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Greenwich Better Than Any Other Christmas Party

Filipinos continue to be innovative in their Christmas celebrations with or without a big budget as long a they have fun during the Christmas party. Just like Greenwich, the country’s leading pizza chain, they recently threw a fun-filled bash for those who contributed to the brand’s success.

Anne Curtis & Kelly Misa

The Greenwich Barkada, composed of officers from Greenwich and celebrity endorsers filled up the stage of a Makati Shangri-La ballroom in front of the media and their friends. Joining in the fun were the Pizza Gang composed of Vince Canizares, Mika Lagdameo, and Lloyd Zaragoza. The Greenwich pasta girls Anne Curtis, Solenn Heussaff and Kelly Misa also brought Christmas cheers through a song.

Cookie Cabrera of Greenwich (right)

The Greenwich Barkada entertained the guests with their rendition of popular Christmas tunes. They also shared their fun moments with their Greenwich family and gamely answered questions from the members of the media. Rockeoke session with the guests kept the night alive.

“This Christmas get-together is our way of showing our heartfelt gratitude to our friends from the press. They play an important role in helping us get our messages and stories across our market and in making the Filipinos aware of our latest offerings,” said Cookie Cabrera, Greenwich PR and Corporate Affairs Manager.

The Greenwich Barkada & The Pasta Girls

@ Makati Shang-ri La

Greenwich Special Overload Pizza – 15in Party Pizza

The star of the night though is Greenwich’s latest Christmas offering- Greenwich Special Overload Pizza 15in Party Pizza fit for Christmas parties. The highlighted flavour Greenwich Special Overload Pizza has 13 premium toppings. The party pizza has 16 square cut slices and more of the overloaded toppings making Greenwich truly the Favorite ng barkada.

Greenwich 15-inch Party Pizza (Greenwich Special Overload Pizza)

I think the new Greenwich 15-inch Party Pizza is a good additional idea for our upcoming Christmas parties. Of course, I’m ordering my favorite Greenwich Special Overload Pizza flavor.

KFC is challenging its customers in the Philippines to MAN UP and eat big with its newest product – the KFC Double Decker.

KFC Market!Market!

I myself  just had a spa session over the long weekend at Neo Day Spa in BGC, Taguig. After which I headed straight to KFC MarketMarket branch and enjoyed an order of KFC Double Decker Man-Sized sandwich and an original singles meal with rice.

With two big Original Recipe Chicken fillets, bacon strips, sliced cheese, fresh lettuce & creamy mayo, sandwiched in between Kaiser buns, having a 10th of a bite of the KFC Double Decker is already a mouthful.

KFC Double Decker

It is the newest addition to KFC’s Man-Sized Meals – BIG meals for men with BIG appetites, and ladies too, if you want! It is now available in all KFC branches nationwide for P 145 for ala carte and P 175 as a combo meal with fries and drink. The rest of the Man-Sized Meals are also available as follows:

• Double Decker Fully Loaded Meal = P 215
• Classic Fully Loaded Meal = P 146
• Supreme Bowl Combo Meal = P 100
• Original Recipe Sandwich Combo Meal = P 136
• Zinger Combo Meal = P 136

Man-Sized Meals & Sandwiches

Man Up Mondays Challenge

Double Decker: Man-Sized Sandwich

In line with the launch of the Double Decker and the rest of the Man-Sized Meals, KFC now challenges everyone to dress up and ‘Man Up‘ for a series of ‘Man Up Mondays‘!

Go to any KFC branch wearing white pants today – December 3, 2012 – and get P 25 off from any one of the Man-Sized Meals!

If you missed this today and last week with floral shirts, you still have a chance for the next two weeks through the following:
• December 10, 2012: Pink Shirt
• December 17, 2012: Wildcard

Man Up Mondays!

Follow KFC Philippines on Twitter @KFCPhilippines and like their Facebook page at www.facebook.com/kfcphilippines.

Man up with the KFC Double Decker Man-Sized Meals!

Pinkberry Greenbelt 5

What’s better than a chocolate yogurt? A chocolate hazelnut yogurt, that is! It’s Pinkberry Philippines‘ newest frozen yogurt replacing the former for this season, or at least until enough of you want them to.

It’s been out as one of the five Pinkberry yogurt flavors in the menu for quite a while, actually. Made with Nutella, Chocolate Hazelnut promises to be both sweet and decadent balancing the two flavors while maintaining a light and refreshing taste. I think it’s going to replace my favorite ‘original yogurt‘ flavor. I just need a little more push. 🙂

Pinkberry Chocolate Hazelnut Yogurt Combinations sampling

Chocolate Hazelnut with Toppings

Pinkberry Philipines has also revealed variants of Chocolate Hazelnut with toppings for your ready choices; but you could always craft your own according to your liking.

One of which is the Chocolate Hazelnut Classic which includes roasted hazelnuts and chocolate sauce topped by wafer rolls.

The other four are the following:

• Chocolate Hazelnut Decadence (dark chocolate crisps and mixed nuts)
• Chocolate Hazelnut Trio (Nutella, strawberry and banana)
• Chocolate Hazelnut Crunch (honey almond granola, banana and almonds)
• Chocolate Hazelnut Truffle (milk chocolate crunch and strawberry)

I was able to recently try a sampling of these and my favorite turned out to be the Chocolate Hazelnut Decadence mainly due to the rich taste of the dark chocolate crisps. I thought it was kiddie-like since the dark chocs were small pelletes. But the taste turned out to be rich. It complemented well with the sweet-tangy choco-hazelnut yogurt.

In customizing my own, I added my favorite dark chocolate crisps, toasted almonds for texture and the colorful fruity pebbles simply because I want too. 🙂

Customizing my Chocolate Hazelnut Yogurt

Pinkberry 12 Swirls of Christmas

In time with the gift-giving and card-stamping collection season such as that of the 2013 Starbucks Planner, Pinkberry has one somewhat similar called the ‘12 Swirls of Christmas.’

Simply fill up the 12 stamps and viola – you get a Pinkberry Shirt! It should consist of the 5 Chocolate Hazelnut combinations and 7 Pinkberry flavors of your choice.

Pinkberry ’12 Swirls of Christmas’

Pinkberry Waffle Cookie Sandwich

Pinkberry Waffle Cookie Sandwich

More good news! Pinkberry also came out with a new product range – the Waffle Cookie Sandwich! I’m forced to reminisce on the ice cream sandwiches we had in Singapore. I always make an effort to try one whenever I’m there.

The Pinkberry Waffle Cookie Sandwich is basically a chunk of flavored yogurt spread with a topping and sandwiched in between two wafer cookies.

The three variants are Chocolate Hazelnut (Chocolate Hazelnut yogurt topped with Milk Chocolate Crunch), Coconut Lemon (Original Pinkberry with Lemon Cookie Crunch and shaved coconut) , and the Pomegranate Chocolate.

My favorite is the latter which is composed of the tangy Pomegranate yogurt topped with Milk Chocolate Crunch. I love their combination – the waffle is softly sweet in contrast to the yogurt while the topping provide the playful crunchy texture.

Chocolate Hazelnut (Chocolate Hazelnut Yogurt w/ Milk Chocolate Crunch), Coconut Lemon (Original Pinkberry w/ Lemon Cookie Crunch & shaved coconut) , and Pomegranate Chocolate (Pomegranate Yogurt w/ Milk Chocolate Crunch),

Made fresh in store every day, the Waffle Cookie Sandwiches are my new favorites pushing back the yogurt and the smoothies. 😛 But I’ll definitely be back for the new Pinkberry Chocolate Hazelnut Yogurt!

Watami Salad

Watami is now in the Philippines and I missed their opening day blow out at SM Mall of Asia (MOA)  last November 16, 2012 where customers enjoyed half-off their total bill (50% off)! So I did not let this chance pass when blogger-friend Spanky invited us over for lunch.

New Watami Teas

Watami is a famous Japanese casual restaurant in Japan with 700 branches in their country alone. They are also in Hongkong, China, Taiwan, Singapore, and Malaysia, among others.

It was a good and filling Japanese lunch and here are the 4 Top Watami dishes NomNom Club highly recommends among those we have tried:

1. Beef and Kimchi Rice in Stone Pot  
   

   Beef and Kimchi Rice in Stone Pot (P245)

2. Sapporo Seafood Ramen Salad (Top Photo – P375)
3. Salmon & Vegetable in Rice Paper 
   

   Salmon & Vegetable in Rice Paper (P185)

4. Beef Rice Bowl with Hot Spring Egg in Tokyo Style 
   

   Beef Rice Bowl with Hot Spring Egg in Tokyo Style (P195)

All four were great-tasting and not too heavy on the budget. I must admit there are some items on the Watami menu which is priced above-average for a ‘casual’ restaurant. On the other hand, the premium pricing is reflected in the quality of service the customer can get. The taste is also authentic Japanese.

We also had the Self-Grilled Short Ribs (P295) and Assorted Sashimi (5 kinds). For beverage, I tried Kiwi Tea with Agar.

Self-Grilled Short Ribs (P295)

Assorted Sashimi (5 kinds) P425

Kiwi Tea with Agar (P145)

I also look forward to ordering the Clams cooked in stone pot with Japanese style sauce (P285) and the Watami Salad is my next visit.

Aside from SM Mall of Asia, Watami is also opening soon at the new Glorietta – also known as the new Glorietta Vibe.

I have loved the Smart C+ beverage since it first came out in the market. In fact, I already blogged about Smart C+ highlighting its Vitamin C content way back in 2011.

Smart C+ Everyday!

Until today, Smart C remains to be my favorite ready-to-drink juice. I like that it is not similar to the usual juices we have in the market nowadays which are just overly-hyped and overly sweet.

A few days ago, we got another surprise from Oishi  emphasizing Smart C+ as a healthy drink to boost the immune system for everyday drinking. It  is also the company’s first venture in the ready-to-drink category.

Slater Young of PBB

“…refreshing way to boost your immune system – Smart C+ Fruit Drink. With 500mg of Vitamin C in every 500ml bottle, you can cope with the daily demands of your life which then makes you unstoppable and ready whenever, wherever.“

They also introduced Slater Young, the latest Pinoy Big Brother Big Winner, as their newest celebrity endorser.

Smart C+

Smart C+ comes in three thirst-quenching flavors – Lemon Squeeze, Orange Crush, and Pomelo Grapefruit – the last one is my favorite!

One 500ml bottle’s 500mg Vitamin C is equivalent to either 11 lemons, 8 oranges, or 4 grapefruits! Vitamin C also enables the body to produce collagen, a protein essential to every cell of the body.

Moreover, Smart C+ contains no added preservatives, zero artificial coloring and zero artificial sweeteners. It also comes in 350 ml PET bottles and soon in 1 liter bottles. How about you, have you tried Smart C+?

XinWang Hong Kong Cafe

XinWang Hong Kong Cafe in SM Mall of Asia is turning a year old in the Philippines next month. I’ve always seen and passed by this restaurant beside IMAX but it was only last week when I first dined-in.

It was upon the prodding of Marj and her friend from XinWang that I was finally able to try the place. We’ve seen this as well in Singapore last July.

It was a late lunch for us on a week day so we almost had the whole XinWang restaurant to ourselves. The interior was cozy and well-lighted, it was easy to the eyes.

New Menu (same as in SIngapore)

It also came to our knowledge that the restaurant refreshed its menu last October while retaining most of its best sellers. This development was in-sync with it’s international franchise from Singapore. Yes, I thought about that too – a Hong Kong cafe from Singapore which we are trying in the Philippines. To make it more trivially interesting, there’s not one branch in Hong Kong, but they have several in Singapore. 🙂

Iced HongKong Milk Tea (P75)

Back to the menu. For the unfamiliar with Hong Kong cuisine, one would find the new menu a bit overwhelming as it was a combination of Chinese specialties, pasta, western food including burgers, a number of sweet desserts, and a gamut of beverages including milk teas, as expected.

But giving it a second thought, this is how Hong Kong food is – a mixed bowl of different culture dominated by Chinese tastebuds with a huge influence from the West. XinWang Hong Kong Cafe‘s new menu certainly reflects that.

So instead of getting overwhelmed, just enjoy the variety and take it one step at a time. You don’t have to try everything in one sitting.

Mango & Prawns Roll (P100)

And this is what we did. We tried a bit from the different pages of the menu.

Chicken Chop Cream Sauce Spaghetti (P245)

For the appetizers, we dared the oriental combination of prawn and mango in a soft roll. At P100, we got three – not bad considering the prawn content. The taste was ok but it could be enhanced. It has great potential, nonetheless.

This was followed by the Chicken Chop Cream Sauce Spaghetti. Basically, your good Carbonara pasta with a quarter of a chicken on the side. The cream sauce spaghetti was good but the chicken tastes better, I would order it again because of the chicken. At P245, you’re getting a fair deal.

With an effort to go healthy, we ordered the stir fried minced Kai-Lan with Silver Fish. At P220, it was a good try as the dish was not a common fare in regular restaurants and it tasted fine as well.

Stir Fried Minced Kai-Lan with Silver Fish (P220)

XinWang Stir Fried Noodle (P235)

Recommended Dishes

The stars of the day came in at the latter part. The XinWang Stir Fried Noodle is recommended at P235 for its ‘sahog‘ which consisted of seafood and veggies.

HK Braised Beef Brisket with Bamboo Rice (P215)

The HK Braised Beef Brisket with Bamboo Rice comes highly recommended. This was the best fare for the day for it’s authentic-tasting beef brisket. At P215, it was a good deal.

The desserts were also not a disappointment. I think we were lucky enough to get the good ones in such a series. 🙂

The Mango Pudding with ice cream on top is a treat for the sweet lovers. Highly similar to ice kachang, the price of P85 is at par and competitive with Lugang‘s. I’d suggest though that you order this for a group of 3 or 4.

Mango Pudding with ice cream (P85)

The French toast should be relabeled as ‘Big French Toast‘. The huge serving was like a three/four slices loaf packed into one. Covered with beaten egg yolk and fried, the butter melt atop was a sinful delight; best shared in a group.

French Toast (P95)

Coconut Cream with Sago  (P145)

Finally, you should not miss the Coconut Cream with Sago. The price tag of P145 might seem a bit steep but the tastes makes up for it. It is also good for two servings.

It’s a hot serving of rich and thick coconut cream with small tapiocas to merit. It may be too sweet for some but this is just how coconut creams are. Best paired with your favorite buchi covered with toasted sesame seeds. 🙂

It was a good and filling lunch at XinWang Hong Kong Cafe. Check it out beside SM Mall of Asia IMAX. You’ll surely not miss its banner lights and brightly-lit advertisements.

XinWang Hong Kong Restaurant

City Delivery Boy

I surprised my fiance two weeks ago with a City Delivery package just before our trip to Batangas to meet more relatives from my side of the family. So instead of the usual meals I order from City Delivery, I tried something for merienda that we can bring on the road – cream puffs from Happy Cream Puffs. It’s one of the brands/vendors under the City Delivery wing.

Happy Cream Puff

It was October 31 and I was just glad that City Delivery was open for delivery that time even when it was the start of a long weekend holiday in the Philippines. I also came to know that they do deliver even at November 1 & 2.

Anyhow, so the surprise went all well as intended.

Happy Cream Puff Delivery

Generally, cream puffs are loved by all, being on the sweet side. The caramelized top ones were better, though  more sinful, than that of the plain cream puffs.

I tried different variants that the Happy Cream Puff menu offered but what caught my taste fancy best was the Mango Nama Choux. It was a burst of lovely sweet cream from the inside balanced by the mango fruit slices. Of course, my fiance and I shared ’em and we almost didn’t have enough. 🙂 The bite-size ones were also good for sharing as a box and offered more variations. But then again, the Mango Nama Choux cream puff is NomNom‘s highly recommended order.

Assorted Happy Cream Puffs – Small

Caramelized-top Happy Cream Puffs!

CityDelivery.ph Online

Online City Delivery Order

I usually order through the phone. This was my first time to try ordering through City Delivery online. After registration where they captured my contact details and delivery address, I was ready to order.

Aside from the usual cash payment option, customers can also use their credit cards. I hope time will come when they would also recognize Paypal as a valid avenue; only a handful of local commercial websites who cater to retail customers accept Paypal payments. For bloggers and netizens like me, Paypal is the easiest, hassle free way to pay online, while keeping the security of my purchases. I believe that day will eventually come.

I’m sharing with you some screen shots which I had to go through ordering as well.

Order Online

Online Food Cart

Checkout

City Delivery Check Out

City Delivery Hotline

City Delivery Hotline

The City Delivery number is simply 87878! Or order online through http://www.citydelivery.ph/

Aside from Happy Cream Puff, my other foodie favorites Sumosam, Bon Appetea, Empanada Mas, Crave Burger, Little Asia, Pepper Lunch, Yoshinoya, and Zong, are with City Delivery too. Try ordering from City Delivery hotline today and share your experience as well, good or bad reviews, in the comment section below.

Late morning shows of ABS-CBN currently lines up Kris TV, Please Be Careful with My Heart, and Showtime. Starting today – November 12 – a new ingredient will be added with the first kusina-serye MasterChef Pinoy Edition.

MasterChef Grocery / Sari-sari Store/ Stock Room

The MasterChef Pinoy Edition will be hosted Ms. Judy Ann Santos-Agoncillo, Chefs Fernando “Ferns” Aracama, Chef Rolando “Lau” Laudico, and Chef JP “Jayps” Anglo who are reprising their roles as host and judges from the previous Junior MasterChef Pinoy Edition.

The newest version of the popular cooking reality show will give ordinary people from different generations, places, and economic backgrounds a chance to showcase their cooking prowess and overcome life’s challenges to reach their dreams.

Now, here are the 7 ingredients to watch-out for in the new MasterChef Pinoy Edition:

1) Judy Ann Santos

Undeniably, teleserye queen Judy Ann Santos-Agoncillo (top photo) is the key ingredient on making this show a success. From the trailer that I saw in the recent presscon, Judy Ann’s hosting style and her capability to relate to the lives of the MasterChef aspirants brought about what the show intended to.

Kusina-Serye

2) Kusina-Serye Twist

One major factor local cooking-show followers would notice with the Pinoy MasterChef show is the heightened focus on the personal lives and emotional relationships of the cooking aspirants.

Yes, it is a deviation from the usual franchise format of the MasterChef you see in cable. Hence, it was also placed in the time slot just before lunch mainly to target the home-based mother and female audience. So don’t be surprised if you see them crying while cooking.

As much as it was a surprise to me, I think this is ABS-CBN’s way of making it suit more to the Filipino taste by touching their hearts at the same time appealing to the palate.

3) Expert Chefs

Chef Judges Chefs Fernando “Ferns” Aracama, Chef Rolando “Lau” Laudico, and Chef JP “Jayps” Anglo

Having proven themselves that they can also do wonders beyond the kitchen and into the tube, Chef Fernando “Ferns” Aracama, Chef Rolando “Lau” Laudico, and Chef JP “Jayps” Anglo are are back!

Unmistakably, they lend the expertise on the show’s main subject of cooking as they sample and critique the dishes.

Mystery Box

4) Fierce Competition

They ain’t kids anymore. Considering the adult participants, the chef judges said they will now be tougher with their judgement and straight to the point in their comments.

The screening of MasterChef hopefuls is expected to be filled with thrill and drama as Judy Ann, Chef Ferns Aracama, Chef Lau, and Chef Jayps will be more stringent and honest with higher expectations. They also expect the chef amateurs to reason out or defend their dishes.

“The challenges will definitely be harder. We will be more blunt in giving comments. To be a good chef, one needs to endure all the hardships.” says Juday.

5) P1 million

The emerging winner who will be able to prove himself or herself in the kitchen will become the very first Pinoy MasterChef and take home P1 million.

MasterChef Pinoy Edition Kitchen Studio

6) Reality Show

Reality Show

More than being a cooking show, MasterChef Pinoy Edition will give viewers a taste of ‘reality’ by housing the finalists under one roof. With a hint of ‘Pinoy Big Brother,’ the aspiring cooks will will have to blend with others, foster new bonds and conflicts, and experience success and defeat with each other.

Moreover, there will be a showcase of easy-to-prepare Filipino recipes, cooking demos, and home management and health tips.

7) MasterChef Saturdish Edition

Watch out for Melai Cantiveros and Pinoy Big Brother Teen Edition 4 housemates Joj and Jai Agpangan on MasterChef Saturdish Edition as they embark on fun food adventures.

Join them as they discover and whip up extraordinary dishes as well as give out cooking tips and trivia.

Catch MasterChef Pinoy Edition on Nov 12

Get updates from www.facebook.com/MasterChefPHL, @MasterChefPHL on Twitter, and website www.masterchefph.tv. Catch the premiere of MasterChef Pinoy Edition later at 1030am (Monday, Nov 12) before “Be Careful with My Heart” on ABS-CBN’s Umaganda block.