Entries Tagged 'Cravings' ↓

Starbucks Philippines launched the new ‘However-You-Want-It Frappuccino® blended beverage‘ last Monday.

Soy Green Tea Cream Frappuccino Blended Beverage

Basically, it allows customers to create a blended beverage of their liking. You can choose to add a variety of fresh milk or soy to your Frappuccino beverage.

Moreover, you could indicate the intensity of your coffee and pick any combination of toppings and syrups in the same way a Starbucks espresso beverage can be customized.

Among the featured Frappuccino® blended beverage creations are the Extra Coffee Caramel and Soy Green Tea Cream Frappuccino® Blended Beverage

The Starbucks Extra Coffee Caramel is a coffee-intense concoction of caramel syrup combined with new Starbucks Frappuccino® roast coffee, milk, blended with ice and topped with whipped cream and a swirl of buttery caramel sauce.

On the other hand, the Soy Green Tea Cream Frappuccino® blended beverage is made with matcha powder and soy milk, blended with ice and topped with whipped cream.

Extra Coffee Caramel Frappuccino Blended Beverage

Furthermore, Starbucks Philippines elaborates on the new soy options as quoted:

“From soy combinations to those that limit the number of calories, customers can now select their favorite ingredients to find a Frappuccino® blended beverage to meet their dietary needs.  By choosing nonfat milk with sugar-free syrup, a Tall (12 fl. oz) blended beverage has only 100 calories, while doubling the Starbucks® Frappuccino® roast coffee and skipping the syrup will intensify the taste, without increasing the sugar.”

Check out http://www.frappuccino.com.ph/ and enjoy your Starbucks However-You-Want-It Frappuccino® blended beverage.

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:

• Gardenia Tuna Maki Rolls
• Gardenia Frozen Delight

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.

In light of the Holy Week, which is much observed in the Catholic-dominated Philippines, here is a short list of restaurants’ non-meat lenten season specials:

• Marriott Cafe’s Ocean’s Surf Seafood Buffet
• Max’s Seafood Fest
• Figaro’s Kani Sandwich
• Yoshinoya’s Century Bangus Kabayaki

Have a solemn Holy Thursday and Good Friday ahead.

Century Bangus in Pack (available in groceries)

When Yoshinoya invited us to a bloggers’ dinner a few weeks ago to taste their newest addition to the menu, I did not expect much.

But when the Century Bangus Kabayaki was presented at Century Culinary Circle in Ortigas, I was pleasantly surprised.

Century Bangus Kabayaki

Specifically the belly part, the Century brand of bangus is lightly breaded and deep-fried. I also like the fact that the bangus belly serving is large enough, just right for the whole rice bowl.

Complementing the soft flesh of the bangus, it is glazed with a special Unagi-like kabayaki sauce which gives it the flavorful aroma and savory taste.

Kabayaki is the Japanese term that refers to filleted/deboned seafood dish dipped in a sweet soy-based sauce and grilled.

Yoshinoya Shrimp Katsu (left) & Century Bangus Kabayaki (right)

 

Yoshinoya Shrimp Katsu

Shrimp Katsu

The other dish is the Shrimp Katsu which is basically a deep-fried and breaded shrimp patty. The Shrimp Katsu pair I got comes with mixed vegetables and priced at P140. However, it came off too ordinary for me. I’d rather recommend you to get the Shrimp Katsu with Beef Bowl for just an additional P45 ( P185).

Yoshinoya Menu's Lenten Offerings

Back to Century Bangus Kabayaki

At P140, the Century Bangus Kabayaki meal comes with rice and bean sprouts. I always consume a minimal amount of rice as a personal weight-watch regimen. But with the Century Bangus Kabayaki, I was able to finish the whole bowl. 🙂

Tip: Although the bangus is deboned, it is not 100% boneless, eat it slowly and watch out for small bones. 🙂

Piolo Pascual & Century Bangus!

Piolo Pascual or not, I highly recommend this new Yoshinoya offering. 🙂 You have to try it soon because this will only last in Yoshonoya branches unitl mid-May 2011. Century Bangus Kabayaki is also fit for the upcoming Lenten season.

The Holy Week has traditionally started in the Philippines with Palm Sunday being yesterday. Here are Figaro‘s lenten special offerings for their customers to keep them satisfied without the guilt. 🙂

Kani Sandwich

Figaro’s Kani Sandwich is filled with yummy crab sticks and garnished with lettuce and tomatoes in potato bread. Although the bread quality could still be improved, I love the generous serving of crabsticks in between. More than that, it tastes really good and satisfying with the light mayo dressing packing ’em all together.

At P179, it is served with a salad  of lettuce and ripe tomatoes on the side (again) which is different from the one with the crab sticks to further compliment the filling.

Figaro Chili Sardine Angel Hair Pasta

Chili Sardine Angel Hair Pasta

The chili is actually light, which is good for me. Figaro’s Angel Hair Pasta is mixed with Spanish sardines sauteed in garlic, olive oil, dried chili flakes, onions and black olives. Tossed in angel hair pasta., it is further garnished with finely-chopped parsley and Parmesan cheese. All the  ingredients and its flavors make the whole serving a little complicated to the taste but they all blend well together for that sophisticated taste.

“The saltiness of the fish melts with the sour and salty taste of the black olives exploding in flavors of the spices, onions, garlic and chili flakes,” says an article I read. At P180, it is served with 2 toast bread on the side and a choice of beverage from Figaro coffee or the new Figaro’s Summer Frosts.

Figaro Kani Sandwich

However, in the end, I’m not really a fan of Sardines so  I still prefer the Kani Sandwich. 🙂 Both are shareable enough with the Kani sandwich being served as a pair of triangular slices.

Figaro is going “Light for Life” with their Lenten special snacks that is Kani Sandwich and Chili Sardine Angel Hair Pasta.

"Better Pizza starts in the Kitchen"

Pizza stores are on a roll in the Philippines, I think. In the last six months, I was invited to press launches and gatherings in relation to almost all the following developments:

• Pizza Hut added Venus Raj in the list of its celebrity endorsers.
• Pizza Palace opened in Makati Avenue.
• Domino’s Pizza came back in the Philippines and the 2nd branch just opened in Pasig.
• Greenwich has combined it’s two top endorsers John Lloyd Cruz and Anne Curtis into one commercial.
• Angel’s Pizza is beefing up its marketing

Dining at Papa John's

Moreover, I also heard about Papa John’s Pizza having also entered the Philippine market. However, it was only last March when I got to try the pizza brand in their Robinsons Galleria Veranda branch.

The Veranda is one of the newest foodie hangout in the Ortigas area as part of Robinsons Galleria‘s answer to the market’s increasing demand. It was also my first time in the Veranda and they have an intresting mix of restaurants and food spots. More about the Veranda restaurants this month of April.

Back to Papa John’s, I was able to try a bite of their Chicken BBQ and Fisherman’s Catch flavors in both large, hand-tossed, and thin crust servings.

The Chicken BBQ pizza consists of grilled chicken, bacon bits, and onions. I love the sweet and tangy BBQ sauce lining the top layer.

Large 14" Chicken BBQ Pizza by Papa John's

The Fisherman’s Catch is a combination of shrimps, calamari, green peppers, onions, and signature garlic sauce. Ideal for the upcoming lent, the Fisherman’s Catch is a good one. Other lenten specials options include Garden Special, Simply Cheese, and Margherita Special).

Large 14" Fisherman's Catch Pizza by Papa John's

Papa John's Pizza Box

After tasting them, I knew then that founder “Papa” John Schnatter got it right. I believe they will be able to capture the Filipino palate and go a long way.

Both 14″ large pizzas are priced P530 ( 12″Medium – P430 ; 9″Small – P300 ; Jr. Papa – P150 ).

But the star of our meal was the Super Papa.

As its name suggests, Super Papa seem to have it all with the combination of pepperoni, Italian sausage, ham, mushrooms, onions, green peppers & black olives.

At P550, this is NomNom’s recommendation among the three (although all three were superb, promise).

Large 14" Super Papa Pizza by Papa John's

Papa John's @ the Veranda, Robinson's Galleria

Although their pricing levels are a little above the average ones we have in the market, the taste and quailty of their hand-tossed pizzas seem to match it. Better ingredients, better pizza, indeed.

Check out Papa John’s at the Veranda in Robinson’s Galleria. I sure am going back, Mama!

😛

A yummy cool surprise greeted me last week when I flew back from Singapore – I found a set of Selecta Hershey’s Ice Cream Collection for sampling and review in our freezer. The flavors included Hershey’s Milk Chocolate, Milk Chocolate with Almonds, Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups, and Hershey’s Kisses. Awesome!

Hershey's Chocolate Shop in Universal Studios Singapore

It quickly gave me flashbacks of the Hershey’s chocolate store I just visited at the Universal Studios in Singapore right beside Resorts World Sentosa. It was a chocoholic’s dream come true going into a shop full of Hershey’s chocolates in all forms and variants.

(Flashback ends) Ok, back to the ‘now.’ All my friends know I’m an ice cream lover, in what ever brand or form it may come. Although of course, I do prefer some flavors over another.

Needless to say, I had to try all four flavors in four different sittings. And after trying out the Selecta Hershey’s Ice Cream flavors one by one, I tried them again all at the same time just to be sure in the ‘taste analysis’ I conducted myself. 🙂

Hershey's Milk Chocolate Ice Cream

And the verdicts are…..

Milk Chocolate

It’s Hershey’s classic milk chocolate transformed into ice cream. This is for the Hershey’s Milk Chocolate loyalists who wants it as it is and in no other way.

Hershey's Milk Chocolate with Almonds Ice Cream

Milk Chocolate with Almonds

This is my better version of the Milk Chocolate variant because of the chewy chocolate chips, thicker chocolate ripples, and nutty texture care of the almonds.

However, I do believe there’s still some room for more chocolate chips and roasted almonds. 😛

Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups Ice Cream

Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups

This is the odd one among the four. But that’s just me. I’m not a fan of Reese’s chocolates which explains everything.

But if you love Reese’s Chocolates or the peanut butter flavor, there’s no reason why you shouldn’t like this one as chunks of Reese’s peanut butter cups are spread all over.

Hershey's Kisses Ice Cream

Hershey’s Kisses

This one’s a twin swirl of milk chocolate and white chocolate ice cream sprinkled with cookie crumbles, chocolate ripples, and of course, bits of Hershey’s Kisses. I love how the whites gave my palette some rest from the slew of chocolate ice creams. 🙂

It was a hard choice for me in deciding between this and the Milk Chocolate with Almonds. In the end, I had to choose one.

There you go! Ice cream manufacturers understandably continue to try creating interesting ice cream flavors to satisfy the modern market’s ever demanding taste. But combining Unilever’s ice cream with one of the most loved chocolate brand on the world, how can it go wrong, right? 🙂

And the winner is…

All four variants has the same Hershey’s chocolate base that is undeniably creamy. But I like the mixture and added texture provided by the chocolate chips, almonds, and chocolate swirls of the Milk Chocolate with Almonds. It’s my winner with the Hershey’s Kisses coming in close second.

Hershey's Kisses Ice Cream (right) is my 2nd best choice

Pulling from their tagline “sarap ng weekend ‘pag may pure Hershey’s happiness,” I say weekend or no weekend, it’s an ice cream holiday for me, anytime, everytime.

Selecta Hershey’s Ice Cream Collection

The new Selecta Hershey’s Ice Cream Collection comes in 800mL (P135) and 1.5L (P240) packs and are now available in supermarkets, groceries or convenience stores nationwide. The Milk Chocolate variant is a priced a little lower at P125 and P225 for the 800mL and 1.5L, respectively.

Pizza Hut just got a new major major endorser for their new Stuffed Crust Pizza in the person of the charming and world class beauty titlist Maria Venus Raj.

You should be seeing the new TV commercials today introducing Venus Raj as Pizza Hut’s newest celebrity endorser in addition to Diether Ocampo.

Last night, in an intimate dinner with bloggers, we were introduced to Pizza Hut’s new TVC which exuded class and sophistication with Venus Raj clad in the evening gown she actually wore during the Miss Universe pageant where she won 4th Runner-Up.

Venus Raj & Pizza Hut Stuffed Crust Pizza

You would see more of this TVC tonight at the Bb. Pilipinas Beauty Pageant Grand Coronation Night on ABS-CBN.

Pizza Hut’s Stuffed Crust pizza

A product of creativity preferred to be eaten backwards by some, Pizza Hut has long introduced the Stuffed Crust Pizza – cheese baked right into the crust. This time around, Pizza Hut is treating its customers with 25% more cheese as a thanksgiving of sorts.

“We noted the Filipinos love for cheese, and this is evident in every dish we do at home thus, we made our New Stuffed Crust Pizza even cheesier with 25% more major, major cheese; for Filipinos to enjoy. As we are the only Pizza Restaurant that serves Stuffed Crust, we made sure that this re-launch will hit it big to our consumers by adding more cheese as a way of thanking them in loving our Stuffed Crust Pizza through the years” says Edgar Allan L. Caper, Advertising and Promotions Manager of Pizza Hut Philippines.

Interestingly, the 25% more cheese is not stuffed to the crust, but as a layer topping.

For the budget conscious, take advantage of their P499 promo which already includes 2 family stuffed crust pizza or the P699 promo which includes more.

Major Major Stuffed Crust Feast - Valid for take out and delivery from April 8 to May 23,2011

Pizza Hut
Website www.pizzahut.com.ph
Facebook facebook.com/pizzahutphilippines
Pizza Hut Delivery 911-11-11

But wait, there’s more! How about some free Pizza Hut Stuffed Crust Pizza for you and your family from NomNom Club, Venus Raj, and Pizza Hut? Then watch out for that special announcement on April 15, 2011 here at NomNomClub.com