Frannywanny

A month ago, I received an email from Dwight Co of 50 Feasts , a new food photography school that's located just a few blocks away from home. He invited me to be part of their first ever Basic Food Photography class and after giving it much thought I emailed him back asking if I can give my slot to my husband, Paul, instead. As you all know, what you see here in Frannywanny.com is a close team-up between me and my husband. I do the writing while he takes care of most of the mouthwatering photos found in this blog . As for the eating, we split that responsibility 50/50. :P When Dwight said yes, I told Paul the good news and in return I got a big big big hug from him. Looks like someone was very excited about taking further food photography lessons. We had our mini countdown and along the way, Paul found out that fellow blogger Leslie will also be joining him in this class, all the more he got so excited that he at least know one person in the class already. I think I have ...

The Food Club went on another out of town trip and this time we all headed to Paul's hometown in Angeles, Pampanga ; where we stayed the night in Fontana Leisure Park . ( Read Rowena's blog entry about it here ) We got there around 11 in the morning and The Club decided to go Duty Free shopping first. After which, lunch was next on the itinerary and being the ones who frequent Pampanga a lot, I asked the group if they're game to have ribs for lunch. After all, I had my favorite restaurant in mind. I first encountered AC Rumpa a few years ago when Paul and I first watched the Hot Air Balloon Fiesta in Clark. As always, I went prepared ready with a list of restaurants to try after doing my research online and AC Rumpa got the most number of votes from our Hot Air Balloon group. AC Rumpa stands for Angeles City Retired US Military Personnel Association. I'm not really sure if the owner is an American or a Filipino but one thing I'm really sure of is that they ...

It has been a while since Paul and I had our much-longed-for R&R. Our last was during our 1st wedding anniversary where we stayed a night at Discovery Suites . We were, in fact, really looking forward to our trip to Bacolod which sadly got canceled due to a massive strike conducted by ex-PAL employees. "Just one night." I always pray to HIM. We've both been so stressed out that I think a mini-break will really do wonders for us. HE heard my prayers so last Saturday I got an email from the Ariel 3D Deep Clean event organizers telling me that they actually booked a room for us at Microtel Mall of Asia . The thing is, this will be from Monday to Tuesday. We've never had a mini-vacation on a work night so this is really something new to us. Still, we tried to be spontaneous and openly accepted the invitation. So there we were, right after work checking in at Microtel Mall of Asia . There were plenty of parking spots and the attendant were very helpful too. I...

Once again, we have reached the -ber months where people start to make their Christmas list, families decorating their Christmas trees and for avid Starbucks Coffee fans like myself, we head to our favorite store to collect enough stickers to bring home our very own Starbucks Planner ! This is really the start of the countdown as on November 3, 2011 ; Starbucks Coffee will begin giving out stickers for every drink purchase for customers to collect to be able to redeem and get one of the five planners available. Yes, you read that right! From having three attractive designs last year, Starbucks Coffee Philippines now has FIVE for you to choose from! Last night, I was lucky to be able to see the Starbucks 2012 Planner up close and to be able to lift through the pages, run my fingers through the wooden cover and go through each month by month as I read the opening pages. I know you're all dying to see what Starbucks Coffee has in store for all of us planner fans so read on a...

Unknown to many, I am a neat freak . I spend most of my free time (and in between busy schedules) organizing, cleaning, sorting, color-coordinating and a lot more. This is also the case when it comes to my clothes. I hate having a lot of unused clothes stored in my closet just gathering dust. This is the reason why I regularly go through every single piece of clothing and I quickly discard the old, worn-out ones to give space for the new ones. I love keeping my clothes tidy and clean. However, as we go out, especially when we travel and dine out, it's inevitable that we perspire and we leave stains and bacteria in our clothes. While eating, we sometimes accidentally have sauce dripping on our jeans and oil stains on our long sleeves. These are really hard to remove and not even the most powerful stain remover can sometimes do the trick. Luckily, I was invited to the launch of one of the country's leading brand in fabric care Ariel as they launched a new product called th...

Here's a case when I chose not to blog on the my first restaurant visit...neither on my second but just decided to wait and go back for a third round before I finally give my full review. I first heard about Hainanese Delights from my colleague ML who is a certified foodie and a budding food blogger. It was during one of our work-related events in Robinsons Galleria when she pointed out this fast food-like restaurant with a bright pink signage to me. I made a mental note to check it out but since I rarely get to visit the mall, it took me more than a month before I finally had the chance to try Hainanese Delights for the first time. My first visit was ok, nothing amazing as I was only able to try one dish and a can of Coke. Nothing more. My second visit came shortly after when Hainanese Delights opened at Robinsons Pioneer , a mall that's just within walking distance from my office. ML and I were invited to a lunch meeting there and we were able to sample more dishes ...

A month ago, I received 4 Gift CerTEAficates to try Cha Dao Tea Place , a new milk tea shop near my office. This entitles me and three companions to an XL Drink with Free Sinkers each! Since Paul and I basically had nothing planned yesterday afternoon and my sister and her boyfriend E happened to be at home too, we decided to go out for an impromptu double date over milk tea. So, off we went to Cha Dao Tea Place in Brgy. Kapitolyo in Pasig . The store is quite small where probably only 10 customers can fit at a time. I like the nice touch of having bowls of dried tea leaves on the table. Wish that it was more aromatic for the scent to fill up the room. The servers were extremely friendly, asking us if it was our first time in Cha Dao and after learning that it indeed was, she proceeded to pointing out their best-sellers in the menu. She was very helpful in suggesting and guiding us through our orders. Paul, a non-milk tea drinker were interested to try the Yakult line an...

Okay, I promised myself I will consciously try to start eating healthy. This was after having had two amazingly good lechon dinners and hundreds of meals that include me indulging in something oily, sweet, buttery and basically...deadly. For fear of clogging up my arteries and cutting my life shorter than it should be, I have started to have a bowl of oatmeal again for breakfast and to choose my meals wisely for the coming days...months...years.. .so help me God . Kidding aside, I know once in a while I'll still allow myself to bite into that fluffy piece of caramel cake or grab a bag of chicharon when the craving hits but this time, I'll try to be wiser. I started my healthy campaign last Saturday as I had lunch with fellow bloggers and friends Jin and Leslie . This time, Paul was able to join us and I gladly introduced him to two of my favorite food bloggers. Since Leslie was under strict Cohen diet and is quickly turning into a va-va-voom sexy lady ( hehehe! ), w...

I feel very lucky that I have a grandfather who's an excellent cook. He can whip up even the most complicated Chinese dish for his family of 5 kids and 7 grandchildren to enjoy. Kongkong , as we call him, was first introduced to the kitchen during the World War II . Together with his siblings, they were abducted by the Japanese invaders and while my other grand uncles were put to do rigorous work; my Kongkong, being the Mr. PR that he is has immediately endeared himself to the Japanese who made him a kitchen assistant at a very young age. From that day on, he continued to find enjoyment in cooking and eventually influenced my Mom to have that same love for cooking as well. Kongkong even once opened his very own restaurant and I still have that photo of that one-year-old me happily sitting on top of the cashier counter. Mommy always tells me that I take after my Kongkong especially when it comes to our love for food . I initially didn't quite believe her but it was when I s...

A week ago, I launched a quick and fun contest where I will give away a special California Crunch gift pack to 5 lucky readers. The mechanics was simple and I had a great time reading through all of your answers! Some made me laugh till my tummy ached, others were just so unique that it made me say "that was cool!" All entries were great and I know I have to do a great job in choosing the top 5 answers. Thanks to my ever reliable Microsoft Excel worksheet, I finally have my top 5 answers and I'm proud to announce the lucky readers who will be receiving a special gift pack filled with California Crunch Cassava Chips!! Congratulations!!!! Analyn Alonsagay Agnes Ducs Jerome Carreon MG De la Costa Josephine Soliman Gregorio I will be needing your contact details so kindly expect an email from me soon!! :) *image credit:http://lacqueredme.blogspot.com

I'm typing this entry with Take That's Back for Good playing in the background. Yes, I'm a 90's kid at heart and I just love songs from old school boy bands like Take That, Boyzone and my one and only Backstreet Boys. ♥ It's perfect timing too that I am about to share with you some good news! After a few years of innovating and changing the menu line-up, Flapjacks is finally bringing back some of their well-loved favorites and just like the Take That song..I do hope they'll be back for good . A few weeks ago, The Food Club scheduled to have dinner at Flapjacks Theater Mall as Richard , Jane and I were able to receive some gift certificates from Flapjacks . Dinner was scheduled earlier than usual as we have a bowling game to catch right after. (Yes, The Food Club is now turning into a Bowling Club as well haha) Paul and I used to frequent Flapjacks as we both love having breakfast meals at any given time of the day. My favorites include their fluff...

I really have to thank my lucky stars that despite that fact that Paul and I love to dine out with friends, we don't have to drive so far to be able to enjoy good food. In fact, here in San Juan ... we simply just have to WALK. I've told you about my favorite afternoon snack venue called Segovia's Cakes and Recipes (Homemade Mamon FTW!! ), my recent late-night find -- Taibun Bakery and Coffee Shop and of course, the countless number of milk tea s and noodle houses that's just within walking distance from home. Last week, Paul and I joined our favorite couple friends Jai & Stan, Jeanny and Karl for an impromptu triple date at Maimee's Garden Cafe . Compared to the other restaurants and food establishments in San Juan , this is the most hidden and it takes a keen eye and a good knowledge around the area to be able to find it. I first saw the banner announcing the opening of Maimee's Garden Cafe a few months ago. This prompted Paul and I to drive aroun...

"San Juan is turning into a mini Taiwan !" I caught this comment over Twitter a few weeks ago and I couldn't help but agree. First, we saw the fast emergence of milk tea shops starting with Serenitea followed by ChaTime , TeaTap and now ShareTea from Taiwan is opening pretty soon. There are also a lot of Taiwanese bakeries and restaurants in the area like Feng Wei Wee and their delicious dumplings and Cold Layers for authentic Taiwanese Ice Desserts. A few months ago, a Taiwanese establishment called Taibun Bakery and Coffee Shop opened just a few blocks away from my home. One thing that I noticed is that they actually have a cool discount schedule where they give price-offs for their bread products  from 6AM to 10AM and from 9PM to 12MN. I guess this is their way of making sure their bread gets sold quickly to keep it fresh all the time. I also noticed that they operate with very long hours! Imagine being open from 6AM to 12MN? Wow! After watching No Oth...

Don't you just LOVE to snack? Two weeks ago, I blogged about a couple of delicious snack finds that I was lucky to discover over just one weekend. Aside from breakfast, afternoon snack is one of my favorite meals (well if you would consider it a meal, that is) of the day as it allows me to slow down from work, take a break and enjoy bite after bite of fill in with choice of snack of the day here . Well, it has been a month since I haven't ran a contest and I actually feel bad for not having one on my anniversary month, well it has been a month since Frannywanny.com turned 4 and it's not too late to celebrate yet, right? Remember my blog post about this yummy bag of cassava chips that actually makes a healthy snack choice? I'm actually giving away 5 California Crunch Cassava Chips gift pack for 5 lucky readers to enjoy!!! The mechanics is simple: 1) First of all, log on to Facebook and make sure to like the Frannywanny.com page as well as the Californ...

Here's my morning routine, after putting my phone alarm on snooze for about 20 times, I spend a little more time in bed with my iPod Touch on hand as I browse through my favorite social media sites -- Facebook and Twitter . photo taken from www.apple.com This morning, I opened my Twitter and saw a number of messages that says "RIP Steve Jobs", "Steve Jobs is dead". In my mind, I thought it was a bad joke. Just the other day, Paul and I were very excited with the launch of the iPhone4s which really blew us away with its innovative, high-tech functions. How can Steve Jobs be dead ? I still remember the day when we learned that Steve Jobs stepped down as Apple's CEO I told Paul that it felt like the end of an era . Well, the news are real...Apple's former CEO succumbed to pancreatic cancer and passed away this morning at the age of 56. photo taken from http://www.widestart.com Admittedly, it was only last year when I fell in love with Apple...

There are times that we find ourselves too lazy to cook. This is especially when our ever-dependable househelp goes on a day-off and we are just so tired of ordering from our neighborhood restaurants. Thank God for City Delivery where I can order from restaurants as far as Makati or Quezon City. However, whenever the entire family comes to visit, ordering this way just doesn't work that well. We normally would either have it potluck or get someone to cater for us. Another challenge when getting a catering service is that I have a very small family. My immediate family consists of just 5 people -- Papa, Mommy, Pan, Paul and myself. If you add our extended family, we would just be around 20. More often than not, we either end up with a lot of food for everyone to take home and in effect spending more than we should. The foodie world is fast evolving. From one-number-delivery services, we also see the emergence of talented personal chefs who can prepare a good meal even for a sma...

San Juan is truly an amazing place to be. When we first moved here, my sister and I would call it the donut hole simply because it's located at the middle of Metro Manila where it makes it practically accessible to head north, south, east and west. Another reason was due to a long blackout during the Milenyo typhoon and it seemed like the entire Metro Manila had power back already except for our city. San Juan is one of the smallest cities in Metro Manila yet its currently growing with a lot of food finds and amazing gastronomic delights which makes it a great place for food lovers like me. Just recently, Paul and I had our afternoon snack at Segovia's Cakes and Recipe s, a new resto-cafe located just a few steps away from our home. I heard that Segovia's is owned by Carmen Segovia of the famous Cake Studio who used to cater for my high school. While my memory can be pretty hazy now, all I remember is that her pasta is really one of the best that I've ever had...

Earlier I woke up and I suddenly realized that September is over and October is finally here. This just means Christmas is just a few hops away and we are pretty much on the verge of saying goodbye to 2011. With the holidays coming soon, it's time to plan for that much-needed vacation. It's then perfect timing that there will be a BIG Outlet and Travel Sale happening on October 14-16, 2011 at The Megatent in Ortigas. I can't wait to book for a weekend R&R as travel merchants such as The Tides Boracay, One Tagaytay Place, Hotel Elizabeth and a lot more will be there! Paul, on the other hand, is ready to check out products from his favorite brands such as Rudy Project, Crumpler, Digital Walker and of course, PowerMac Center. Lastly, here's some great news! If you have a BPI Credit Card you'll get to enjoy these additional perks: Free Entrance to BPI Cardholders (with valid ID) Additional perks for BPI Express Credit Edge and Petron Mastercard holders...