Entries Tagged 'Casual' ↓

Tapella Restaurant will celebrate Easter with kids and family this Sunday – April 4, 2010.

Jump for joy and have a blast from 4pm-7pm with magics, mimes and clowns! Games and tricks, egg painting contests, balloon twisting, fun filled activities and loads of prizes await kids in the much awaited Easter Egg Hunt.

Tapella Restaurant Easter Sunday

Gather the most number of eggs and get prizes from Star Paper. Kids will be delighted with Dunkin Donuts upon registration. Spaghetti and other kiddie snacks will also be available during the event. For only Php500 nett, kids and family will have a holistic Easter Sunday.

Kids at heart will also enjoy a sumptuous Easter special starting from Php300 and delight in the comforts of Tapella’s serene ambiance.

Tapella is a Spanish dining creation by Gaudi located at Greenbelt 5. Headed by executive Chef Alexandra Cacho, the restaurant specializes in tapas and paellas with a wide range of salads, pasta ,dessert and wines. For inquiries and reservations you may call 7572710.

Contrary to the usual business practice of closing shop during commercially low-profile holidays such as the holy week, Little Asia Restaurant will remain open even during Holy Thursday and Good Friday.

Little Asia Restaurant

“We are open 365 days a year“, adds Charlemagne Lim, Little Asia Restaurant Manger.

Their food service starts 11am until midnight. They currently have three (3) branches in Metro Manila namely Tomas Morato in Quezon City, Promenade Mall in Greenhills (San Juan), and the new Venice Piazza Mall in McKinley Hill (Fort Bonifacio, Taguig).

For the lent season, you can have Little Asia’s Crispy Codfish and Steamed Minced Shrimp Tofu as shown in the photos.

Little Asia Restaurant's Crispy Codfish

If you plan to stay home and can’t go to their branches, you may inquire to check if your area is covered by their delivery.

Little Asia's Steamed Minced Shrimp Tofu

Contact Little Asia Restaurant at telephone numbers (632) 727-5265,  (632) 727-5785, (632)3730609. Have a long, holy, and stomach-filled holiday weekend!

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!

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.

California Berry is teasing its customers this summer season with its one-day offering of a Free Yogurt serving of their newest seasonal yogurt on March 5, 2010.

The flavor remains to be a secret as this is probably part of the word-of-mouth marketing campaign. So far, it seems to be working and news have reached NomNom Club. 🙂

Known for it’s low calorie fat-free frozen yogurt (“Fro-Yo“), regular price starts at Php60 ($1.30) for the small cup.

Can you guess what the mystery flavor is? The only clue we have is that the new fruit flavor is rich in antioxidant content and health benefits.

You have to note however that the free yogurts are good only for the first 50 customers starting from 2pm to 4pm of each branch on a first-come, first-serve basis (one cup per customer). So if you didn’t make the cut, rush to try the next branch. (LOL) 🙂

* Photo & info source: California Berry Facebook Profile

You can find California Berry outlets at Silver City Ortigas, Greenhills, Robinson’s Galleria, The Fort Strip, Tomas Morato, Paseo Center Makati, SM Megamall, SM North Edsa, SM Southmall, and SM Manila.