Frannywanny

It was a rainy Friday evening and my parents are on their way out to attend a party. The initial plan was for the three of us (Paul, my sister and yours truly) to either order pizza and camp out in our room while watching TV or to head out to Greenhills for dinner. We haven't finalized the plan yet since all of us have been busy that day. Just what could probably be a sign from above, the doorbell rang and our helper who answered the door, later entered the house with boxes and containers of food. It was a delivery from the guys of Angels Pizza Pasta Combo (thank you very much!) and they sent us a huge box of pizza, three boxes of the pasta on a dough (Carbonara, Bolognese and my favorite Tuna Pesto) and three bowls that became the highlight of our late Friday night dinner. Needless to say, we had a relaxing dinner at comforts of our home despite the rainy weather. Let me tell you more about the three bowls that were delivered to us. Peering into the clear cover, we saw a ...

One thing is for sure... blogging with an empty stomach can be hazardous to your health. I'm typing this before having breakfast and I can literally hear my stomach growling like a mad lion. To torture me even further, I am about to share with you something so delicious that the thought of it can really make my mouth water (and my stomach rumble louder). Yes, I'm such a sadist. *sigh* Last Monday, Paul and I were invited by my former colleagues of Starbucks Coffee to try a couple of new lunch sandwiches that they will be launching soon. I was so excited as knowing my talented friend C, who takes care of R&D for our local Starbucks food items, these sandwich are sure to be delicious! I remember back when I was still working for the Green Siren and C was working on those breakfast sandwiches , oh how I enjoyed hanging out with her at the training room as I watch her heat up samples after samples of sandwiches and she would generously share them with me. Now you know...

Before our fun bonding session over delicious icy dessert at Cold Layers , I met up with K and B for dinner at Yumemiya Japanese Cafe . Side story: I heard learned about the restaurant on its opening day. This is because a couple of us were invited to the restaurant to celebrate their grand opening and to try the food until we were told that the event got canceled the morning of the event day due to them running out of food. We never heard from the PR guy ever since. *sigh* Anyway, I found myself finally dining at Yumemiya Japanese Cafe a couple of months after. I purposely waited a while as I wanted to get feedback from friends regarding the restaurant. I heard a few, some raved about it, some had very neutral comments. Thus, I went with an open mind and a tummy ready to feast on Japanese food. Since I arrived quite early, I had the chance to read through the menu over and over again. I noticed that unlike other Japanese restaurants/cafes, they have a very short line-up. No su...

AFC's Next Celebrity Chef Do you love to cook? Do you have what it takes to be a celebrity chef? Well, here's your chance to stand out and be discovered as the Asian Food Channel is looking for the last man/woman standing who can withstand all the kitchen challenges thown his/her way! This is actually a first in Asia as AFC will conduct a region-wide search consisting of 5 countries -- Hong Kong, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore and the Philippines. Auditions will run from August 3 - August 16, 2011 in the five participating countries. The prize is an exclusive one-year contract as an AFC Celebrity Chef with the Asian Food Channel. In addition to that, the winner will be awarded the opportunity of a year-long employment contract with the E&O Group, taking on the mantle of Creative Director and Head of R&D for the E&O Gourmet Group. Sounds amazing huh? For more information, log on to: http://www.asianfoodchannel.com/nextafcchef . Who knows, you might just...

We're on a roll!! After celebrating our 1st wedding anniversary with an eat-all-you-can dinner at YakiMIX , I found myself on the way to Eastwood City with Paul and my sister last Saturday night to try another popular yakiniku grill-all-you-can place -- Sambo Kojin . My friends who have tried both, have been telling me that is the BEST yakiniku grill-all-you-can place in town and I believe them. This time, I also did my research. I read up on blogs and website who did reviews on the restaurant and even bump into an old friend that morning who assured me that I won't be disappointed. Needless to say, I arrived at Sambo Kojin with really high expectations. The place was packed and luckily we had a reservation. The friendly receptionist led us to our table and we were greeted by Jeffrey John , our server for the evening. On our table were two small platters filled with some Korean appetizers. We settled down and began by trying the kimchi, bean sprouts, potatoes, dilis...

Last night, I met up with my friends B and K. I met them while working for the Green Siren and coincidentally we have all moved on and have pursued other careers: I went to publishing, B is now the Marketing Head / Trade Head / CEO (hehe) of a premium beauty brand and K is handling research for one of the country's biggest food empire. I love the fact that we still manage to keep in touch even if we don't get to see each other on a daily basis anymore. Definitely, food will keep us together ♥. We agreed to have dinner at Northeast Square in Greenhills. This is really sweet of B and K to agree to meet up in San Juan since B lives in Makati and K is from Manila. I definitely love these girls! Dinner was at the new Japanese restaurant Yumemiya , which I will tell you more about in my next entry. As we were going through the menu, B mentioned that there's a dessert place called Cold Layers located at the 2nd level of the same commercial complex and that her friend has b...

It has been a while since I've watched a musical play. It has been more than 2 years ago to be exact. I fell in love with watching theater acts way back when I was still in high school. I'm lucky that my school (an exclusive all-girls school) and our neighboring school (an exclusive all-boys school) have combined to create an organization called Stage FX where a number of amazing production numbers have been staged featuring, of course, the talented students of both schools. Okay, because anyone jumps into the conclusion that this is where I have honed my drama queen skills, well I was a part of the production crew thus I work behind the scenes...far far away from the limelight. Still, I enjoy listening to the cast rehearse and I never miss a play night. That's how much I love watching plays. For those who feels the same way towards watching musical plays, well here's one show you shouldn't miss -- Sweet Charity ! This will open on August 5, 2011 at the C...

I am pretty blessed to have friends who share my passion and love for food. We all get excited over new food finds and our radars get stronger as we discover newly opened restaurants all over town together. After enjoying our first ever meet-up over delicious President's Steak *drool* at Myron's Place , it was time for another dinner out with my two favorite food bloggers Jin and Leslie and this time, it's Jin's treat. I first heard about Tourne from fellow blogger Richard who dined there a few days before our visit when he went with his talented and lovely wife Irene and Sister-in-Law. Richard has been raving about the Southern Airline Chicken saying that it is so delicious, in fact it's "the best tasting chicken breast he has ever had" . As much as I was curious to try this amazing chicken dish, what held me back was the fact that it was served with cornbread stuffing. Sadly, I am not allowed to eat corn except when it's mashed or cooked pol...

If there's anything that I am quite ashamed of then it must be the fact that it's taking me forever to fix up our room. Despite working for the country's best-selling home magazine and being able to browse through as much copies of the magazine anytime I need to, I have been putting off this little room project since we got married exactly a year ago. Well, it's not like there hasn't been any progress at all. At the start of the year, we bought our side cabinet that now houses my magazines and books and serves as my bedside table top too. A few months back, Paul and I finally found THE couch that we've been wanting to have. Its a 3-seater red couch that my husband enjoys sitting on when he's having one of his DVD nights. Still, our walls remain to be bare and we still have a blank space waiting for the arrival of our dresser cabinet. Really, I totally salute all the talented room decorators and Martha Stewarts of the world for being able to turn a...

I'm nursing a nasty cold right now...it's the type that permanently clogs my nose making me unable to breathe properly. It's also the type of cold that's giving me a very nasal voice and is currently making me feel very very very....drowsy. Times like this I truly can't wait to curl up in bed under my thick, comfy comforters and to sleep the night away. Before that of course, I have to attend to my growling stomach. If chicken soup may be the comfort food for the soul, then mine would be that Plain Noodle Soup from Kanzhu Hand-Pulled Noodles. My first time to try Kanzhu Hand-Pulled Noodles was last Friday with some members of The Foodie Club , as we were invited to try some of their dishes. I've been passing by this restaurant since it opened taking the place of the Club's first meeting place -- Beijing Hand-Pulled Noodles . I'm happy to note that Kanzhu has a lot more varieties and Paul and I loved the quality of their noodles more. Let me sh...

After two weeks, 711 shares on Facebook and 277 valid entries, we finally have our WINNERS thanks to Random.org !!! CONGRATULATIONS to the following readers: (2) P1500 City Delivery gift certificates goes to Bianca Juliano and Lourdes Espanol . P600 worth of Boulevard Diner GCs is awarded to Vanessa Salosagcol . Pond's White Beauty White Cream and two Gold Radiance Serum loot bag goes to Gessa Marie C !! Beach Hut Face and Body Sunblock goes to Levy Martinez . Thank you to all who patiently sent in their entries every single day. For the winners, kindly expect an email from me soon. Watch out for my next blog contest coming up in a few more days!!! :)

Look what's inside this big black box!!! It's a set of the new Coca-Cola Can Glasses and I'm so excited to use these when I have friends over! Perfect isn't it? Glasses of icy cold Coca-Cola and bags of chips! I also have the complete set of glasses from last year's collection (sports series) and I must admit I liked this design more. The glasses come in 6 colors: pink, green, blue, lime, charcoal and purple! This makes a good collector's item as the glasses are only available in select McDonald's outlets in 13 markets worldwide! Stocks are limited so head over to McDonald's and avail of these by adding P25 to any Extra Value Meal! *note: thank you NN for this!

To celebrate our 1st wedding anniversary , Paul treated me to dinner last Saturday. He asked me to choose where I want to eat and since we were already at the Podium Mall , my stomach and heart led me towards YakiMIX .. (that is after considering Cantinetta, House of Wagyu and other classy restaurants at the ground floor of the mall..kidding!) . Actually, Paul tried to throw a number of other restaurant suggestions my way even mentioning my favorite Arya but I was dead set about trying YakiMIX that evening. We got to YakiMIX at 6PM as we know that it can be pretty difficult to get a table knowing the popularity of this restaurant. I went with very little expectations as I've heard quite a lot of mix reviews from the terrible ones to those who truly had a great YakiMIX experience. Luckily, we didn't have to wait and were quickly ushered to our table nearest to the door. I loved the interiors as I was not actually expecting for it to look like a high-end Chinese restaura...

To achieve perfection, I always believe that everything relies on the details. Big or small, adding the right detail can simply turn an ordinary hotel overnight stay into a memorable one that will last forever. Exactly a year ago, Paul and I spent our first night as husband and wife at the Discovery Suites in Ortigas. I remembered how surprised we were upon entering our 1-bedroom suite to see a bottle of wine on our table and as we walked towards our bathroom, the entire floor and bath tub was filled with red rose petals. We were speechless yet our hearts were screaming words of gratitude towards the very thoughtful staff of Discovery Suites . Today, we celebrate our 1st wedding anniversary and instead of flying out of the country or taking a long drive out of town, we decided to book a night once again at Discovery Suites , thanks to the amazing deal that we got from Deal Grocer . I got the 2nd to the last coupon for a 1-bedroom suite stay with breakfast for 2 for only half the ...

I can't believe it has been almost a year since Paul and I flew to Singapore then to Malaysia for our 2-week long Honeymoon. I remembered being welcomed by our friend HK who took us on a fun food trip around the Tekka Market where I had the best tasting Lamb Briyani and later we dined at a Nonya Restaurant where it was my first time to try this type of cuisine. I knew from that point on that our honeymoon will truly be a gastronomical trip. As we get closer to celebrating our first wedding anniversary, Paul and I were invited to a food tasting at Shiok where we relived the fun eating moments that we both had during our Honeymoon. We met Chefs Nicco and Denny who are both owners of the restaurant. They first opened a branch at the Fort Bonifacio and lucky for us Greenhills loyal visitors, they now have their second branch at the food court of Greenhills Promenade . Initially, I thought Shiok means "cheap" as directly translated in Hokkien. It was only after meetin...

It has been almost 10 months since Krazy Garlik opened its doors to the public. Since then, it has teased the palates of hundreds of garlic lovers in this side of town. Who would have thought that they can add garlic in practically any dish ... yes, even in sweet desserts. My first visit was pretty memorable. I enjoyed the Hara-Kiri , the Snowflakes Pizza and the Garlicky Crispy Pata . Most of all, I will never forget the special Crema Catalana that had candied garlic cloves on top. It was THE BEST. Due to its location, I rarely get to visit Krazy Garlik even if it has been on my list to dine in again. I'm glad that I had that chance to go back with fellow bloggers one weeknight and Paul was also able to join me on my return. Hooray! I love the happy, crazy vibe of Krazy Garlik . As you enter the restaurant, you'll see a bright colorful mural of Alice in GARLICland . Walk towards the washroom and let the characters of the story direct you to the right cubicle. We...

This is one business model that I truly admire. With the growing number of people working at night be it at a call center, BPO or any retail establishments, the clamor to have more food choices is getting louder and louder. Of course, you can always count on the usual fast food chains or grab a quick bite at any convenience store but don't you wish there's someone who can provide delicious hot meals in just a snap of a finger? Meet the Kitchen Knight . Serving a wide-array of Asian favorites to the hardworking midnight crowd of Makati and its neighboring areas, Kitchen Knight is literally just a phone call away. One evening, I was lucky enough to be able to try some of Kitchen Knight's specialty for dinner. The rider came on time and efficiently presented our meals which was carefully packed in sturdy styrofoam boxes and delivered to us in huge plastic bags. Of course, my first pick was the Katsudon (Php. 85) as this is my favorite Japanese donburi (rice topping)....

On the 1st day of July, I was lucky enough to be invited to a celebration that was held at the US Embassy in Manila. It was a dinner hosted by Ambassador Harry Thomas as the United States of America celebrated their 235th Independence Day . I arrived early as requested in the invite and my car underwent very strict security check (I think the most strict that I've have ever seen in my life so far) . I was dropped off right at the front door where it was filled with security personnel and ushers ready to assist you. Not knowing where to go next, I just followed the long line which they called the receiving line . In my mind, I thought this would lead to a registration table where I will be meeting J, my fellow blogger who invited me to this very exclusive celebration. Little did I know, as we inch our way closer to the ballroom, I would reach the welcome committee headed by no other than Ambassador Harry Thomas himself. He was a very nice man that I was initially speechless ...

Hi readers! While I truly hope you're having fun joining my ongoing contest (12 days to go, guys!!) , here's something you might want to do too. It's very EASY! All you have to do is to answer this quick survey and get a chance to win one of 10 SM Gift Certificates worth P1,000 each ! The survey won't even take up too much of your time! I finished mine in less than 10 minutes and I'm also crossing my fingers to be one of the lucky winners of the Gift Certificate which I will use to seriously decorate our room.  Good luck!! :) *image credit: http://www.applied-corporate-governance.com/free-online-survey-tools.html