Papa Johns Pizza Food Trip : Mythical 5 and PBA Meals Promo

After weeks of being stuck at home, my nanay, Ken and I finally got the time to go out on a weekend. Since I’ve been craving for pizza since the beginning of the year and we received gift certificates from Papa John’s, we headed out to their branch in SM North Edsa to try one of their PBA Meals.

Nanay taking photos of our PBA Meal at Papa John's

Yes, our nanay is now addicted to taking photos of our food too and sharing them on Facebook. 😀

Papa John’s PBA Meals are their new offerings for friends and families who enjoy watching the PBA (or for any viewing parties of any sport, movie or TV show really) with pizza to share with their whole group. There are 2 options: Mythical 5 PBA Meal and PBA Meals for 12 (click to zoom).

Continue reading Papa Johns Pizza Food Trip : Mythical 5 and PBA Meals Promo

Valentines Day 2013 Buffet and Specials from Metro Manila Restaurants

Valentine’s Day may not be officially a holiday, but it’s one of the most celebrated days of the year. It’s when couples are extra caring, loving and romantic towards each other. If you’re looking for a restaurant to call for reservations for your Valentine’s Day celebrations with that special someone, we’re here to help!

Where to celebrate Valentine's Day 2013 in Metro Manila

Here are the restaurants in Metro Manila with special Hearts’ Day menus for you and your boo:

Continue reading Valentines Day 2013 Buffet and Specials from Metro Manila Restaurants

2012 Holiday Buffet and Specials from Metro Manila Restaurants

We were supposed to post this a week ago, but we had to attend to many important things, including the first meet-up of The Burp Society (Yes! We finally did it!). Anyway, you still have three (3) days to call for reservations or order to-go specials from these Metro Manila restaurants for your Noche Buena or Media Noche.

Happy Holidays from Mhel and Ken of Certified Foodies

Bizu Patisserie has a Savoury Holiday Traditions and Land of Sweets spread that you can order to-go – Le Picnique Party Tray – for your Noche Buena. See our post about Bizu’s holiday offerings.

Continue reading 2012 Holiday Buffet and Specials from Metro Manila Restaurants

FREE Gelato at Gelatissimo : Join Club Gelato!

To celebrate Gelatissimo Philippines‘ fourth anniversary / birthday, they are offering ALL Club Gelato members FREE gelato on November 18, 2012, from 11am to 6pm. We’ve featured Gelatissimo here before – our first gelato experience. Now, they’re our favorite gelato go-to place, so we’re sure you’re going to enjoy their gelato too. 🙂

Gelatissimo Free Gelato to Club Gelato members

 


My gigantic servings of Gelatissimo gelato - CertifiedFoodies.comHow can you get FREE gelato?

All you have to do is join Gelatissimo’s Club Gelato (click to be directed to the site) and you should receive a voucher through email. Print that voucher and present it on November 18th at any of the Gelatissimo branches listed below, from 11am to 6pm, and get ONE FREE SINGLE CUP or CONE gelato.

Only one (1) voucher per person and this can’t be used with any other offers / promos. Also, make sure you bring an ID ’cause they might ask for it to verify your membership, probably. I’m pretty sure tons of people will troop to Gelatissimo for this, so just to be safe, prepare an ID. 🙂

Read our review of Gelatissimo in Trinoma.

 

Gelatissimo Branches:

  • Ayala Centre Cebu – Stall G-100, Garden Level ‘The Terraces’, Ayala Centre Cebu, Cebu Business Park, Archbishop Reyes Avenue, Cebu City 6000
  • Greenbelt 5 – Space 2-045 Second Floor, Greenbelt 5 Ayala Center Makati, Metro Manilla 1200
  • Serendra Piazza – Serendra, Bonifacio Global City, Taguig 1630
  • SM City Cebu – Ctr 106, Upper Ground Level, SM City Cebu, North Reclamation Area, Barangay Mabolo, Cebu City 6000
  • SM Northwing – Upperground Level, SM City North Wing North Reclamation Area Cebu 6000 +63 922 8834 605
  • TriNoma – Level 4, Epifanio de los Santos Avenue, cnr North Avenue Quezon City 1100 +63 2 915 9777

Continue reading FREE Gelato at Gelatissimo : Join Club Gelato!

Philippine Restaurant Week 2012 and Wine Depot Sale

All you foodies who have a special fondness for wine pairings or simply good food, over 100 of the best restaurants and hotels across the country are participating in Wine Depot’s Philippine Wine and Food Week, dubbed Restaurant Week 2012.

Philippine Food and Wine Restaurant Week - October 8-14, 2012

This is the fifth consecutive year of this special foodie event where the finest restaurants offer special menus and vino from Wine Depot for less than Php 1,000. You have until October 14, 2012, that’s Sunday, to wine and dine at our very own Restaurant Week.

Here are just some of the restaurants that are participating:

Some restaurants participating in Philippine Restaurant Week 2012

There’s Mario’s restaurant, The Cake Club (we’ll be posting about them next), and even restaurants in Cebu, Bohol, Cagayan de Oro, Boracay and Baguio. If you’d like check out the restaurants’ menus before you head over, click here.

 

Continue reading Philippine Restaurant Week 2012 and Wine Depot Sale

Asia Food Expo, Food and Drinks Asia 2012 : Win FREE Tickets Here!

This September is looking like a very eventful month for foodies, food businesses and new entrepreneurs alike. I guess everyone is getting ready for the coming holidays, and we’re as excited as you are. Among the many events, the Asia Food Expo 2012 and the Food and Drinks Asia 2012  are the food expos we’re looking forward to the most. And, together with Breakfast Magazine, we’re giving away TEN (10) tickets to these 2 events, so read on. 🙂

Win FREE tickets to Asia Food Expo 2012 and Food and Drinks Asia 2012

If you are planning on opening up a business or you’re thinking about expanding a current one, then, you’d be glad to know that these 2 events are specially focused on different sectors of the food industry.

Continue reading Asia Food Expo, Food and Drinks Asia 2012 : Win FREE Tickets Here!

YOUR Guilty Pleasures : Thank You for Sharing!

You told us about YOUR guilty pleasures, now let us share with you our favorites and the TWO (2) WINNERS who we unanimously voted as the ones with the BEST ANSWERS. To read the entries of the other participants, go here.

Guilty Pleasures

Most of you told us about your love for chocolates, pastries and anything sweet. But, there were some who shared their unique (read: weird) guilty pleasures…

Continue reading YOUR Guilty Pleasures : Thank You for Sharing!

Haagen-Dazs Up to 50% OFF Sale + Must-Try Local Ice Cream

Last week of June, we wrote about Haagen-Dazs closing all their Philippines stores. To cap off their stay here, they are holding a massive “clearance” sale. You can now buy Haagen-Dazs ice cream for UP TO 50% OFF (note that not all products are sold at half off)!

The Great Haagen-Dazs Sale

Here are the participating stores and supermarkets nationwide (Metro Manila, Baguio, Pampanga, Tarlac, Pangasinan, Cebu, Bacolod, Davao, CDO, Gensan, etc) that are selling Haagen-Dazs ice cream at half off (click image to view a larger version):

Participating supermarkets for Haagen-Dazs ice cream sale

The promo will end on September 15, 2012, so you still have 2 months to grab all the Haagen-Dazs ice cream you can get before they finally say goodbye to the PH. We’re planning on checking the Haagen-Dazs products and their sale prices at S&R and Landmark Trinoma to see if they’re worth the fuzz. If you can give us feedback, let us know at the comments section.

NOTE: This promo was posted on Haagen-Dazs Philippines’ official Facebook page.

Like what we’ve said before, we’re not completely saddened by this news about Haagen-Dazs stopping their sales here since there are a ton of other selections available to us Pinoys that are much cheaper and even uniquely ours. We’ve got artisan ice cream makers who produce high quality frozen products at various numbingly delightful flavors, so don’t fret. 🙂

Last time, we told you about the other ice cream brands you can continue to enjoy like Magnum and other Selecta products, Magnolia, Nestle, and even Arcee Dairy (wait for our upcoming ice cream series!). Now, let’s share with you our favorite artisan ice cream makers:

Continue reading Haagen-Dazs Up to 50% OFF Sale + Must-Try Local Ice Cream

About Guilty Pleasures

Guilty Pleasures

Guilty pleasures – these can be food, activities or anything that gives you so much pleasure that you don’t mind the guilt you feel right after. Guilty pleasures are usually kept secret from others probably because you want to maintain a certain image, you simply don’t want anyone judging you for giving in to temptations or it’s just plain embarrassing to admit.

Though we enjoy discovering new restaurants or cooking up unique dishes, we have a list of food and drinks that we can’t simply get enough of. We always come back to them because nothing else can give us the same level of satisfaction. They’re our comfort food, so no matter what others may say about how unhealthy they can be, we felt that it’s about time we share with you our own guilty pleasures to hopefully entice you into admitting what you always crave for. 😉

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

MHEL: I was one of the many people who were saddened upon learning that A&W stores stopped their operations here in the Philippines years ago. Imagine my joy when I found out that leading grocery stores still sell A&W rootbeer in cans. I blogged about that here. And every so often, I bring home at least 2 cans of A&W rootbeer to enjoy at home (I actually have a can currently chilling in our refrigerator). The intense rootbeer flavors and its frothiness can never be surpassed by any other rootbeer brands, and I know a lot of you would agree with me. 🙂

A&W Rootbeer 12-can pack

KEN: What’s not to love about Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups? Reese’s combines the two best things in the world – chocolate and peanut butter! I have tried countless times to make my own version at home, but nothing really beats the original. These peanut butter cups, covered in their bright orange wrappers, are, hands down, the best candy in the world!

Reese's Peanut Butter Cup Miniatures Family Bag

MHEL: I LOVE cheesecakes, but since I had a taste of Ken’s version of Blueberry Cheesecake (New York style), I can’t get enough of it. I think we’ve had it numerous times over the past year. He doesn’t complain though ’cause I’m always the one buying the ingredients. 😀 Plus, he’s addicted to cheesecakes too. It’s the best Blueberry Cheesecake I’ve ever tasted, and I share this opinion with a lot of fellow foodies. 🙂

Ken's Homemade Blueberry Cheesecake

Continue reading About Guilty Pleasures

Haagen-Dazs Bids Farewell to the Philippines

After what we would consider a brief period of delighting us with their high quality ice cream, Häagen-Dazs is closing operations in the Philippines. They have made this announcement official on their website and on their Facebook page.

Haagen-Dazs is closing down in the Philippines

We’ve only had Haagen-Dazs ice cream twice – once at the Haagen-Dazs store in SM Mall of Asia and the last time was when we bought their ice cream bars at a grocery store. Though we absolutely love their ice cream, we find it too pricey for us, even on those days when we desperately need a creamy pick-me-up.

And we believe this is the reason why they’re closing their stores here. Pinoys are not keen towards buying ice cream at Haagen-Dazs’ price range when they can be satisfied with a more affordable alternative, like Magnum ice cream that only costs Php 50, or frozen products from Magnolia, Selecta, Nestle and the Korean ice cream brands ( watch out for our upcoming ice cream series 🙂 ). This is sad news for those who love Haagen-Dazs ice cream. But, I bet we can still buy their ice cream from S&R.

Haagen-Dazs stores in SM Mall of Asia and Robinsons Mall (Ermita) are closing after June 30, 2012. Their Shangri-la Plaza Mall and Eastwood Mall branches will stop operations by August 31, 2012. So, if you want to give them a proper adieu by treating yourself to their ice cream, take note of these dates.

Official announcement on Haagen-Dazs Facebook page about their SM Mall of Asia and Robinsons Ermita stores closing down

 

Haagen-Dazs Promo Alert:

As a show of appreciation to everyone who supported Haagen-Dazs here in the Philippines (plus, you wouldn’t want all those ice cream to go to waste, right?), they’re offering some delicious promos for all.

Continue reading Haagen-Dazs Bids Farewell to the Philippines