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Ms. Josephine Chua & NaiCha Mascot in Grand Opening

It’s actually redundant to call it “NaiCha Milk Tea” because ‘Nai Cha‘ is the literal translation of ‘milk tea‘ in Chinese. Hence, allow me to call it just ‘NaiCha‘ moving forward. 🙂

I, together with some food bloggers, were recently invited to the grand opening of NaiCha Philippines‘ 12th store in Metro Manila which is in Banawe, Quezon City.

Simple ceremonies, blessings, and the usual ribbon cutting was held, but it was the taste test which food bloggers await. I was able to try their best-selling Wintermelon Milk Tea and the Oolong Milk Tea.

Oolong Milk Tea for the Win

Taste-wise, the Wintermelon Milk Tea was similar to what others have to offer but I love their Oolong Milk Tea which had the authenticity of four season tea and goodness of milk tea combined.

And although I did not customize the sugar level of the Oolong Milk Tea, it still didn’t come off too sweet. However, in contrast, I suggest you adjust the sugar level of the Wintermelon Milk Tea to 50%–75% since wintermelon is already sweet by itself. The same tip applies to all other brands of wintermelon milk tea.

NaiCha Oolong Milk Tea

Ms. Jospehine Chua (CEO of Grand Pillar International Development, Inc. – parent company of NaiCha Philippines), said that they import the tea  from Taiwan through her two Taiwanese nationals partners. Mrs. Chua has worked in Taiwan during her younger years where she developed her business network. So getting them to invest in the Philippines as her business partners was a logical consequence of events.

NaiChastarted in December 2010 from its main store located across Royal Duty Free Mall and has since grown to several branches in Subic. By October of last year, it ventured to Manila with it’s first branch in N. Domingo St., Quezon City. They now have branches in Fairview, Makati, Ortigas, and more.

NaiCha Philippines Milk Tea

Interesting Observations

NaiCha Philippines as a milk tea business is still in their growing stage and the simplicity of their menu is evident of it.

Some interesting observations I made was that their pearls are not as big as the pearls/tapioca of other milk tea shops. Did you know that they don’t call their pearl as ‘sago‘? Try ordering the “Sago Milk Tea” and you’ll not get pearl/tapioca in the drink but “nata” (coconut gel). 🙂

The price range of the milk teas and juices are actually very affordable with their wintermelon tea (not milk tea) at P40 for the 16 oz.

But most noticeable of all is their gigantic 32 oz. serving of milk tea in what they call “Tabo” in their colloquial jargon equivalent to a small pail. At Php 120, tabo size pearl milk tea can be more than enough for two persons.

They also have novel teas such as the black tea, jasmin green tea, and matcha. NaiCha specials include Signature Taiwan Tea and Choco NaiCha. Another favorite of mine is from the ‘Jelly Delights‘ which is the Coffee Jelly Tea. They have juices as well while their add-on options are pearl, pudding, almond, sago (nata), and coffee jelly.

Hopefully they would also add food items and maybe variants of milk-lid or rock-salt milk teas in the menu very soon.

NaiCha Wintermelon Milk Tea “Tabo” (left); Nai Cha Coffee Jelly Milk Tea (right)

Franchise Opportunities

I learned that they also offer franchising options to business hunters. You may contact them at the following

• Subic Head Office: M6 Aguinaldo St., Central Business District, Subic Bay Freeport Zone
• Manila Office: Unit 3D, Megalink Bldg, Banawe Ave. Brgy Sienna, QC
• http://www.facebook.com/MilkTeaPinas

So if you’re from Quezon City or Manila, check out NaiCha Philippines in their Banawe branch soon.

Jamba Juice Philippines‘ first branch opened at Bonifacio High Street November of last year.  Four months after, it was followed by Jamba Juice Alabang Town Center. And over the weekend, it just opened its third store at SM Mall of Asia.

Jamba Juice SM MOA

It is not a surprise that Jamba Juice have chosen SM Mall of Asia to be it’s third branch since it is considered the country’s largest integrated leisure destination and has high foot traffic.

“Choosing strategic locations, that are convenient to consumers, has always been one of the integral facets that we consider, when choosing the best locations for expansion,” says Sharon T. Fuentabella, Managing Director of Jamba Juice Philippines Master Franchisee.

I also saw two new mango-based Jamba Juice beverages namely the ‘Mango-a-go-go‘ and ‘Mega Mango‘. I tried the former and was expectedly satisfied. I hope to try the latter in my next visit possibly including ‘Peach Perfection’ and ‘Five Fruit Frenzy’.

New Jamba Juice Mango-a-go-go Beverage

Gimme 5! For Guimaras Promo

Moreover, they have this Gimme 5! For Guimaras promo for a limited time where for every cup sold, Php 5 will be donated to the Provincial Government of Guimaras for the research and development of Philippine mangoes.

Jamba Juice Blender Bike

Gimme’ Me Five Exercise

Jamba Juice also recently launched the Gimme’ Me Five Campaign where customers are encouraged to ride an in-store Blender Bike for five minutes. Upon doing so, they get to donate one mango seedling to be planted at no less than the province where the best mangoes in the world come from – Guimaras province’ Guimaras Mango Park. This is also done  in partnership with the Bureau of Plant Industry-Guimaras National Mango Research and Development Center (BPI-GNMRDC).

That’s free exercise and a good deed in one! 🙂

Jamba Juice ‘Gimme 5’

Jamba Juice Gift Certificate / Voucher Giveaway!

Want more Jamba Juice? Get a chance to try their new Mango-a-go-go, Mega Mango, Peach Perfection, and Five Fruit Frenzy beverages for FREE!, Watch out next week for NomNom’s Jamba Juice Voucher Giveaway contest starting July 1! Subscribe through email (on the side bar) so you’ll not miss it! 🙂

Jamba Juice Gift Certificate Giveaway!

Check out Jamba Juice in SM Mall of Asia and choose a healthy beverage for a healthier lifestyle.

Black Canyon Coffee Philippines

Black Canyon Coffee opened its first branch in the Philippines just this morning at the Food Street wing of SM Southmall in Las Pinas. The grand launch was graced by no less than the honorable Las Pinas Congressman Mark Villar. He was joined by Mr. Pravit Chitnarapong (CEO, Black Canyon Thailand), Mr. James Dy (Chairman, Royal Thai Food Philippines Inc.), and Mrs. Wilma Dy (President, Royal Thai Food Philippines Inc).

A big brand in Thailand that started in 1993 and now has 220 stores and 40 more internationally, Black Canyon Coffee is known for their unique concept of a coffee shop that ‘is’ also a full restaurant. While they offer a wide range of coffee drinks and beverages from espresso to cappuccino (and ‘Blackpuccino‘), they also serve Thai cuisines such as Tom Yum soup and Som Tam salads. On the other hand, their brand ‘Black Canyon Coffee‘ can be easily misconstrued as a western brand whereas their specialties are Thai food.

Black Canyon Coffee Manila

Black Canyon Coffee SM Southmall

Black Canyon Coffee South Entrance

Iced Drinks

I personally tried the BC Thai Iced Tea w/ milk, BC Iced Coffee, and BC Iced Lemon Tea, in that order of preference. I loved the authentic mix of the Thai Iced Tea just like in Thailand and the Black Canyon Iced Coffee which is a blend of arabica coffee with two kinds of milk and plenty of ice.  However, I found the iced lemon tea just ordinary.

Black Canyon Coffee: BCC Iced Coffee, Thai Iced Tea w/ milk, Iced Lemon Tea (left to right cups then back)

Black Canyon Coffee Menu Board

I then ordered one of their signature beverages – the Black Canyon Frappe. It was a refreshing drink in a visually appealing presentation with a fat glass, similar to the Black Canyon Iced Coffee. For a cost of Php 120, it was well worth the price given that they source the coffee beans from Columbia. The other raw coffee beans are from Northern Thailand while the Matcha Green Tea are from Japan.

Black Canyon Coffee Frappe

Thai Restaurant

More than just a coffee shop, Black Canyon  is actually a 160 sqm. full-restaurant that can accommodate upto 90 customers and offers Thai cuisine ala carte from soups, sandwiches, to pasta, and steaks.

Four of which I have tried are the Pad Thai, Tom Yum Goong, Tuna Green Curry Fried Rice Wrapped in Egg Sheet, and the Spicy Glass Noodles and Grilled Salmon Salad.

The Tom Yum Goong (Spicy Prawn Soup  – Php 192) had the right level of spiciness for an authentic Tom Yum Goong. Although the Tuna Green Curry Fried Rice is not really my type of food, curry lovers may want to try this one out at a good price of Php 156.

Tuna Green Curry Fried Rice Wrapped in Egg Sheet Php 156

The Spicy Glass Noodles with Grilled Salmon was something new to my taste bud, and it turned out well. The spicy and lightly grilled salmon complemented the glass noodles. They could have oiled the noodles a little-bit more, however. Called Yum Wun Sen Salmon in Thailand, this Thai delicacy is priced at Php 188.

Spicy Glass Noodles and Grilled Salmon Salad (Yum Wun Sen Salmon) Php 188

And finally, you should not miss Black Canyon Coffee Philippines‘ authentic and award-winning Pad Thai which is at par with other Thai restaurants I have dined-in here in the Philippines. The shrimps were fresh and larger than I expected for a Pad Thai complemented with bean sprouts, garlic chives, and eggs.

Black Canyon Executive Chef Rasri Athaboh

They also have desserts and bakery products. I was able to try the Fruit Salad Sundae (Php 68) and a slice of Oreo Chessecake (Php 95). The former was just ok and nothing special but the cakes were good. Priced at less than a hundred, this is a very good deal.

Chef Rasri Athaboh

It was also great to have met with Black Canyon Executive Chef Rasri Athaboh who came from Thailand. He will be staying in the Philippine for a while to oversea the kitchen and knowledge transfer. Black Canyon cooks and crew were also initially sent to Thailand for over a month of training.

Very Competitive Pricing

If you browse through their menu, you would notice that the drinks are almost always below Php 100. The Thai dishes also range only from Php 150 to Php 200; with some a little above Php 200. I hope they do maintain, more or less, these affordable introductory prices within the year.

Black Canyon Coffee Branches

Black Canyon Coffee Philippine Team

Black Canyon Coffee (BlackCanyonCoffee.com) also has presence in Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, Myanmar, UAE, Cambodia, and Laos. In the Philippines, they are looking at 2 more new Black Canyon Coffee branches within 2012; watch out for BCC in SM Mall of Asia and SM Megamall.

It has been a while since NomNom Club last held a blog giveaway and contest. I still remember the Samsung microwave oven we gave away  and the  Top Commenter winners every month that we used to have. Anyhow, we’re now back with some tumblers and gift certificates to giveaway from Starbucks Philippines and it will be my first time to use the Rafflecopter online tool for managing online contest entries.

It’s so easy actually, you just have to guess what is NomNom’s newest favorite Starbucks Beverage this June 2012. Get a clue from this Starbucks Beverage blog link.

Using a points system, click on the Rafflecopter online tool below and earn as many points as you can.
a Rafflecopter giveaway

The duration of the giveaway will be from today – June 18 upto June 30, 2012. There will be 5 winners of a set of Starbucks Tumbler + Starbucks Beverage Gift Certificate. The merchandise will be delivered for FREE anywhere in Metro Manila, Philippines. The winners will be announced in this post and our Facebook Page anytime from July 1 to 8, 2012. Join and enjoy our Starbucks Philippines giveaway!

Have you tried the two new Starbucks Philippines‘ new featured beverages? Starting today, June 12, 2012, Hojicha Tea Jelly Frappuccino and Red Bean Green Tea Frappuccino are now available in all Starbucks branches in the Philippines.

Hojicha Tea Jelly Frappuccino

Hojicha Tea Jelly Frappuccino

I have tried them both recently and the Hojicha Tea Jelly Frappuccino easily became my favorite.  I love the refreshing taste of the roasted Japanese tea, also called Hojicha, combined with the herbal aftertaste of the Earl Grey Tea Jelly. The texture of Starbucks’ own Tazo Earl Grey tea-infused jelly is something Starbucks aficionados might find refreshing.

Among the tea variants of Starbucks, I’m fond of both the Green Tea and Chai Tea Latte and I’m glad with the coming of the Hojicha Tea Jelly Frappuccino. Although it will be staying until the end of July only, I hope it would eventually stay longer with the market’s demand. The tall cup is priced at Php 155, Grande – Php 165, and Venti – Php 175.

Red Bean Green Tea Frappuccino

The second featured beverage is the Red Bean Green Tea Frappuccino. It’s basically your usual Green Tea Frappuccino with added whole kernels of Red Azuki Beans on top.

It is quite an interesting twist if you wanted to perk up your usual Green Tea ‘matcha‘ frapp but the Hojicha Tea Jelly Frappuccino still made more impact with me. The price range is also the same with Hojicha frapp.

Asian Frappuccino Blended Beverages

They also classify the two beverages as Asian Frappuccino blended beverages since they were only released in Asia. The ingredients themselves were sourced from Asia as well.

New Starbucks Food Items

Together with the two new beverages are new Starbucks food items which were offered starting today as well. They are:

Beef And Mushroom Pie

Chicken Parmigiana Wrap

Beef And Mushroom Pie

Baked to golden brown, this flaky pastry consists of beef strips, sliced mushrooms, carrots and mashed potatoes. At Php 95, it can be one filling meal.

Chicken Parmigiana Wrap

It’s a chicken breast fillet in a pita bread wrap with sliced eggplant, Italian tomato sauce, and grated cheese. At Php 150, you can have it sliced and is good for two.

Bacon And Cheese On Italian Country Bread

Crusty on the outside, soft and luscious on the inside – this one’s my favorite new Starbucks food item!

Bacon And Cheese On Italian Country Bread

This grilled cheese sandwich is coupled with six types of cheeses (Gruyere, Emmenthal, Provolone, Mozzarella, Feta and Cheddar). The flavor is further enhanced by the crispy bacon strips, pesto sauce, and Italian herbed butter on bread. Can you already smell and taste it based from the description? 🙂 . Best served warm, it costs Php 150.

Want to win some free Starbucks Beverage gift certificates or free Starbucks Tumblers from NomNom Club? Leave a comment below and stay tuned as we’ll announce this soon! LIKE us as well on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/NomNomClub!

New Starbucks Food Items

Try the new Starbucks food items specially the Bacon And Cheese Bread and don’t forget to pair it with my favorite Hojicha Tea Jelly Frappuccino. 🙂

When it comes to fried chicken, there’s no doubt that one of the tastiest around is KFC’s Original Recipe chicken. For 45 so good years, Filipinos have been thoroughly enjoying a secret recipe that has been passed on from generations to generations which we owe to the iconic Colonel Sanders who is actually the original celebrity chef.

On May 30, 2012, bloggers and people from the media gathered at Diamond Hotel for an important announcement. In Louisville, Kentucky, a secret manuscript written by the Colonel himself was discovered. It contains not only pages of his life story, but also a collection of 35 of his most treasured recipes.

KFC Launches Colonel Sanders’ So Good, So Real Recipes at Diamond Hotel

Secret Manuscript Revealed

Celebrity Chef Sharwin Tee’s Double-Cheese Hush Puppies with Peach and Basic Ketchup

To give back to its patrons, KFC earlier revealed the Colonel’s secret manuscript which became available last June 5, 2012 for everyone to enjoy by visiting KFC’s official Facebook Philippines page —www.facebook.com/kfcphilippines.

With this wonderful announcement, KFC put up another surprise as they invited-in Filipino Celebrity Chef Sharwin Tee from the cooking show Curiosity Got the Chef, to create his rendition of the Colonel’s Hush Puppies – one of the never-before-seen recipes from the prized manuscript.

KFC Original Recipe Bites

Before we got to enjoy a delectable feast of Hush Puppies and Hush Puppies, event hosts and radio DJs Chico and Delamar introduced another surprise. With the growing market for finger foods, KFC launches Original Recipe Bites – 5 bite-sized pieces of 100% real chicken which uses the same 11 secret herbs and spices that make up the world-famous KFC Original Recipe. With these handy babies, anyone can easily enjoy the all-time favorite Original Recipe anytime and anywhere.

Fully Loaded Meal Treat Promo Extension

And to make the 45th celebration of KFC’s so good food even better, loyal customers also get to enjoy a Fully Loaded Meal Treat promo extension. Feast on KFC’s Original Recipe chicken plus soup, mashed potato, brownie, and a drink for just Php 111 until June 25, 2012, and enjoy P72 discount from ala carte prices. And seriously, I kid you not when I say that this is one of the biggest discounts given by KFC so far.

Colonel Sanders Autobiography

*Story and photos by Sumi Go of The Purple Doll

So KFC fans, let’s all rejoice and take part as KFC Philippines celebrates its 45th year. Enjoy discounted meal dining with the Fully Loaded Meal Treat, munch on bite-sized but equally so good Original Recipe Bites, and visit KFC on Facebook to take a peek on Colonel Sanders’ So Good, So Real Recipes.

Chow Pao Mantao buns

My girlfriend and I had lunch at Chowking Megamall yesterday and a big advertisement at the entrance greeted us with the new ChowKing Chow Pao. At a an affordable price of Php25, I was curious how it tasted.

She ordered the Chinese-style one piece chicken while I had the Fish Tausi bowl with rice. And of course, each of us had the Chowking Chow Pao as well.

Marj had the Chinese Sausage Chow Pao (P25) while I had the Chinese Sausage Special (P35).

Chowking Megamall

Chowking Menu Board with the New Chao Pao

My Chinese Sausage Special Chow Pao (P35) is basically a Mantao bun stuffed with four strips of Chinese Sausages and sautéed vegetables. The sausage itself tasted good enhanced by the sweet soy-based sauce.

Its only difference with the Chinese Sausage Chow Pao (P25) are the vegetables. This made me think that the Chinese Sausage Special Chow Pao should have been priced at Php 30, not Php 35. Anyhow, it’s still ok since it tasted good.

CHow Pao Chinese Sausage Special

Chow Pao Chinese Sausage Special

You can also just add Php 10 and you get a glass of soda together with the Chowking Chow Pao

Braised Chicken and Oriental Beef

As of this writing, I have actually tried the Braised Chicken Chao Pao and Chunky Beef Chao Pao variants which are both priced at Php 49. And I can say that if you liked the Sausage Special Chow Pao, you will love these two more!

The complete four Chow Pao variants are the Chinese Sausage, Chinese Sausage Special, Braised Chicken and Chunky Beef.

Chowking Chow Pao Braised Chicken & Oriental Beef

Verdict

NomNom Club on Chowking Chow Pao

I think the Chowking Chow Pao will be successful moving forward because of the value-for-money the Php 25 chinese sausage offers. It’s actually like a version of a fastfood hamburger in some sense; having the better Mantao bun instead of the regular bread buns and a chinese sausage filling instead of the regular burger.

It also offered a healthier alternative with the vegetables of the special Chinese sausage Chow Pao.

On the other hand, I think that the braised chicken and oriental beef would have been more acceptable at Php 39-44 price range, not Php49. The good news is that Chowking Chow Pao did not scrimp on the fillings and the taste made up for the P49 price tag. Merienda time!

May 31, 2012 – It was a rainy afternoon when I went to Romulo Cafe in Makati City to meet the Knorr Chef Ambassadors. A cooking demo was conducted by the Filipino top-chefs who spilled out their expertise in making traditional Filipino dishes more innovative and modern.

The chefs, with the help of Knorr products help Filipinos to create special dishes that will go extra mile for their families. It was nice to know that all the recipes in the cooking demo can be easily cooked at home, making our usual “ulam” very special and more exciting.

Products used by the Chef Ambassadors

Knorr Chef Ambassadors

Knorr became very mindful in choosing their partners in product and recipe development. And they just had found these individuals who have passion for good and healthy food, coupled with an uncompromising commitment to excellence in what they do.

The roster of Knorr’s chef ambassadors were Chefs Marvin Agustin, Tristan Encarnacion, Martin Jackain and Dianne dela Cruz, with the newest addition to Knorr’s list of chef-ambassadors – Joseph Patrick Anglo. He was one of the judges in the recent Junior Master Chef Philippines. Together, they are able to create unforgettable recipes that highlight what Knorr products can do for every dish.

Knorr Sinigang MixKnorr Sinigang Mix

Knorr Recipes

Knorr Chef Ambassadors

The chefs prepared their signature recipes with the help of Knorr productsto bring out the best on each dish.

Chef Marvin shared his expertise in cooking with his Pinakbet ni Marvin. Chef Marvin made the traditional pinakbet special by topping it with lechon kawali/liempo, making a balanced combination of meat and vegetables.  The flavors of vegetables accentuated with shrimp paste became more brilliant after adding with Knorr Shrimp Cube. Most of the recipes are easily accessible making it really easy to do.

Another celebrity chef made his way on making a remix of the Sinigang and Bulalo recipe. Chef Tristan combined these two Filipino dishes in Sinigang na Bulalo. Sinigang and Bulalo are two of my favorite Filipino soups and I never thought I can have them in a single dish. The sour flavors of tamarind using the Knorr 2-in1 Sinigang sa Sampalok Mix neutralized the fatty taste of the broth.

Knorr Cubes

Chef Dianne also made fish recipes delicious by teaching us on how to make a mouth-watering Escabeche recipe, a Filipino style of sweet and sour combining vinegar and sugar and blends the taste of ginger that makes it one of the favorite dishes of the Filipino families. Chef Dianne added Knorr Fish Broth Cube to enhance the flavor of Lapu-lapu and make it tastier that usual.

Chef Martin also showcased his mastery in cooking by preparing Organic Sagada Rice Paella With Seafoods, a rice dish full with exciting flavors of different seasonings and topped with the mixed flavors or the ocean. Aside from the different seafoods, this dish tasted perfect because Chef Martin used organic Sagada rice. His secret ingredients are the Knorr Chicken Cube and the Knorr Shrimp Cube.

Knorr Recipe Website

Chef Jayps prepared his own version of ginataang kalabasa and made it more special with the help of Knorr Ginatang Mix, Knorr Chicken Cubes and Knorr Sinigang Mix. He upgraded it into Lechon Kawali with Rosted Pumpkin Gata. Everyone is familiar with this recipe but who would have thought of putting lechon kawali on it and making it a memorable recipe? Oh well, I just love the combination of the crispiness of lechon kawali and the creaminess of the coconut milk.

* Story and Photo by Noks Sosa of SiningFactory.com

Every recipe made by the Knorr Chef Ambassadors were awesome and Knorr products enhanced it further. It’s actually a good idea to have an easier way of preparing good food that our family can enjoy any time. Check more Knorr Recipes at knorrrecipes.com.ph