Happy Lemon at Bonifacio High Street!

I often crave for milk tea, usually in the afternoon when my body needs a good dose of sugar and milk. Thing is, I hibernate at Bonifacio High Street... AND THERE IS NO MILK TEA PLACE HERE. Yeah sure, there are around 2 milk tea shops near the area but sometimes I don't feel like walking a mile or two just to get a cup. I'm trying to save my fats here, people! So I have been wishing for a milk tea place here, right smack in the middle of High Street.

Finally, the holy cows heard me! Guess what milk tea place opened today in Bonifacio High Street...

Best Food Forward Giveaway

With March 24 - 25 fast approaching, I can't help but get excited to get my hands (and mouth!) on mousse cake, pork belly, and butterbeer! Best Food Forward is one of the things I'm really looking forward to this summer. I'm so ready to chow down good stuff! But you know what's gonna make Best Food Forward more awesome?



FREE PASSES! 

Yup, I'm giving away five (5) Best Food Forward passes to three (3) lucky people! I'm going to take my friends to the food fair, so I hope the winners do too! If you want to score passes, here's what you need to do:

1. Follow me on Twitter (@trixieeeee). Remember, that's 5 e's!

2. Comment on this blog post about Best Food Forward by answering the question: Why do you like to eat this summer? (Include your e-mail address and Twitter username as well).

First 3 to give VALID entries (no crappy answers please!) will get the passes.

Deadline of entries is on March 17, 2012. Very easy to score Best Food Forward passes!



Best Food Forward is on March 24-25, 2012 from 10AM to 8PM at The NBC Tent, Bonifacio Global City.

See you there! ;)

 

 

Best Food Forward!

I was lucky enough to experience a mouth-satiating event called Best Food Forward, where I discovered good stuff to put on your dining table when you have people over your house, or you're just simply hungry to the nth level. Best Food Forward is going to be open for the public on March 24-25 at NBC Tent. Lucky for us bloggers, we get first dibs of what grubs are going to be there!

Indulgence by Irene

A lot of people have been raving about the Quezo de Bola cheesecake from Indulgence by Irene on their blogs. What they say is about how yummy it is, or how great the cake is. For me, it's more than just the creaminess of each bite.



You see, I had two missed instances with the cheesecake. There were two events in my life that I was supposed to try this great cheesecake, but didn't get the chance to. You know why? Here's why!

Instance 1: Our friend Chris had a cheese-themed despedida. The Queso de Bola cheesecake was part of the menu. The whole night passed and I didn't notice the round cake that was sitting gloriously on the table. HOW. COULD. I.

Instance 2: It was the surprise birthday of Janey, and Irene brought another cake since it was one of Janey's favorites. When Jane opened the door, everyone shouted "Happy Birthday!". The cheesecake decided to join in the surprise and plopped down on the confetti-infested floor. When I got to the venue, the cheesecake was still whole, but it was already covered in different colors of foil paper.



Now that two instances have passed, I am grateful that I get another chance to try the very awesome Queso de Bola cheesecake. I got a mini cheesecake box all for myself. I opened it, grabbed a fork, and savored each bite of creamy cheesecake that is full of yummy flavor. First bite, and I've gone to cheesecake nirvana.

Indulgence by Irene's Queso de Bola Cheesecake comes in two sizes: Php 900 for 9", Php 200 for 4.5" (4.5" minimum order of 4). You can call 09228303900 or 09176225800 for orders.

 

Sail through love with Sun Cruises!

What could be a better way to spend Valentine's with your loved one? Take him/her cruising along the bay of Manila, and chow down good food aboard Sun Cruises' boats.

The Manila Bay Valentine Cruise will sail from Feb 11 to 15, 2012, and for only Php 800 per person you can get the following:

- 1 hour cruise along Manila Bay

- Buffet dinner

- Live acoustic entertainment

- Complimentary Chocolate Fondue



 

If you wanna extend your time with your lovey dovey, spend the night at Corregidor and experience a Cozy Valentine's treat for two! This package includes:

- includes roundtrip ferry transfers

- Shrine, entrance, and terminal fees

- guided island tour on Day 1

- full board meals - buffet lunch on Day 1 & 2, Plated Dinner, and Plated Breakfast

- full body massage

- overnight room accommodation at Corregidor Inn

- sunset viewing, night lateral tour, and sunrise viewing

- use of swimming pool and beach facilities

 

Make your loved one happy and avail one of these valentine's treats! I promise it will be worth it. Happy Valentine's to everyone!

 

Happy (and Yummy) New Year!

I know it's already late but Happy New Year to all of you guys! New year, great start!

Speaking of a great start, Yummy Magazine  is celebrating a milestone this year as 2012 marks their fifth anniversary. To kick off their year long celebration, Yummy is introducing new columns and sections! Awesome, right?

Yummy Magazine will have the following additions: Guest Chef, Yummy Likes, and The Everyday Recipes.



To know more about Yummy's first issue for 2012, grab a copy now! Yummy Magazine is  available at newsstands, bookstores, and supermarkets nationwide. For more of Yummy online, visit www.yummy.ph, become a fan on Facebook via facebook.com/yummymagazine and follow them on Twitter via twitter.com/yummyph.

The first hipster in my life

Meet my new seatmate, Thei.



She has a cat named Sgt. Diego, who I think can be a good friend of Potato. She LOVES to eat, and she can bake bad-ass cupcakes (I have yet to try those!). Anyways, she's in this blog because she is the FIRST EVER hipster in my life. I really don't know how to define the word hipster but according to Urban Dictionary, hipsters are a subculture of men and women typically in their 20's and 30's that value independent thinking, counter-culture, progressive politics, an appreciation of art and indie-rock, creativity, intelligence, and witty banter.

I think she's the first hipster that I ever had a close encounter with because:

1. She says the words "dude", "solid", and "BOOM!" in an inexplicable manner. Basically, she makes those words sound so hipster.

2. She gives us so much "love".

 

You'll be seeing us around together, most of the time. Do drop a greeting on my seatmate's Twitter!

I just really wanna flood her Twitter mention timeline right now. Lelz

Pouncing on desserts!

Last weekend, I took another trip to Enderun Colleges at McKinley Hill to conquer my favorite challenge: DESSERT BUFFET!! Actually it was Enderun's Pastry demo, but more about that on the next post. Here's what I wore:

tube top (Topshop) | skinny jeans (Forever 21) | satchel (Frances Sales)

Elements Gastrolounge: the science of yum and fun Pt. 2

So where was I? Oh yeah.

Elements Gastrolounge has the perfect pub/bar setup and awesome-est bar chow. What makes it a complete party hole is the drink selection. I've never seen such artistic style of serving cocktails! Only in Elements.

I tried their prized drinks. Prized, because the owners really sat down and thought about the cocktail recipes. They want to make sure that merriment is circulating in their pub at every aspect. I feel relieved because now I know a place that serves good hard (literally) drinks. Mind you, all their drinks are traitors - it will get you drunk and you don't even know how. I think that's good. It means you'll surely enjoy the taste of your cocktail without worrying about the stinky strong smell and icky taste of  hard liquor.

First drink that came out of the bar was their signature Red Iced Tea. The only drink I had that night without alcohol!



After my first sip, it's actually pretty good! It didn't taste like red iced tea from a packet that's being supplied to (insert a random Japanese restaurant name here). Perfect drink to clear your palette!

Elements Gastrolounge: the science of yum and fun

Have you ever wondered what happened to the small bar on the third floor of Greenbelt 3 with beds in it? Yep, that bar is gone now. It got an awesome makeover though, and I was able to visit the place right before it publicly opened.



Oh yeah, it's not called Bedspace anymore. It's now known as Elements Gastrolounge.

Burgers and Chocolate by Chef Marc Chalopin

I found myself sitting down at one of the kitchen-slash-classrooms of Enderun Colleges in McKinley Hill. We were in a cooking demo headed by Chef Marc Chalopin, the executive chef of Alain Ducasse Formation (ADF) + Enderun. He started off by introducing himself, and the two dishes that he was going to make. I didn't pay attention at first (forgive me, Chef Marc!) but by the time the shrimp burgers were being fried, I intensely paid attention to the show kitchen until everything was done!



Rewinding a few steps back, Chef Marc Chalopin demonstrated how to make Shrimp Tartar Burgers and Chocolate Leigois. He started of with making chocolate ice cream for the Chocolate Leigois. Forgive me if I couldn't give proper recipes for the two dishes, I lost my copy! I think Roch has them. :)

Anyways, I didn't know that making good ice cream requires a lot of time and work! Just look at the overly creamy chocolate ice cream! I took a sample dip and it was like cumulus clouds were partying all over my mouth. It was that soft!



 

While Chef Marc churned more ice cream, his assistant made Nougatine.

 

Donuts give me hope

The last time I ever visited Cello's was two months after February 14 of 2009. I was up so early because I had to prepare a small surprise for my then-friend's birthday. I was planning to pick up some of my friend's favorite food and deliver it to my friend's house. The night before, I called up the places wherein I'll be picking up my orders. Everything went smoothly until when I was on my way to my last stop, they were just opening and I had to wait for 30 minutes for them to make what I ordered. I just said "No thanks!" and drove like a headless chicken. I didn't know where to get a replacement! So I just decided to go straight to my friend's house and bring an incomplete surprise. My friend would never know anyways.

While I was driving, I passed by Taft and saw Cello's and a few students going inside. I quickly remembered, they have alphabet-shaped donuts!!! I immediately pulled over, and got a dozen with annoyingly cute sprinkles. I thought I was gonna go dessert-less! Good thing I spotted Cello's along the way. :)



My next encounter with Cello's was just a few days ago, when Jel harrassed me via emails, SMS, and event attendance but gave me a whole box of donuts in return. She instantly cured my craving for chocolate cake! Well, it was just a chocolate dipped donut but close enough!



It's the last day of the week and I think I still have one donut left. I'll grab the last piece and enjoy the weekend! Hope you have a blast tonight; it's FRIDAY!

 

Chic Dining at 2nd's

I've been hibernating around Bonifacio Global City (BGC) for a long time already and it's such a shame that I haven't tried eating a full meal at 2nd's. It's always drinks and cocktails for me whenever I go there because that place gives off a cozy vibe. Good thing Richard and Irene dropped by for a quick chitchat so we decided to eat lunch at 2nd's.



We were greeted by the big big and heavy wooden door and 2nd's specials for today.

Busy-roos!

I've been MIA since last week due to piled up e-mails, decks waiting to be finished, primers begging to be done, and schedules asking to be planned out. My MIA phase will probably continue until the end of this week, because since last weekend the Nuffies from Australia are here in MNL! We've been very busy doing work during daylight and going out and about when the sun sets down.

Yesterday, I tagged Lynda and Kruppy (the two AU Nuffies) along to the Blogger of the Month guesting of Nikki on The Wake Up Show at Mellow 94.7. We got stuck in really bad traffic (the Aussies witnessed my crazy style of driving) and barely made it to the show slot. Nonetheless, everyone was such a trooper to run up to the station quickly.

Nikki in front, Lynda and Kruppy at the back

The three of them were awesome on radio! Wish Kruppy said "Crikey!" on air lol :) Kruppy reminds me so much of the movie, 127 Hours. When I see him, it's like he's gonna climb a big rock and drink a bottle of pee.

Both Lynda and Kruppy are still here in the city so if you guys have any suggestions on where we should take them, leave a gracious comment or tweet me! I'd appreciate it very much :)

BRB we're off to the neighboring city!

 

Cheesy Cheerful Chumbos

Early this year, I experienced ultimate cheesy heaven in just one small bag. I discovered it when I randomly passed by the grocer's and picked up a few stuff. I saw a small orange and blue pack stacked in one of the racks along the Chips aisle. I got one bag, dumped it in the cart, and took it home for a test run.



As I opened the bag and tasted one piece with curiosity, I vowed to myself that I will get truckloads of this stuff to satiate my cheese flavor craving.

Something sweet from Blenz

A few days ago, I dropped by Blenz for a meeting with Redg. It was a long one- comprised of college chitchats, showbiz gossip, more showbiz gossip, and of course our agenda. Before we went down to business, Redg was kind enough to let me try Blenz's bestsellers (I think, if not then it should be!)



It's Red Velvet Cheesecake - a big layer of cheesecake (bottom) and red velvet cake (top) sandwiched together with a thin layer of cream in the middle, enveloped with super (x9999) rich white chocolate ganache and topped with white chocolate shavings. This is what you call daydreaming.

Just look at that fine slice.



I took one bite, and another, and another, until I forgot that we needed to discuss something. Yes, it was THAT good! It's made out of pure win and divine awesomeness. Go to the nearest Blenz branch (there's one in BGC and SM Megamall) and get a slice for you!

 

Angel and Phil for Century Tuna

I bet you guys already saw the latest TV commercial of screen sweethearts Angel Locsin and Phil Younghusband - yep, Century Tuna! A few weeks ago, the two were launched as the new faces of the canned tuna company to promote a "sexy" way of eating and healthy lifestyle.

Wild About Retail's Bangkok Cheatsheet

One of the toxic things in life is making a vacation itinerary. You bombard your head with so many questions- how to squeeze in everything in just a couple of days, where to stay, where to go, what to do, WHAT THE HELL. But some people (me!) just looooove making trip itineraries because it's a way of learning more about the place that you're going to, and not just the usual touristy stuff.

So here's a short cheatsheet for those going to Bangkok for the next couple of months!

 

1. A cab from Suvarnabhumi Airport to Sukhumvit area costs around THB 180-200. Toll is around THB 25-30, and Airport Taxi surcharge is THB 50. Big cabs (Avanza, etc.) charge more than usual sedan cabs. We took an Avanza cab to Sukhumvit and the meter went as high as THB 600.

More Thai Food!

I strolled around Bangkok to shop, shop, and shop some more. But of course, food stayed on my mind! Here are some of the stuff that I tried while shopping around malls and discount places:

Weird food from KFC



I don't mean to offend the Thai KFC people (or Thai people in general) but I don't know what this dish is called. I can say that it has chicken, some sort of sea algae, onions, and hell lot of chili. I wasn't able to finish this because it's too spicy. My tummy cooked up a revolution after a few spoonfuls of this. Don't worry, I'll try to know the name of this dish when I go back.

 

Spicy + Yummy = Somboon

Even before I left MNL, a lot of people have been telling me to eat at this place that serves awesome awesome seafood. While in transit going to this resto, I was hoping that they don't disappoint because 1.) I love seafood to the moon and back and 2.) Tom Yum is part of my "Great Dishes To Eat" list (Tom Yum has shrimp. Shrimp is seafood). Someone heard my prayer, they do serve gooood foooood!



We visited the Ratchada branch of Somboon Seafood. It's right beside the MRT Huay Kwang station so you definitely won't get lost going here.