Filipino Flair at Sentro 1771

When dining out, I often make it a point not to go to a restaurant that serves Filipino fare. It's not that I do not appreciate our cuisine, it's just that coming from a household of good cooks, I get my fill of our our own flavors. From tinola to sinigang, kare kare and dinuguan, I get to savor most of these at home so when I eat out, I look for something else.

However, during the 8 to Educate dinner, my fellow bloggers and I were treated to a sumptuous Filiino feast with a flair at Sentro 1771. Known as the First in Modern Filipino Cuisine, Sentro definitely gives the classic Pinoy a fresh new take. Since it's opening in 2002, it has wowed both local and foreign diners.

Sentro 1771 is one of the 8 restaurants participating in Virlanie's 8 to Educate Campaign. By ordering their Fried Chicken Cutlets or the Catfish Adobo Flakes you dontate to educate a child care of the Virlanie Foundation.

Read more »

Note to My Diet: Do Not Disturb!

Next to my food I eat in secret, ice cream is probably one of the things I eat in the privacy of my own room. There's something about scooping spoonfuls of this cold, smooth and creamy treat right out of the pint that is just so comforting. This is exactly the message conveyed by the three act show presented to the media and Bloggers, as well as special guests, during the launch of Haagen-Dazs in Robinsons Place Manila. The show, slyly captioned Do Not Disturb, Slow Melting in Progress, highlighted snippets of the lives of three very different ladies, each going through their owns ups and downs in life, and in the end, whether in comfort, as inspiration or in celebration, one thing is common: savoring spoonfuls of sweet indulgence straight from a tub of slow-melting Haagen-Dazs Ice Cream. These definitely are moments of solitude to be relished!

The event marked the formal opening of Haagen Dazs in the said mall and was graced by American Ambassador Kristie Kenney, who, along with Robinson Land Corportation Business Unit General Manager Mr. Cornelio Mapa, cut the ceremonial ribbon. Ambassador Kenny also gamely scooped up the first scoop of ice cream together with Haagen-Dazs Philippines General Manager Ms. Tess Panganiban.

Ambassador Kristie Kenney poses with the
crew of Haagen-Dazs Robinsons Place

As I mentioned, I love my ice cream straight out of the pint. Strange as it may seem, I enjoy it more on a cold rainy day while curled up in bed while watching my favorite shows on DVD.

What about you? How do you enjoy your ice cream best?

Haagen-Dazs is located at the Ground Floor of Midtown Mall in Robinsons Manila

It's Coming!!!

Today I came across the best news! I was blog hopping and I dropped by one of my new favorite blogs to read, dessertcomesfirst.com, and I was greeted by a post about the infamous Starbucks Red Cups...not just that: this year, my favorite Peppermint Mocha Frap is going to be BACK!!! Yup!!! Back!!!

Being a Starbucks collector, this news that this years planner is going to come in three designs is BAD BAD BAD...for my pocket that is! To top it off, my best Starbucks buddies (Janine and Grace) have left so who's gonna help me with my stickers now?!?

Not So Jolly at Jollibee.

One of my most favorite things to do on a lazy Sunday afternoon is to get some take out at Jollibee with Bubba. However, lately, I've been getting more and more disappointed with the service I am receiving from the drive through counter, particularly here in BF Homes.

I have made several complaints to the manager on duty, but I don't know if it's gotten any attention. My main complaint with the drive through here is that there are always people loitering around the drive through counter. Sometimes, it's kids selling sampaguita. Sometimes, it's worse. It's someone the counter person knows and is chatting with while you try to give your order. They (the "guests") even have the audacity to complain when you drive in. My worry is that one day one of them gets sideswiped by a car or something and it will be the drivers fault.

Read more »

Say it with me: I Ate To Educate!

Eating out is one of the few luxuries my college friends Che, Monsi, Angie, Cathy and I love to indulge in. Whether it is in a fast food chain or a nice new restaurant, splurging for good food and enjoying each others company is definitely something we still value. I think we value it even more now, especially since we barely get a chance to see each other as often as we'd like.

Over the years, we've developed some sort of a criteria for choosing restaurants we go to. For example, for a brief period of time, we boycotted Jollibee because of environmentally un-friendly practices they were reportedly doing. Up to now, we avoid using plastic straws whenever we order drinks because of the same reason. Other things we consider would be food quality (of course), serving size, service and quality for money.

From October 26 to December 31, 2009, 8 great restaurants and food places in Serendra and Bonifacio High Street are on my list to watch out for, mainly because of one good reason: by simply ordering a specially marked dish from their menu, you get to say "I Ate To Educate!".

The 8 to Educate project aims to raise support for the Virlanie Foundation, a private, non-sectarian instutution that cares for street and abused children. They do not just offer a roof over the heads of these children, but they aim to empower them by educating them to work for a better future.

You can also support the 8-to-Educate project by pledging an amount or sponsoring a child for Php 800.00 a month for one year. Donation envelopes are available when you dine in the partner restaurants. In the next two weeks, I will review each of the partner spots with with a blog post dedicated solely to them. I hope you look out for them!

Remember: check out the specially marked dishes in ArAma, CAV, Chelsea, Cupcakes by Sonja, Fu, The Healthy Kitchen, Sentro 1771, and Xocolat and say you ate to educate!