Entries Tagged 'Cravings' ↓

My Sunday was spent lazily at home. Being very busy for so long as I can remember, it has been months since the last time I spent the whole day lounging around the house and doing nothing. It was a healthy welcome respite.

I got to catch up with some cooking shows and foodie features on cable TV, and surf the net that’s not part of work. 🙂

Healthy Cravings with Iza Calzado & Chef Jeremy Favia on QTV

What interestingly took my attention was the local ‘Healthy Cravings‘ show with Iza Calzado and Chef Jeremy Favia on QTV yesterday morning. They featured a salad concoction using the regular pechay instead of the usual iceberg lettuce. Pechay turns out to have more nutrition value than its counterpart, more affordable, and readily available.

The cooking shows tickled my long-time fancy as a chef. When the show was over, I hungered for more and checked out the internet which led me to the foodie site Kitchenomics.com. The site provided relevant information for chef wannabes like me or moms looking for affordable and nutritious meals for their families.

I suddenly remembered mom who always made sure weekend family meals are made extra-special because everyone’s at home; the family was complete.

Ok, this is a foodie blog, not a personal blog. 🙂 Enough of the drama, back to Kitchenomics. 🙂

Kitchenomics Tips and Resources

The site also offered membership where benefits include access to Del Monte Kitchenomics’ library of practical and delicious meals. And just like being members of NomNom Club, Kitchenomics members would be the first to know of exclusive events and promos – something I think that really ‘clicks‘ nowadays. 🙂

Kitchenomics.com 'Submit A Recipe'

Further exploring the website reveals features which facilitates interaction with other foodies by sharing recipes, tips, and expert culinary resources. My favorite though is the Kitchen Tools and Equipments section because it can serve as my reference for kitchen equipments whose names I always forget. 🙂

Kitchen Tools and Equipments

Enough of the watching and the reading. Putting these gathered foodie knowledge from Kitchenomics.com into action would be a good agenda for the upcoming long holy weekend where I’ll be stuck at home. 🙂

From a list of almost 500 restaurants endorsed and nominated by Spot.ph readers last year, the judges thereafter shortlisted the nominees. This lead to the announcement  of 13 admired restaurants in each of their categories recently concluded at the Nescafe Gold Spot Awards 2009.

Encore (previous Embassy Superclub) was filled with food industry players, food enthusiasts and the media for an afternoon of foodie glamor and tasty anticipation for the would-be winners of Nescafe Gold Spot Awards 2009.

Nominees, Foodie Enthusiasts and Guests

This year’s judges include Chef Aileen Anastacio, Yummy editor-in-chief Becky Kho, Chef Him Uy de Baron, award-winning blogger Franco of Table for Three Please, food writer and blogger JJ Yulo and actress Cherie Gil.

Ms. Myrza Sison, Editr-in-Chief of Spot.ph with Jonel Uy of NomNomClub.com Food Blog

Mr. Logan O’Brien, Consumer Marketing Manager, Coffee Business Unit, Nestle Philippines

Sponsored by Nescafe, online voting via Spot.ph ended last January 31, 2010. With more than 250,000 votes cast for 55 restaurants in 11 categories (2 categories were purely by the judges), without further adieu,

Manila’s Best Restaurants for 2009 are:

Best Japanese Restaurant – Inagiku
Best Filipino Restaurant – Abe
Best Steakhouse – 22 Prime
Best Delicatessen – Santi’s Delicatessen
Best Bar – Cav Wine Bar and Bistro
Best Chinese Restaurant – Shang Palace
Best Italian Restaurant – Paparazzi
Best Buffet – Spiral
Best Dessert Place – Cupcakes by Sonja

*Best Restaurant Chain – Cibo
*Best Service – Cibo

*New Restaurant of the Year – Lusso
*Restaurant of the Year – Lolo Dad’s

*Best Restaurant Chain and Best Service was solely determined by readers through mobile and online votes while New Restaurant of the Year and Restaurant of the Year were purely from the panel of judges.

22 Prime - Best Steakhouse

Inagiku - Best Japanese Restaurant

Cav Wine Bar And Bistro - Best Bar

Santi's Delicatessen - Best Deli

Abe - Best Filipino Restaurant

Cupcakes By Sonja - Best Dessert Place

Best Buffet - Spiral

Best Chinese Restaurant - Shang Palace

Paparazzi - Best Italian Restaurant

Cibo is the only one which brought home the bacon for two categories while Lolo Dad’s got the most coveted title of Restaurant of the Year.

I have tried Lolo Dad’s Brasserie in Makati where I met Chef Ariel Manuel but I haven’t been to their main branch in Malate. I hope to do so soon.

I shared these information earlier online on-the-spot during the event through my twitter, plurk, and facebook network accounts. Among my networks, Shang Palace got the most cheers which tinkled my fancy about the restaurant.

I want to visit Shang Palace very soon! Congratulations to this year’s Nescafe Gold Spot Awardees!

Lead by president Erwin Elechicon, Chowking recently celebrated its 25th year in the foodservice industry with a familiar vibrant color.

Jericho Rosales for Orange Chicken

Chowking President Mr. Erwin Elechicon

Last week, the Fort Bonifacio branch was immediately filled with bloggers, cosplayers, celebrities, and Chowking’s own Managing Director Edward Arandia and Brand Group Manager Chris Monteron.

Chowking Managing Director Edward Arandia

The event’s highlight was famous local actor Jericho Rosales who is also their latest endorser for Chowking’s newest product – the  OH!some OH!range Chicken.

As expected, the presence of Jericho brought the house down with cheers and jeers especially from the female admirers. Also known as “Echo“, Jericho is game with almost everything and readily interacted with the crowd without any of the negative superstar complex. Something rare in the entertainment industry. Hats off to Jericho.:)

Now, for the OH!some OH!range Chicken, Chef Rosebud Benitez introduced it as Chowking’s newest serving of crispy chicken with the orange twist.

OH!some OH!range Chicken

The OH!some OH!range Chicken rice topping meal was served with chunks of the crispy chicken, rice on the side, an orangy and tangy amber-colored glaze syrup, and some real mandarin orange bits.

The Orange Chicken rice chow meal is priced at P69 while the lauriat with crispy noodles, chicharap, and buchi is P99. The Salo-Salo set for sharing is P125.

Orange Chicken Rice Chow Meal

The deal looked enticing and Oh!some with its color and real orange bits. It smelled good too. However, the product can still be improved with lesser breadings on the chicken meat and some more orange syrup just like in the product photos.

They also need to work on the consistency of the ‘tenderness’ of the chicken meat. I’m not too sure though if this was just an effect of the cold dishes served that night.

I would  have to say though that the program was fantastic. The party’s level of energy was always high led by Jericho’s oh!some chicken dance. Crowd participation was more than satisfactory. Surely, the videos of the varied chicken dances are now all over the internet and YouTube. 🙂 If the info I got was correct, it was not surprising that I discovered later on that Robbie Carmona, who was also present at the party, organized the oh!some event.

With over 400 branches, Cheers to Chowking‘s 25th year in the food industry! I’m a lauriat suki and the Chowking halo-halo is always a great heat quencher for me especially now that it’s summer.

Sounds familiar? I bet. But this is not your chocolate bar snack, it’s your chocolate flavored Jollibee Sundae.

Jollibee Sundae Toppings

Perhaps trying to move beyond the seasonal stereotype of having Jollibee sundaes only during a hot day or summer, Jollibee is trying to gear their sundae concoctions as something you’d want during a break.

To let call center professionals experience a similar break from work, Jollibee recently visited Sykes Asia call center in Marikina City and surprised  them  with a Jollibee Sundae treat.

It came in three flavors: Rocky Road Brownie Sundae, Black Forest Sundae, and Chocolate Sundae. The target was for about 600 call center agents to experience the sweet and satisfying break with their colleagues..

Syjes Asia Call Center Agents

Yes, I was there. Lucky me,…or so you thought. I had a bad case of colds and cough that day so I had to endure watching them with my favorite servings of sundae.

Jollibee Sundae and Toppings

Although my favorite is the vanilla sundae cone, you can have more options with Jollibee‘s Rocky Road Brownie Sundae and the Black Forest Sundae priced at P36, while the Chocolate Sundae is at P29.

For my personal opinion, although the generous serving of chocolate syrup makes you feel the worth of your buck, I think it can get overly sweet. I hope for more of my sundae and lesser of the chocolate syrup.

My cough is almost gone today, hello Jollibee sundae!

Fifty-two photo entries, three weeks, and one engaging photo contest – this is how we describe Red Ribbon’s Chocolate Heaven cake online contest.

After launching their newest uber-chocolatey cake, Red Ribbon immediately announced the start of Chocolate Heaven cake photo contest looking for the photo that “best expresses how chocolatey the cake is.” Check out the mechanics and article.

One week after the end of the online contest last March 10, 2010, 5 judges from Red Ribbon was able to come up with the top 3 best photos. They had a hard time as there were a lot of very good entries!

Red Ribbon would like to thank all those 52 heavenly entries for participating.

Without further adieu, the winners are:

1st – Jenniffer Go’s “Choco Fingers”
2nd – Rose Declaro Obias’ “Heavenly Sinful”
3rd – Camille Zaballa’s “Gusto Ko Pa!“

Congratulations to the winners!

1st – Jenniffer Go’s “Choco Fingers”

Jenniffer Go's "Choco Fingers" : Mama told me to never play with my food, but I guess we can make an exemption with Red Ribbon's Chocolate Heaven Cake...

2nd – Rose Declaro Obias’ “Heavenly Sinful”

Rose Declaro Obias' "Heavenly Sinful" : To an innocent child, this sinful yummy treat from Red Ribbon is heavenly. To him, he is in Chocolate Heaven with his every bite.

3rd – Camille Zaballa’s “Gusto Ko Pa!”

Camille Zaballa's "Gusto Ko Pa!" : I never knew what heaven was until mommy introduced me to Red Ribbon Chocolate Heaven. Ooh baby, do you know what that's worth? Ooh heaven is a place on earth.

The grand winner receives P3000 worth of Red Ribbon gift certificates, the second placer receives P2000 worth of Red Ribbon gift certificates while the third gets P1000 worth of GCs.

They will be contacted/emailed for their addresses where the gift certificates will be couriered anywhere in the Philippines.

For those who wants to join another contest, check out this Havaianas Flip-Flop USB giveaway!

Continue to enjoy the heavenly Red Ribbon Chocolate Heaven cake!

Remember last month’s feature on ‘Food Spots this Valentines‘ with ‘All You Need is Lamb‘ promo? It’s extended until March 31, 2010!

It was actually a follow through of the successful ‘In Love With Lamb‘ campaign by Meat and Livestock Australia.

‘All You Need Is Lamb‘ encourages diners to make every day special with the “celebration meat.” Dishes made with delectable Australian Lamb can bring a festive mood to holidays and any occasion such as Graduation Day.

Lamb is actually versatile in the kitchen, it can be an alternative to the Filipino classics like Caldereta, Adobo and Inihaw.

All You Need Is Lamb

Mechanics:

Visit any Metro Manila branch of Monterey Meat Shop and purchase at least 1 kilo of fresh meat products. Every single receipt entitles you to a limited edition All You Need Is Lamb recipe card and fridge magnet set.

You can also visit partner restaurants and hotels, order two (2) dishes, including existing Lamb offers and specials made with Australian Lamb Shank or Shoulder. As a treat, you’ll receive a limited edition All You Need Is Lamb 2010 planner. Quite late for a planner this time of the year, but still doable. 🙂

Participating Metro Manila restaurants and hotels include: Annabel Lee, Lolo Dad‘s, AzuThai, Ascott Makati (Café On The 6th), Café Mediterranean, Cav Wine Shop & Café, Chateau 1771, Chef Laudico’s Bistro Filipino, Dinelli Gourmet, Gilak By Hossein, Hossein’s Persian Kebab, Shomal by Hossein, Hossein’s, Hotel Rembrandt, Ilustrado, La Régalade, La Tienda, Marriott Hotel, Old Swiss Inn, People’s Palace Thai, Persiana, Purple Feet, Sala Bistro, Sentro 1771, Highlands Steakhouse, and Thai at Silk.

Participating Metro Cebu restaurants and hotels include: The Tinderbox, Bistro Ecila, Don Merto’s, Fine Cuisine, La Tegola, Olio Steak and Seafood Restaurant, and Cebu Country Club.

More on Australian Lamb

The Australian Lamb’s lean meat is obtained from young sheep less than 12 months old. The sheep are raised in ideal conditions with lush, green pastures, clean water, and fresh air. strict quality and hygiene control ensures that the Australian Lamb is safe. It is also rich in protein, zinc, vitamin B12 and iron.

Australian Lamb is imported by Werdenberg International, PTC and Melbourne Prime. Meat and Livestock Australia (MLA) is a producer owned organization that carries out marketing, research and development for the Australian meat industry. Through education and promotion, MLA seeks to increase the awareness of Australian Beef and Lamb among consumers, trade, retailers and food service sector.

Lamb Menus from Partner Establishments

Annabel Lee
• Braised Lamb Shank

Azuthai
• Gaeh Sauce Prik Thai Daem (P495) -Braised Australian Lamb Shank with Black Pepper Sauce
• Gaeh Kao Lea (P495) -Braised Australian Lamb Shank in Southern Style Red Curry
• Massaman Gaeh (P395) -Massaman Lamb Curry with Shallots, Potatoes, Peanuts

Ascott Makati (Cafe On The 6th)
• Red-Braised Lamb Shanks – Served with crispy fried noodles and roasted peppers and fried shallots
• Lamb Tenderloin – With fruit and mint chutney and pesto mashed potatoes

Cav Wine Shop & Cafe
• 48 hour Lamb Shank – Moroccan Spices. Garlic. Okra. roasted Vegetables. Couscous
• Glazed Lamb Belly – Saffron Parmantier. Roasted Eggplant. Zucchini & Mint.
• Lamb Ragu – Eggplant. Zucchini. Portobello. Saffron Foam
• Baked Lamb Ziti

Chef Laudico’s Bistro Filipino
• Lamb Kaldereta: -Stewed Lamb Shank in Kaldereta Porcini Mushroom, Sauce served with Blue Cheese Sweet Potato Puree and Grilled Vegetables

Ilustrado
• Braised shank of Australian Lamb in Barako-Coffee Cabernet Reduction with chestnut and sweet potato mash.
• Schnitzel of Australian Lamb shoulder with arugula boquet, Fetta cheese and lentil salad in balsamic-pesto dressing.
• “Bombe” of Australian Lamb Shank filled with Duck Liver mousse in Rosemary aujus, gratin potato and roasted garlic

La Regalade
• Roasted Rack of Lamb crusted with dijon and bread crumbs served with ratatouille and whole-grain mustard demiglace

La Tienda
• Caldereta de Cordero (lamb stew)
• Zancarron de Cordero Estofado con Crema De Ajo (Stewed lamb shank w/ Garlic Sauce)
• Lamb Shoulder Casserole Andaluza Style

Lolo Dad’s
• Pizza lamb Shawarma – Rolled roast Lamb Pizza with Cucumber, Tomatoes, Onion serve with Yoghurt and Chili sauce
• Roast Saddle of Lamb- Roquefort cheese Quiche
• Lamb Chops

Meat and Livestock Australia

Marriott Hotel (Marriott Cafe)
• Osso bucco style lamb shanks
• Lamb shanks Provencal with black olives
• Indian style Rogan josh lamb shanks
• Slow baked lamb shoulder with rosemary and garlic
• Harrisa rubbed lamb shoulder with cous cous
• Greek style lamb shoulder with garlic and lemon

Mr. Rockefeller
• Lamb BBQ

People’s Palace Thai
• Mussaman Curry Of Lamb Potatoes + Peanuts + Shallots
• Stir Fried Lamb With Holy Basil And Fried Egg

Persiana
• Roasted Lamb Khouzi
• Lamb Kofta
• Lamb Curry
• Lamb Shawarma
• Lamb Chop Steak

Sala Bistro
• Braised Lamb Shank With Green Beans And Parmesan Mash
• Confit Lamb Shoulder With Potato Gratin And Ratatouille
• Lamb Shoulder Tagine With Couscous
• Shepherd’s Pie
• Lamb Kofta Pita Bread Sandwich

Highlands Steakhouse
• Lamb Cutlet Saint Tropez – Best lamb cutlet with Herb Crust originated in French Riviera

Thai At Silk
• Kae Mutsaman – Boneless Lamb Mutsaman Curry

Somal By Hossein // Gilak By Hossein // Hossein’sPersian Kebab // Hossein’s
• Lamb Kebab – Two juicy strips of charbroiled seasoned ground lamb
• Lamb Shish Torsh Kebab – Charbroiled lamb tenderloin marinated in a special pomegranate sauce with a hint of Persian spices
• Lamb Shish Kebab – Two sticks of lamb back strap cubes marinated in Hossein’s special blend
• Chelou Lamb Shish – Two sticks of lamb shish topped with saffron rice & tomatoes
• Chelou Lamb Kebab – Two sticks of ground lamb charbroiled served with saffron rice & tomatoes
• Pakadmaswi- One whole leg of lamb seasoned in Hossein’s special sauce charbroiled into perfection *Good for 4 to 6 persons
• Roasted Ribs -Ribs of lamb marinated in Hossein’s signature blend of Persian, Arabian and Indian spices *Good for 4 to 6 persons
• Shishlik Kebab- Lamb chop kebab marinated in a Persian sauce
• Lamb Steak-Lamb marinated in a Persian sauce, grilled into perfection and served with mushroom sauce
• Lamb Kheema-Ground lamb sautéed in tomatoes and onions
• Lamb Kheema with vegetables-Ground lamb sautéed in a medley of vegetables
• Lamb Palak-Lamb cooked in a special spinach sauce with a hint of Persian spices
• Lamb Bamia-Lamb with okra cooked in a creamy curry sauce mixed with Indian spices
• Lamb alo korma-Lamb cooked with potatoes in a light yet creamy curry sauce
• Lamb Curry-Lamb cooked in a rich curry sauce with a blend of Indian herbs and spices
• Raan Masala-Lamb cooked in Hossein’s signature creamy and thick curry sauce mixed in a mélange of special herbs and spices
• Mache Polo-Shank of the lamb cooked in a saffron and tomato sauce with a hint of Persian spices
• Lamb Kopta Curry-Meatballs cooked in a rich curry sauce
• Lamb Rojanjost-Lamb in a medley of bell peppers cooked in a thick and creamy yet savory curry sauce
• Malaysian Lamb Curry-Lamb cooked in a rich curry sauce with both Malaysian and Indian spices
• Thai Lamb Curry-A sweet curry of lamb cooked delicately in Thai spices and herbs
• Lamb Bhouna-Lamb with tomatoes cooked in a light curry sauce with a medley of Indian spices
• Lamb Vindaloo-Lamb cooked in a sour and tangy sauce with a hint of vinegar
• Lamb Dopiaza-Lamb with pepper and onions cooked in a rich yet thick curry sauce with a mélange of Indian herbs
• Lamb with yoghurt-Lamb cooked with homemade yoghurt and curry sauce with a hint of Indian spices
• Lamb with masala-Lamb cooked in masala with a miscellany of Indian Spices

Hurry, catch the ‘All You Need is Lamb‘ promo until the end of March!

You could say that the Hainanese Chicken Rice in Singapore is a national obsession. 🙂

If you are going to ask friends what food or dishes to try in Singapore, I believe 9 out of 10 would say that you should not miss Singapore’s Hainanese Chicken Rice – well, I did when I first went there in 2008.

Hainanese Chicken Rice

But this wasn’t the case anymore when I went back last year. Together with Filipino food blogger friends, it was an adventure with every meal. Let me share to you the other dishes on another entry, for now, let’s focus on the Hainanese Chicken Rice adventure.

White Singapore Chicken

As I’ve mentioned earlier, Hainanaese Chicken Rice is almost everywhere in Singapore so you wouldn’t miss it in any hawker centers around the country. Hawker centers are food centers comparable to our “food courts” found inside malls minus the airconditioning system. Establishments are separated into stalls and usually employs the self-service system.

Queue to Tian Tian Hainanese Chicken Rice

The uninitiated might ask if we could simply order Hainanese Chicken Rice from any of these hawker centers and that’s it?

Well, you may. But wouldn’t you want to taste the best one in town? And this is where Tian Tian Hainanese Chicken Rice stall comes into the picture.

Fellow food blogger-friend Fran Haw recommended this one so on our second day in Singapore, we went to the Maxwell Food Center in Chinatown located at the corner of Maxwell Road and South Bridge Road (near Sago Lane).

There were about 100 food stalls but we specifically searched for Tian Tian Hainanese Chicken Rice. And to my amazement, there was a queue of about 10 people in front of us. This might not sound surprising, only that the other food stalls doesn’t have a queue like ours.

Tian Tian Hainanese Chi cken Rice

It was already past 12 noon and my growling stomach was very much tempted to order hastily from the other stalls. But I placed my faith in Fran that the experience of ordering my Hainanese Chicken Rice specifically from Tian Tian Hainanese Chicken Rice would be outstanding.

Hainanese Chicken Rice Menu Price

My turn to order came. I observed that the price of their Chicken Rice at 2.80 Singapore dollar was actually a little higher than the estimated average of its peer stalls at only about 2.50 singapore dollars. I don’t really mind the .30 difference and continued to order. I can’t remember though if I ordered the small one or the big one at $3.30 .

Anthony Bourdain himself said: "Chicken Rice is so fragrant & delicious that it can be eaten on its own"

Anyhow, as expected, the steamed chicken meat was tender, fresh, smooth and smelled good. Without the sauce, others might find it lacking since it’s the kecap manis which heightens the flavor. But for me, I can appreciate the freshness of the taste and soft texture of the meat even without the sauce. I had some from time to time.

By the way, don’t expect any charming service from the stall servers. They’re just up-and-straight – “What’s your order?” (in singlish if they immediately notice that you’re a foreigner). They reply to you with the price and prepare your order. They receive your money, gives you the change, you wait in front, and they hand you your order.  Seeing that I only ordered one dish, the guy took my tray back and had me carry my plate by hand.

I’m not really sure why he did that; but I didn’t want to get into any argument and just accepted my tray-less fate. 🙂

Singapore's Hainanese Chicken Rice

And that is my Tian Tian Hainanese Chicken Rice story.

From the producers of C2 Green Tea, a new oriental-inspired drink enters the market called Yin Yang Cooling Tea.

Sounding more oriental than its mainstream predecessors, the ready-to-drink Yin Yang Cooling Tea is inspired by the Chinese belief that good health begins by maintaining balance in the body. According to traditional Chinese belief, the body has a condition called “internal heat” that can be caused by some food sources such as the fried and spicy ones.  This internal heat, or an excess of it, can cause imbalance in the body which may lead to sickness.

The “cooling tea” may help in this area as it is made from herbs that can take away the heat and restore the body’s natural balance. It is brewed from green tea leaves of Camellia Sinensis with three traditional Chinese cooling herbs, Mesona leaves (Camellia sinensis), Liquorice Root and Chrysanthemum flower.

Universal Robina Corporation’s (URC) added a twist to Yin Yang by incorporating it with a familiar taste to Filipinos – the black gulaman. I haven’t tried it yet but the strategy seems to be in the right direction. Will it last? The market will decide as Yin Yang Cooling tea seem to tap the young and health conscious market who are on the go – You! 🙂