Mackay of Sala, Sala Bistro, and People’s Palace. Add to that Jessie Sincioco of Chef Jessie Rockwell Club and Chef Jessie Top of the Citi, Tippi Tambunting of Masseto, and Tomo of Taka.
Philippine Tatler 10th Anniversary Issue
Charity Week
This year’s chosen beneficiary of the Charity Week is the Virlanie Foundation.
Virlanie Foundation Officials & Volunteers joined by Philippine Tatler Officers at Shang Palace
Thirty-six (36) restaurants from the Philippines’ Best Restaurants list will donate a generous portion of their proceeds from September 22-30, 2011 to Virlanie. The funds will support one of Virlanie’s projects – the Mobile Unit. It is Virlanie’s outreach program for street children living in Divisoria through a mobile classroom and good nutrition through a feeding program.
Here is a list of the 36 participating restaurants:
- Aubergine
- Azuthai
- Banana Leaf
- Cafe Ilang Ilang (Manila Hotel)
- Cav Wine Shop – Café
- Chef Jessie Rockwell Club
- Cibo
- Circles (Makati Shangri-La)
- Cru Steakhouse (Marriott Manila)
- Crystal Jade
- Escolta (The Manila Peninsula)
- Felix
- Indigo (Discovery Shores Boracay)
- Kai
- Keizo
- Kimpura
- Kirin Chinese Dining
- L’Incontro Ristorante Italiano
- Le Bistro Vert
- L’entrecote
- Lili (Hyatt Hotel and Casino)
- Lusso Gastro Bar
- Mabuhay Palace (Manila Hotel)
- Mamou
- Masseto
- Ninyo Fusion Cuisine
- Opus Restaurant and Lounge
- Palermo
- People’s Palace Thai
- Restorante Y Damaso
- Sala
- Sala Bistro
- Sugi
- Thai Patio
- The Tivoli (Mandarin Oriental Manila)
- Umu (Dusit Thani Manila)
36 Best Restaurants Charity Week List
Interestingly, I have also just published a few weeks ago about Golden ABC‘s similar advocacy which donates parts of their proceeds purchased from their clothing shop entitled Get Up: Fashion for Advocacy.
Maurice Arcache also joined us in the lunch launch @ Shang Palace
Philippine Tatler and Virlanie Foundation invite you foodies to dine with advocacy and enjoy a meal or two at any of Philippine Tatler’s Best Restaurants included in the Charity week from today until September 30, 2011. You still have five days to go dine and at the same time help the needy! 🙂
September 16th, 2011 — Affairs, Appetizer, Beverage, Cravings, Cuisine, Dessert, Fine Dining, Hotels, Indonesian, Ortigas, Promos / Events, Restaurants, Where To Eat
Having started the other day, the week-long “Indonesian Food Festival” hosted by Oakroom Restaurant (Oakwood Hotel in Ortigas) will run until the 21st of September.
Sata Ayam (Appetizer)
Delight in the diversity of Indonesian cuisine and the combined influence from its neighboring countries. Discover authentic Indonesian food from the islands of Java, Sumatra and Bali as prepared by Executive Chef Deden Suherman and Chef de Partie Sulistyo who both came from Oakwood Premier Cozmo Jakarta for this festivity.
This is my first time to have a full authentic Indonesian meal prepared by an Indonesian chef and it was a good experience. I also found some similarly equivalent dishes from our own like the Sop Buntut which I can compare with how ‘bulalo’ is cooked in the Philippines since Indonesia is a fellow South East Asian country.
For starters, we had “The Temptation” appetizer set which consists of:
- Tahu Asi (stuffed tofu inside crisp breading-P295++);
- Asinan Sayuran (refreshing serving of sliced fresh vegetables with cold sweet and sour soup – P295++)
- Sate Ayam (flavorful chicken skewers with thick peanut sauce – P395++)
Indonesian Appetizers: Tahu Isi, Asisnan Sayuran, Sate Ayam (left-right)
For the main dishes, we first had Gado Gado (P350++), a plateful of mixed boiled vegetables with peanut sauce at the center. It can pass as an appetizer as well, actually. 🙂 (Top Photo)
Oxtail Soup (Sop Buntut)
This was immediately followed by the warm oxtail soup called Sop Buntut (P425++).
Things heated up again with the serving of spicy beef stew called Rendang Daging (P525++).
Spicy Beef Stew (Rendang Daging )
It was then concluded by Ikan Asam Pedas (P495++), a Western Sumatra spicy-sour fish dish.
Ikan Asam Pedas (Spicy Sour Fish)
The dessert set was: Sweet Es Cendol (rice flour with coconut milk and brown sugar sauce – P225++) and Pisang Goren (fried banana topped with brown sugar – P225++). The Es Cendol is their version of our Halo-Halo.
Es Condol - Pisang Goren - Wedang Jahe
Bajigur (Warm Ginger-based Drink)
I had both hot and cold ginger-based drinks called Bajigur (P175++) and Wedang Jahe (P175++), respectively. The former is a combination of coffee, coconut milk, brown sugar, and ginger, while the latter has boiled grilled ginger, lemon grass, clove, cinnamon, and brown sugar as well.
Other available dishes you could try in the Indonesian Food Festival include Bakwan Udang (vegetable fritters with shrimp P395), Mie Goreng (Indonesian Fried Noddles P375), Opor Ayam (Chicken cooked with coconut milk P325).
For other desserts and drinks, they also have Ketan Sikayo (boiled sticky rice with pandan custard P225), and Sekoteng (boiled ginger, lemon grass, clove, white sugar,carnation milk, with fresh bread cubes, peanuts, mung beans and tapioca pearls P175).
Chef Deden Suherman and Chef de Partie Sulistyo
Available for lunch and dinner, the restaurant is open for breakfast too. For reservations and inquiries, you may call 637 7888 or 910 8888 extensions 8603/8604
Oakroom Restaurant
Oakwood Premier Joy~Nostalg Center
Ortigas Center, Pasig City
Tel. No. 637-7888
Open from 6 a.m. to 12 midnight
Oakroom Restaurant
Oakroom Restaurant Indonesian Food Festival
Hurry, Oakwood Restaurant’s Indonesian Food Festival is only upto September 21, 2011!
September 12th, 2011 — Affairs, Appetizer, Casual, Chinese, Cravings, Cuisine, Dessert, Filipino, Fusion, Promos / Events, Restaurants, Street Fare, Sweet Shops, Western
What do you call the act of devouring food at the Ultimate Taste Test event? – ‘Ultimate Taste Testing’. 🙂
Anton Diaz of Our Awesome Planet, NomNom, & Tricie (R-L)
Ok, I made that up.
A week after the Ultimate Taste Test 6.0, people have been asking how many food stalls was I able to try. And when I answer 51, they seemed to be amazed and ask how I did it.
It’s simple actually.
If you approach it mathematically, ~50 stalls in 5 hours is equal to 10 stalls per hour or 6 minutes per food stall. Thinking about it, 6 minutes is already a good rate which includes taking photos, lining up, and asking a little background about the food from the owners.
Here are some tips on how I was able to make it through 51 of the 55 food stalls in Ultimate Taste Test 6.0:
1) Skip Breakfast – this readies your tummy with maximize space available. 🙂
2) Come Early – I came 15 mins. ahead of time. There were only a handful of people and you’ve got the food suppliers pulling you by the arm just to try their delicacies. You’ll never feel unwanted. 🙂
Conquering 51 Food Stalls at the Ultimate Taste Test 6 (2011)
3) Relax, Don’t Panic – Eat in pace, one at a time. You’re not in a race. Get rid of the greedy mentality and trust the organizers that they prepared enough food for everyone and that you will not run out of food to taste.
4) Take a Sip after every food stall visit – this helps clear your palate for objective tasting of the next, and pushes down the previous. You can also bring a water bottle just in case the event lacks beverage suppliers.
Nomnomnom...
5) Eat in Line – when rush hour strikes, you might find yourself waiting in line specially if the stall is a blockbuster hit. This is the best time to eat your haul from the previous stall. By the time you’re finished, your’re in front of the line. Efficiency is key. 🙂
6) Bring an Eating Buddy – (preferably with the same level of appetite)Â nothing beats peer support. If you see your friend eating along with you, you will be more determined. Although I came by myself, we didn’t fall short of having the other food bloggers around for company (and critique).
7) Strategize – being my third UTT, I already learned from my previous mistakes. I utilized a different strategy this time. For the first hour (11am-12nn), I just took photos. The title should actually be 51 Stalls in 4 Hours. 🙂
8 ) Alternate Main Dishes and Desserts – my first approach was from left to right, but there came a point when there was a series of dessert food stalls which overwhelmed even my sweet tooth. I decided to drop my sequence and just remember to go back to the ones I skipped.
6 Ultimate Finds from the Ultimate Taste Test 6.0
This was my alternate title for this article. But since a lot of food bloggers already came out with theirs days ago. I surmised mine was old news.
Anyhow, so here’s NomNom Club‘s Top 6 Ulitmate Finds from the Ultimate Taste Test 6.0 last week:
Symphony of Flavors
6.) Â Symphony of Flavors – Best Leche Flan Cheesecake ever! The goodness of Lech Flan and Cheesecake combined.
Carmen's Best - Holly's Milk and Ice Cream
5.)Â Carmen’s Best – Using 100% fresh cow’s milk, I love the Salted Caramel Ice Cream.
Chef C's Paella
4.)Â Chef C’s – I can’t remember if they served other dishes but I was extremely satisfied with their Paella De Andaluz.
Dek A Thai Authentic Cuisine
3.)Â Dek A Thai Authentic Cuisine – The Popia and Thai Milk Tea were indeed authentic and very good. You’d want to dine in and ask for a full serving. 🙂
Luigi's
2.)Â Luigi’s -Â They almost made my top spot with their awesome Phillychangas and Chicken Cordon Bleu with Aligue Mayo. Yummy!
PinakBest
1.)Â Pinakbest – Aptly named, Pinakbest was my pinaka-best pick with their Bagnet and Ilocos empanada. They also got the longest line.
But…but…I have more recommendations! Allow me to give my next 6 as well:
Spring By Ha Yuan
7.) Spring by Ha Yuan – Their Ka-Pao variants Pulled Pork, Beef Shortrib, and Monk’s Dream were a sight. I was only allowed to try one though – Beef Shortrib – and it was good!
Theo & Philo Artisan Chocolates
8.) Â Theo & Philo Chocolate – these Artisan Chocolates come in interesting packages and chocolate flavors combined with the not-your-usual chocolate partners. 🙂
5 Loaves & 2 Fish
9.)Â 5 Loaves and 2 Fish – not sure if I should call it nachos or tortillas, but the baked chips were crunchy and the dips were interesting and flavorful
Chori Chori Burger Joint
10.)Â Â Chori Chori Burger Joint – they got the Chori Burger taste from Boracay. You should try the Chori Burger with Egg.
The Sweet LIfe's 'Sweet Surrender'
11.)Â The Sweet Life – You should try their “Sweet Surrender” which is a frozen soft meringue with custard and French Vanilla ice cream. It is held by a graham cracker crust.
Eat My GF (Garlic Fries)
12.)Â Eat My GF – Aside from the interesting name, it’s basically Garlic French Fries at it’s best.
An additional special mention would be Chef Bruce Lim’s Chef Table’s Buco Pie Martini for its creativeness. 🙂
Chef's Table Buco Pandan Martini
For more photos of the other exhibitors, check out the photo albums in our NomNom Club Facebook fanpage.
Ultimate Taste Test 6
And those are my 13 Top Picks form the recent Ultimate Taste Test 6 and how I made it through 51 of them in 5 hours. See you next year! 🙂
August 24th, 2011 — Affairs, Appetizer, Beverage, Cravings, Cuisine, Dessert, Fusion, New Brews, Promos / Events, Rockwell, Where To Eat
Food lovers, connoisseurs, and foodies, hear ye, hear ye! One of the most exciting food event of the year is back – the sixth edition of the Ultimate Taste Test!
Brought to you by Our Awesome Planet, in cooperation with San Miguel Lifestyle Brews, Rockwell’s Ultimate Taste Test 6.0 is happening on September 3 at the Rockwell Tent from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. as food blogger Anton Diaz embarks on this first partnership with Rockwell.
Be a food-critic-for-a-day by sampling mouth-watering food preparations and concoctions from over 50+ home-based food businesses and some of Power Plant Mall’s own restaurants. Participants also get to rate the food samples and exhibiting food concessionaires on a scale of 1 to 5 with 5 being the highest. The hihgest scorers get to be featured in Anton’s site.
Each ticket costs P585/person and covers the ff:
- Food Taste Portions from 50+ Home-Based Food Vendors & Power Plant Mall Restaurants (new) for the entire Saturday
- A bottle of San Miguel Super Dry, Premium All-Malt or Cerveza Negra (18 years old and above only)
- Exclusive to 1,000 foodies
Ultimate Taste Test 6.0 2011
For ticket inquiries, call Power Plant Mall Office (Tel. # 8981702) during mall hours or Creative Juice Office (Tel. # 5707827) during office hours.
Here is a list of Food Exhibitors you might expect:
|
 Foodie Supplier |
 Specialty Dish |
1 |
 The Hearty Onion |
 Roasted Pandan-Wrapped Salmon and Mini Pulled beef sandwiches |
2 |
 Sweet Finale |
 Dark chocolate flourless cake |
3 |
 Rafael’s Green Kitchen |
 ANAK Ng TINAPA sa SARAP! and POMODORO TINAPA |
4 |
 Souk Kafe |
 Mana pizza |
5 |
 Madonna’s Cuisine |
 Homemade baked macaroni, classic kare-kare |
6 |
 Nasi |
 Hainanese chicken rice |
7 |
 AMG Experience Francaise |
 Quiches, sandwiches, breads and pastries |
8 |
 Fortune Empire |
 Roast pork |
9 |
 Sals Corp |
 Crumbs’ ice cream burger |
10 |
 Pot-Hole The Pastry Connection |
 2 kinds cheesake, opera cake, adobo lasagna with cream cheese and spinach |
11 |
 Algaventures |
 Chuckle! Cheese Spread/ enchantea herbal iced tea |
12 |
 Merry Moo Ice Creamery |
 Apple cinnamon, honey and tea, coffee kahlua ice cream |
13 |
 Sweet Sherise Cakes ‘N Bakes |
 Cassava de leche, cassave chocolat |
14 |
 Kitchen of Elaine & Carla |
 Peppermint bars |
15 |
 Sweet Nothings Mktg Corp |
 Chococo by glow coconut sugar |
16 |
 Tres Amores HomeMade
 Apple Pie |
 Apple pie |
17 |
 DKC Bakeshop |
 Almond butterscotch bars |
18 |
 Sassy K |
 Korn krisps and gourmet dips |
19 |
 Sweet Life |
 Green tea espasol with filling |
20 |
 Dulces Y Tapas aka
 Christina’s Kitchen |
 Carrot cupcakes, creme caramel bread pudding |
21 |
 Fideles Food Services |
 YOH-GEE Premium Froyo |
22 |
 Bote Central |
 Freshly roasted Philippine origins coffee |
23 |
 Manila Q |
 Bagwang and fish ham |
24 |
 Manolo’s |
 Paella porchetta, fabada, chorizo tapas |
25 |
 Risa Chocolates |
 Chocolates |
26 |
 Mrs V’s Homemade Goodies |
 Fresh lumpia ubod, macaroons, cupcakes |
27 |
 MAMA P’s |
 Bagnet and longganiza |
28 |
 OctoInfinity Foods |
 Snow ice |
29 |
 Jam Foods |
 Japanese Teriyaki or Korean beef |
30 |
 Mother Lee’s Home Cooking |
 Hungarian Goulash |
31 |
 Carol Jorge |
 classic chicken liver and pate grand reserve |
32 |
 DessertBarn |
 Amnesia, Bananalicious |
33 |
 Simple pleasures |
 XXX Cakes and Seaweed peanuts |
34 |
 Dulcelin |
 Korean Red Rice Salad and hickory smoked US pork belly |
35 |
 Chef Lolly’s Kitchen |
 Homemade Pork with Shrimp Siomai and Camaron Relleno (“Giok-Pit-He”) |
36 |
 da.u.de Marketing |
 Organic gourmet tea |
37 |
 Pepita’s Kitchen |
 Lechon sisig |
38 |
 Jan Viray |
 Brownies, revel bars, NY cheesecake |
39 |
 Christa’s Kitchen |
 French macarons |
40 |
 Hero Sausage |
 Dundee ‘Kroko’ ALL Meat SisigDundee; ‘Kroko’ ALL Meat Express. |
41 |
 Angelo Yaneza |
 Honey Shrimp Paste |
42 |
 Aunt May’s |
 Ecargot and Beef Tapa |
43 |
 Concept Specialist    |
 Coffee |
44 |
 United Village Breadhouse |
 Garlic bread with parsley, assorted spread and crostini toasts |
45 |
 Kitchen ala Ching |
 Oatmeal cookies, espresso kahlua cake, food for the gods |
46 |
 Hacienda Macalauan |
 Fresh Milk, flavored milk and yoghurt |
 47 |
 Luxe by Goldilocks    |
 Luxe Cookies |
48 |
 Pasta Box |
 Longganisa bolognese. Bollywood, Dirty Harry, Popeye’s Favorite |
49 |
 GUSTAZO |
 gourmet tuyo, Pomodoro Tinapa, Bistek Tinapang bangus |
50 |
 XOCOLAT    |
 Bake-to-Order Cookies (Insomnia, Smores, Cookie Monster, Plain Jane) |
If you want to be a food supplier, contact Rockwell UTT Application Form and submit via email to admin@ultimatetastetest.com.
See related Posts:
Rockwell’s Ultimate Taste Test Event
September 3, 2011, Saturday, 11.00 am – 9.00 pm.
Rockwell Tent
Email admin@ultimatetastetest.com.
P585/head. Tickets available at Power Plant Mall Office (Tel. # 8981702) during mall hours or Creative Juice Office (Tel. # 5707827) during office hours.
August 18th, 2011 — Affairs, Appetizer, Cravings, Cuisine, Dessert, Food Foto Fiesta, Fusion, New Brews, Promos / Events
This one’s way overdue…by more than two months 🙂 I may not be able to let you taste the good finds through this article but I can at least let you see how delicious they looked like at the Yummy Eats event held last May 2011.
Starbucks at Yummy Eats
In celebration of Filipinos’ love for good food, YUMMY magazine held its first-ever cooking and eating fair, YUMMY Eats at the NBC Tent, Bonifacio Global City.
“For years, YUMMY magazine has been featuring amazing food finds in the metro. Now that we’re on our fourth year, we feel it’s high time to bring the magazine closer to our readers by having 31 food brands under one roof,†says Frances Ang, associate publisher of YUMMY Magazine.
The event gathered 31 concessionaires specially handpicked by YUMMY magazine.
I think it’s been almost a year since my last Food Foto Fiestaso a photo feature on Yummy Eats is begging.
Here are some which caught our attention:
Plants and Zombies Cupcakes
Hunts and McCormick Rosemary Iced Tea
Wha Pao Siopao
Low Cal Cafe
Fruits In Ice Cream
Lechon
Longaniza
Angry Birds Cupcakes
Participants were also treated to cooking demos from McCormick, Hunt’s, and Saranggani Bay Prime Bangus. It was also an afternoon of learning, as Francis Bautista and Constancio Arabejo from Petron Gasul talked about kitchen safety, while Nowie Potenciano of Mochiko, Pamelo Cinco of Risa Chocolates, and JJ Yulo of Pinoy Eats World discussed new food business ideas.
Hosted by three self-confessed foodies –TV personality Issa Litton, Magic 89.9 deejay CJ Rivera of The Big Meal, and YUMMY magazine’s resident contributor, Chef Aileen Anastacio—YUMMY Eats proved to be one big gathering of food lovers.
And of course, this Yummy Eats article ain’t ending without our NomNom recommendations: The top three spots goes to Divine Desserts, Risa Chocolates, and Tina’s Pie Outlet.
Divine Desserts
Divine Desserts
Home-style dessert shop featuring specialty cakes and desserts made with all natural ingredients baked fresh everyday. The desserts are luscious! I got to try the Wasabe Kitkat Mousse and Double Fudge Cake.
Risa Chocolates
Risa Chocolates
Risa Chocolates is known for delicious handmade chocolates. Their delectable line up includes melt in the mouth truffles, chewy choco chip dough, satisfying chocolate bars, and healthy and tasty cacao nibs.risa’s Chocolate Truffles are simply unforgettable. 🙂
Frozen Merengue Pies
Tina’s Pie Outlet
Although they are famous for savory pies, it’s the Frozen Merengue Pies which I liked at the event.
Completing my Top 10 Finds are:
Also commendable according to my notes are Chef’s Table, Balamban Liempo Cebu, Goodies N’ Sweets, Gourmet Dips and Dressings, and Mochiko.
Chef's Table Dishes
Balamban Liempo Cebu
Gourmet Dips and Dressings
Goodies N' Sweets
Mochiko
Check out the rest of the photos and concessionaires are here:
- Amaya Frozen Caramel
- Big Daddy’s Chicken
- Carmela’s Best Ice Cream
- Cebu Balamban Liempo
- Chef’s Table By Chef Bruce Lim
- Classic Confections
- Divine Desserts
- Farm N Deli Enterprises
- Fruits In Ice Cream
- General’s Lechon
- Gold Leaf Teas
- Goodies N’ Sweets
- Gourmet Dips And Dressings
- Honest JuiceJaq’s Kitchen
- Kusina Ni Maria Catering
- Kusina Teatro
- Little Miss Oc Kitchen
- Lowcal Café Co
- Merry Moo
- Mochiko
- Oriental Basket
- Pinoy Eats World
- Pipino Vegetarian
- Risa Chocolates
- Simply Pie!
- Starbucks
- The Fruit Garden
- Three Instia Road Kitchen
- Tina’s Pie Outlet
- whaPao!
I hope there wil be another Yummy Eats next year ! 🙂 For more of YUMMY online, visit www.YUMMY.ph, become a fan on Facebook via Facebook.com/yummymagazine, and follow them on Twitter via Twitter.com/yummyph.
August 4th, 2011 — Affairs, Appetizer, Cravings, Cuisine, Dessert, Filipino, Fusion, Promos / Events, Western
I was excited to have the privilege of visiting Gardenia’s bread factory yesterday. The Philippines’ top brand in delicious and healthy breads conducted a bloggers’ plant tour for food and lifestyle bloggers. Interestingly, their plant is located along Star Avenue, LIIP Mamplasan, Biñan, Laguna, which is also from the south and near my place in Batangas.
Mr. Nestor Constancia
In the first part of the program, Mr. Nestor Constancia (Marketing and Sales Manager), shared Gardenia’s history and distribution system. We also watched a short AVP about the company’s processes and fully-automated machines. QAF Limited through Gardenia International Pte. Ltd. established Gardenia Bakeries Philippines Inc. In 1997 and started construction of its bakery plant in Laguna Industrial Park (LIIP), Biñan, Laguna. Operation started in 1998 with the state-of-art bread factory rated as one of the most modern large scale bread manufacturing facility in the country. Its highly-automated and major equipments come from bakery suppliers from Germany, Holland, UK and USA.
Gardenia Bread
Moreover, it now has the largest distribution network in the baking industry covering the whole Luzon archipelago; eastern and some western parts of Visayas including Mindoro, Panay, the Negros islands, and Samar; and even as far away as Mindanao. Their efficient distribution system utilizes a fleet of company-owned feeder and delivery vans, as well as the public Roll-On-Roll-Off (RORO) nautical highway system.
Afterwards, we began our plant tour. Once you enter the plant area, you’ll hear a recorded voice-over explaining the processes of each machine in each station. Here is the step-by-step procedures:
1.   Ingredient Preparation
Ingredient Preparation
2.   Sponge Mixing
Sponge Mixing
3.   Fermentation
Fermentation
4.   Dough Mixing
Dough Mixing
5.   Dividing
Dividing
6.   Rounding
Bread Rounding
7.   Intermediate proofing
Intermediate Proofing
8.   Moulding
Moulding
9.   Final Proofing
Final Proofing
10.   Baking
Baking of the Breads
11.   Depanning
Depanning
12.   Cooling (Top Photo)
13.   Slicing
Gardenia Bread Slicing
14.   Automatic Bagging
Automatic Bagging
15.   G-lock
G-lok / G-lock System
16.   Metal Detectors
Metal Detectors (staples) 😛
17.   Distribution
Gardenia Bread Distribution
It was an awesome sight to see the actual breads being made before you eyes, way beyond what the AVP can share. However, we had to view it from a higher angle in an enclosed and air-conditioned viewing section intended for visitors. This is to maintain the quality standards of the factory.
A bread making demo using Gardenia breads, of course, and an open forum with Gardenia officers including Mr. Simplicio P. Umali Jr. (President & General Manager), Mr. Nestor E. Constancia (Marketing & Sales Manager), Ms. Cristina P. Domondon (Manufacturing Manager), Ms. Thea Tan (Marketing Manager), Ms. Merlie Barcelos (QA Manager), and Ms. Aine De Guzman (Nutritionist) followed the interesting plant tour.
Gardenia Plant Tour with the Bloggers
Let me give you some interesting points I learned from the open forum with the officers and this Gardenia Plant Tour experience:
- Gardenia delivers round-the-clock (24-hours) to ensure all convenience stores (or mini-stores) receive freshly baked breads everyday.
-  Gardenia uses a “G-lock’/’G-lok’ system that is distinguished with a color-coded scheme so that it will be easy to locate, open, and re-seal. The plastic clip also indicates the best before date as well as its retail price.
- Upon suggestion of the a guest, Gardenia may consider having a no-crust (edges) bread product in the future. But this merits a prior careful study and a lot of considerations including maintaining the quality of the bread.
- Â Gardenia exerts efforts to be the environment-friendly by collecting old/left-over stocks of bread and gives them to fisheries for feeding.
- Gardenia incorporates big advertising banners and posters on each company owned-feeder and delivery vans as a way of effective advertising in the field.
- It was also interesting to know that Gardenia is open to beneficiaries and discussions with charitable event/institutions in need of bread products.
Open Forum with Gardenia Officers
As their tagline “OH I LOVE GARDENIA! So good… You can even eat it on its own!†(masarap kahit walang palaman) suggests, Gardenia maintain its promise of providing the best quality breads to Filipinos in all possible aspects – freshly baked at all times, smells good, tastes even better, feels soft, and of course, nutritious.
It was an educational Gardenia Plant Tour experience indeed! For more info, you may visit the Gardenia website at http://www.gardenia.com.ph, ‘like’ their page on Facebook, follow them on Twitter, and watch their videos on YouTube.
*Contributed by Shekinah Armenta
May 11th, 2011 — Appetizer, Batangas, Beverage, Casual, Cebu, Cravings, Cuisine, Davao, Dessert, Filipino, Greenhills, Iloilo, Makati, Mandaluyong, Manila, Naga, Paranaque, Pasay, Pasig, places, Quezon City, Quick Service, Restaurants, Tagaytay, Taguig, The Fort, Western, Where To Eat
Have you seen the recent Jollibee commercial? It showed today’s busy and hardworking moms finding it a challenge to get home in time and prepare for a special family dinner. So the father and the kids tried to take on the chore of cooking and the kitchen ended up in a mess, and still without dinner.
When the mother came home, she comforted the family that they could always order through the 8-7000 Jollibee Express Delivery hotline. 🙂 The advertisement highlighted that serving delicious meals can be enjoyed by the whole family with just a phone call.
“Whether daddy wants a piece of crispylicious Chickenjoy, kuya craves for a bite of Champ, ate loves the tasty and meaty Jollibee Spaghetti or bunso wants a delightful cup of Chocolate sundae, busy moms can have all these delivered right at their doorsteps in time for dinner.“
Jollibee treats can be easily made available at home allowing moms to have quality time with the family. So when you are caught in the same situation, just dial 8-7000 (Jollibee Delivery) or log on to www.jollibeedelivery.com (Metro Manila only) . For the complete list of delivery numbers, check out www.jollibee.com.ph.
April 25th, 2011 — Affairs, Appetizer, Cravings, Cuisine, Filipino, New Brews, Promos / Events, Sinaporean, Western
When doing your groceries for yourself or for your family, you always want to buy items that are of great quality, and deals that give you the bang for your buck. For our current economical state, who would blame you? That’s why when I heard SM Hypermarket is introducing their newest finds; I could not pass the opportunity to join them during the launch. True enough, I am happy to share with you healthier options that are very economical and worth your every peso.
Chefs were present during the launch to show us some recipes and cooking techniques using ingredients that we can all buy from SM Hypermarket (Spinach Patties – Top Photo).
Carrot & Pumpkin Soup (left) and Australian Lamb Pochero (right)
Hainanese Chicken, Chicken Fingers, and Mushroom Stuffed Red Capsicums (left-right)
Desserts by Gardenia were also showcased. It’s very easy to do and economical. Here’s how:
Braised Sea Cucumber (left); Mixed Seafood with Scallop (right)
The Fresh Finds at SM Hypermarket are truly the help we all need to survive a trying economy. Head over to the nearest SM Hypermarket and try one of the dishes I mentioned above. For recipes, please contact me so I can send them to you via email.
This is your resident NomNom Club writer, Renz of Pinay Mommy Adreamer saying, our minds are like our stomachs; they are whetted by the change of their food and variety, so eat fresh to think fresh.