Entries Tagged 'Affairs' ↓

If I’m not mistaken, this would be the first time Starbucks Philippines is offering breakfast tapa in their menu. Probably a come-on for those looking for a local taste, the new Starbucks sandwiches for breakfast are available starting today which also includes the Spam Black Pepper, Forest Ham, Breakfast Tapa & Egg, and Ratatouille & Mozzarella Cheese.

Released on a significantly historical day of September 11, the all-day breakfast sandwiches are made available in all Starbucks stores around the Philippines. I hope you are trying one now as you are reading this food blog so you can relate to my feedback.

The new Starbucks breakfast sandwiches has somehow made my breakfast more sophisticated as I’m simply used to either the usual Filipino breakfast of rice with egg and tapa or corned beef, or the more western style of milk and sandwich combo.

Starbucks Forest Ham Sandwich

For example, the Forest Ham is made with slices of forest ham, scrambled egg white and smoked Gouda cheese which makes it more flavorful as a sandwich but with less fat and on healthy toasty oat bread.

The second one is a vegetarian sandwich – the Ratatouille And Mozzarella Cheese (TOP PHOTO). It’s a healthy blend of cheese, spinach, tomatoes, zucchini, eggplant, portobello and shiitake mushrooms, garlic and onions – all packed in-between a multi-grain bread. The usual perception on vegetarian sandwiches is being bland, but this one isn’t. In fact, I love it and wouldn’t have known it was vegetarian.

Starbucks SPAM Black Pepper Sandwich

Beef Tapa with Egg Sandwich

I’d predict the third would be a blockbuster – the Spam Black Pepper. Everyone’s favorite SPAM® is spiced up with black pepper, creamy scrambled egg and layered with melted American Cheddar cheese on cornmeal bread

And finally, Starbucks puts a twist to the traditional favorite Filipino breakfast – the ‘Breakfast Tapa & Egg‘.

Starbucks Philippines added garlic mayonnaise and put it in a whole wheat bread, instead of the staple rice (of course, we’re talking about sandwiches). It was an interesting approach for someone used to having their beef tapa in the morning with rice. 🙂

New Starbucks Breakfast Sandwiches (Starting Sept 11, 2012)

I’ve got the chance to try all the new Starbucks breakfast sandwiches which are all priced similarly at Php 115 (US$2.78), Generally all four are good but my recommendations are the Ratatouille & Mozzarella cheese on multigrain bread and Spam Black Pepper w/ egg & Cheddar cheese on cornmeal bread.

Magnolia Flavor House on Dry-Run (Augugst 2012)

Do you still remember the Magnolia Ice Cream House along Aurora Boulevard?

If it doesn’t ring a bell to you, you might have been too young or were not even born yet in Manila during the 1990’s when the Magnolia Ice Cream parlor was an iconic landmark for families and ice cream lovers. It was the place to be when you talk about banana splits, parfaits, and special ice cream concoctions such as the peach melba sundae.

With the opening of Robinsons’ newest mall – Robinsons Magnolia – in the very same spot where the old Magnolia Ice Cream House once stood, the new Magnolia Ice Cream House was born. The mall itself was named Robninsons Magnolia because of this nostalgic history. It’s now called the Magnolia Flavor House.

New Magnolia Ice Cream House beside Starbucks

The new Magnolia Ice Cream House – the Magnolia Flavor House -  is located in the garden area right beside a Starbucks coffee shop under construction and not within the mall premises.

They were in dry-run last month when we visited the ice cream parlor but I believe the menu selection now would have increased.

Here are some photos of the new Magnolia Ice Cream House in Robinsons Magnolia at night.

Magnolia Ice Cream House

Magnolia Ice Cream House Menu (they now have more selections)

Robinsons Magnolia Garden

This is a photo of the Magnolia Flavor House from the top during the day.

Magnolia Flavor House by day

Magnolia Flavor House (New Magnolia Ice Cream House)
Robinsons Magnolia Garden
Dona Hemady corner Aurora Boulevard, New Manila, Quezon City

We were busy that night with the Samsung Concept Store launch in Robinsons Magnolia so I was not able to dine in. But I’ll make sure to drop by Magnolia Flavor House again, the new Magnolia Ice Cream House, very soon. 🙂

NomNom with Anton Diaz (right) in UTT

In Rockwell’s Ultimate Taste Test 2011, NomNom was able to conquer 51 food stalls. How many would this year’s count be? On September 15 and 16, test your appetite and set your own records at Rockwell’s 2nd Ultimate Taste Test happening at Rockwell Tent as brought to us by Anton Diaz‘ Our Awesome Planet together with San Miguel Lifestyle Brews and more.

This two-day food tasting event happens from 11 in the morning up until 9 in the evening of both days. Get to taste samplings from over 40 home-based food businesses, concessionaires, and Power Plant mall establishments as they set up shop to have food lovers, connoisseurs, and foodies, become ” food critics for a day.“

Food Rating Activity

Rockwell’s ltimate Taste Test traditional ratings of the food by the visitors within the scale of 1 to 5, with 5 being the highest, will be one of the event’s highlights. The top performing food stalls with the average rating of 3.8 and above, will be specially features in Anton Daiz’s Our Awesome Planet blog in October 2012.

Rockwell’s Ultimate Taste Test 2011 Score Sheet

Purchase Tickets

The ticket rates for the tenth (10th) edition of the Ultimate Taste Test  (UTT) is at P585/person/day or P1,000/person for 2 days. This covers the food taste portions and a bottle of San Miguel Super Dry, Premium All-Malt or Cerveza Negra (age 18 and above).

Buy the tickets from Creative Juice Office (Tel. # 5707827) during office hours or Rockwell Customer Care (Tel. # 8981702) during mall hours . You may also email admin@ultimatetastetest.com for questions and inquiries.

Rockwell’s Ultimate Taste Test 2012

For Interested Food Suppliers

Interested in becoming one of the food suppliers? Email the organizers at admin@ultimatetastetest.com. 

Buy your tickets now as only 1,000 tickets to be sold are allocated per day. See you at Rockwell’s Ultimate Taste Test 2 in 10 days! 🙂

Diet with Exercise

Onwards to the third week of my “Healthier Me” journey, the C-lium-based breakfast diet continues as I took it every morning with my drink. Now it’s time to focus and learn more things about fiber and its association in losing weight. Allow me to share some interesting facts about fiber from clium.com.ph.

Here are some fiber facts:

Fiber promotes healthy digestion

As I have mentioned in a previous article. One of the major and immediately visible effects of taking C-lium fiber is a regular and comfortable bowel movement. More than just making your visit to the toilet more regular and consistent, you would notice a softer stool (pardon the graphic description). 🙂

Moving on, the site also mentions that a high-fiber diet helps reduce the risk of digestive track related diseases.

Fiber for healthy digestion

Fiber helps reduce the risk of heart disease

The C-lium website indicates that fiber has the ability to bind with bile acids, which is effective in absorbing fats. These then demand more bad cholesterol to be converted to bile acids and are excreted.

The explanation is actually a bit technical for me, but somehow we do get the picture.:)

Sources of fiber include a cereal drink like the new Milo Overload, apples, oatmeal, brown rice, and of course, C-lium Fibre whose one sachet serving gives the most fiber! 🙂

C-Lium FIber Health Journal and Exercise Tips

Fiber Sources

Daily Fiber Requirements

We always hear about marketers and encouraging words from heath gurus about how good fiber is for our health.

But just how much fiber do we actually need or should have?

For good health, an average of 25-35 grams of fiber daily is the recommended dosage. However, a regular individual usually only consumes about 15 grams of fiber per day.

Here are some tips on how to increase your fiber intake:

1. For breakfast, having a slice of wheatbread is a good start!
2. Eat fruits
3. Include more clean raw vegetables, salads, and greens with your meals
4. Eat brown rice instead of white!
5. Add a sachet or tablespoon of C-lium in your daily fiber intake.

*Fiber facts and iformation  source: C-Lium Website

What’s Your Fiber Diet?

We’re midway in this C-lium Fiber “Healthier Me” journey. I’m excited for the upcoming check-up this September to discover some medical health findings on how much I have improved after a month. 🙂

SM Master Chefs @ SM Hypermarket

From the success of last year’s SM Master Chefs, SM Hypermarket launches SM Master Chefs 2012 in a festive gathering of top brands, media, and bloggers at SM Hypermarket Cubao last August 16, 2012.

The grand launch in SM Hypermarket was participated in by SM Master Chefs brands namely Unilever, San Miguel, Nestle, Bounty Fresh, and CDO.

Of course, there were cooking demonstrations as well by the aforementioned brands led by their top chefs namely:

• Chef RJ Garcia (San Miguel)
• Chef Pau Sia (Unilever Food Solutions)
• Chef Arnold Bernardo (Bounty Fresh)
• Chef Tess Sulito (Nestle)
• Chef Menoy Gimenez (CDO)

Chef RJ Garcia of San Miguel

Chef Pau Sia of Unilever – Knorr

Chef Arnold Bernardo of Bounty Fresh

Chef Menoy Gimenez of CDO

Chef Tess Sulito of Nestle

SM Master Chefs 2012

This year’s SM Master Chefs has three (3) main components: the Recipe Contest, the Cooking Marathon, and the Carinderia Makeover.

SM Master Chefs 2012

Recipe Contest

SM Master Chefs recipe contest was conceptualized with the SM Hypermarket customer in mind and it is easy to participate in.

Just buy your ingredients at SM Hypermarket and whip up a great tasting and, if possible, a unique recipe using any of the SM Master brands. You are then now eligible to join and get the chance to win and be hailed as one of the thirty three SM Master Chefs for 2012. Just bring your finished product to any SM Hypermarket store on judging day.

Cooking Marathon

A big hit from last year’s SM Master Chefs was the cooking marathon, it is included again in this year’s program to the delight of the grocery shoppers who witness these beneficial and knowledge-enriching cooking demonstrations by the master brand chefs.

It is brought back this year with new recipes from master brands Bounty Fresh, CDO, Nestle, Purefoods, Magnolia and Unilever Food Solutions – Knorr. Each will have a featured chef who will go around the 34 branches of SM Hypermarket every week in three months (which started August 21) for cooking demonstrations. The best thing about this is that they are for free!

Please see the Cooking Marathon schedule below:

SM Master Chefs Cooking Marathon Schedule

Carinderia Makeover

Small businesses and entrepreneurs in the food service business are in for a treat from SM Hypermakret!

If you run a karinderia, catering, or small restaurant business, then you can own a brand new kitchen and dining area furnished by SM Hypermarket with SM Master Chefs Free Carinderia Makeover!

SM Hypermarket is giving away a free makeover of their kitchen and dining area to five lucky and deserving food business operators in order to help them sustain their operations. With a minimum P500 worth of groceries inclusive of two sponsor brands or a fully stamped loyalty card, food business owners get a chance to win a makeover.

SM Master Chefs Master Brand Booths @ the Launch

What can you say about the SM Master Chefs program? I’m surely sharing all these great news from SM Hypermarket and about the SM Master Chefs 2012 with my mom.

C-Lium Fiber Box 30s

If you’ve read my article a few weeks ago on “Starting My Journey To A Healthier Me,” this is the second in the series.

And so I started taking C-Lium by mixing it with my morning drink which is either milk, coffee, or a chocolate drink. I tried a beverage mix with oats initially, but I found it in excess when mixed with C-Lium fiber so I settled only with the first three.

I belatedly learned that once C-Lium has been mixed with the beverage, it should be immediately consumed as the small fiber granules expand with time. Personally, I didn’t mind even if the granules has thickened already because they’re still soft; even chewy. 🙂

Reading the label is also a good practice to know the actual contents of whatever you take into your body. C-lium’s Nutritional facts label indicate that dietary fiber is C-lium’s main component being made 100% natural from premium Psyllium fiber husk.

C-Lium Fiber Labels

C-Lium Fiber Health Benefits

It doesn’t have any bad side effects, but on the other hand, can lower ones bad cholesterol, blood sugar levels, and remove excess weight.

Although 1 week of use (during the 1st week of August) may be too short a time to conclude on the above-mentioned effects, what I immediately felt was my softer bowel movement. I can’t say it became regular because I already have a regular bowel movement ever since. What I really noticed is the softer stools, which is good (pardon the visual imagination you are currently experiencing).

C-Lium Fiber Sachets

C-Lium Fiber for My Breakfast

C-Lium Benefits

I just take half to one-pack of the 5g sachet of C-Lium a day which is equivalent to one tablespoon. I heard others can take as much as 3 sachets, perhaps distributed to all the day’s meals. I say try it first with one sachet pack and see how your body responds to it and adjust accordingly when necessary.

How about you? Have you tried C-Lium Fiber on your breakfast as well? Feel free to share your personal stories in the comment section below.

Angel’s Pizza ETON Cyberpod

In a bold move to cater to the mall-going crowd, Angel’s Pizza opened its newest branch at ETON Cyberpod in Ortigas. This is the call-center-dominated mall across Robinsons Galleria crossing Ortigas Avenue.

Simply a pedestrian crossing away from Robinsons, the new Angel’s Pizza ETON Cyberpod still focuses on delivery to nearby customers in offices and condominiums. This is evident through the 6 customer-seat capacity of the pizza store mainly due to the big kitchen space necessary for a pizza chain where the dough and pizza are created.

Angel’s Pizza First Customer

The opening ceremony started with a blessing of the store. Passers-by were also treated to some free pizza slices through out the day in conjunction with the 30% Off whole-day first-day promo.

NomNom got to try some of the pizza flavors and even take home a box of pizza courtesy of Angel’s.

Angel’s Pepperoni PIzza

You may consider this new branch as a transfer from their former branch in the Pasig area (near Julia Vargas corner Meralco Avenue) which has now closed.

Angel’s Pizza ETON Cyberpod
UP/G ETON Cyberpod, Corinthian, EDSA corner Ortigas Avenue.
Angel’s Pizza Delivery: 922-2222

Their “Double Deal”  all-day promo is still ongoing where you can get 2 pizzas for the price of 1 on selected flavors. Kudos to Angle’s Pizza ETON Cyberpod for this bold move of having a mall-based branch.

SM Hypermarket Cainta Now Open!

SM Hypermarket brought life to a gloomy, rainy day last August 14, 2012 as the 34th branch of SM Hypermaket opened along Felix Avenue (former Imelda Ave.) in Cainta, Rizal.

The new store brought some festive mood to Cainta recovering from the recent calamity as it opened with exciting promos and discounts. There were also celebrity meet and greet segments which included Georgina Wilson, Jake Vargas and Tippy dos Santos.

Papa Dan of 97.1 Barangay LS also entertained first day shoppers, plus trivia games for extra fun before the store opened at 3pm..

SM Hypermarket Cainta Ribbon Cutting

SM Hypermarket Cainta, Rizal

Some media personnel were given a brief tour of the supermarket showcasing its different sections and areas catering to different needs of the mass market from consumer goods to apparels, appliances, and electronics.

SM Hypermarket Sections

SM Hypermarket Areas

SM Hypermarket Fresh

SM Hypermarket Hydro Spray

SM Hypermarket Cainta in the same way upheld SM Hypermarket‘s focus of being a one-stop shop of almost everything a consumer needs from food to non-food items; plus services such as bills payment and money transfer.

SM Hypermarket Outreach

In related relief efforts, SM Hypermarket reached out to its new community and donated food relief packs for victims of monsoon floods in the municipality. Over 2,000 packs of food relief items were donated.

SM Hypermarket Cainta Relief Donations for Rizal

Photo shows SM Hypermarket president Robert Kwee handing over the packs to (L-R) Cainta Mayor Mon Ilagan, Rizal Vice Governor Ross Glenn Gongora, Bgy. Sto. Domingo chairman Boy Sulit and Ms. Veron Ilagan.

Opening promos and discounts

• Bonus with SM Hypermarket’s Value Packs – save as much as 80% in bundled items that come with free SM Bonus products.
• Buy One Get One – free on breads, eggs, meat and other grocery items
• Price Markdowns – on your favorite brands and home essentials to make the opening truly rewarding for Cainta shoppers.
• SM Advantage Card, BDO Rewards and Prestige card holders can enjoy member exclusive promos when they swipe their card into the SWIPE machine located at the store entrance.

SM Hypermarket Cainta Grand Opening Programme

SM Hypermarket Tagline: “Happy To Serve”

It was a rainy opening day indeed, but it did not prevent the people from flocking to SM Hypermaket Cainta. Congratulations to SM Hypermarket and may you continue to “serve happily.”