Certified Foodies

Go Bananas over Sugar Stop’s Minion Cupcakes!

The sold-out stock of collectible toy versions of these cuties, the nonstop posts from people who can’t seem to get enough of them and the thousands who lined up on the first week of Despicable Me 2‘s screening are clear indications of the minion mania here in the Philippines. Adults and kids alike LOVE them and couldn’t resist their cuteness, so it was just inevitable that edible versions of these minions will soon take over our newsfeed. On our top favorites are definitely Sugar Stop’s Minion Cupcakes.

If you’ve watched Despicable Me 1 and 2, you’d see how much more screen time the minions got in the sequel. Universal Pictures knew it, we all fell in love with the multi-lingual minions (yes, we paid attention 😀 ), so much so that people are now demanding for a movie featuring only the minions. Well, we think that’s a crazy idea, but let’s get back to the Minion Cupcakes by Sugar Stop.

We found out about them through Twitter. They sent us a tweet telling us to check out their minion cupcakes. Ken and I are both in love with these minions, so when I saw the photo, the first thought that came to me was, “How can anyone eat them?!?! They’re too darn cute!!”.

Continue reading Go Bananas over Sugar Stop’s Minion Cupcakes!

Yabu : An Extraordinary Katsu Experience

When Yabu opened last year at Robinsons Magnolia, we initially weren’t that excited. We thought it’ll just be another hyped, overrated restaurant. We couldn’t be far more wrong. We were invited to the opening, but couldn’t come because of work. The anticipation started to build up when fellow foodies started raving about them. So, one weekend, we trouped to Robinsons Magnolia (which isn’t really accessible to us) to finally feed our curiosity (pun intended). 😉

Since they haven’t opened any other branches yet that’s closer to us (we’re looking forward to their SM North Edsa branch!!), we couldn’t dine in as much as we’d love to because their nearest branch is at SM Megamall. Commuting from Malabon to Ortigas is such a hassle because of the traffic, so it took us awhile before we had a chance to dine in again, finally, at their SM Mall of Asia branch about a week ago. They now have 4 branches and from the looks of it, they’re not slowing down.

Anyway, back to our Yabu katsu experience. If there’s one similarity I’ve noticed from restaurants that didn’t wow us, it’s the number of dishes on their menu. When I see that there are too many items on it, I somehow expect to be disappointed. I prefer to see a smaller menu because that means the restaurant gets to focus more on the quality and flavors of the dishes they serve rather than coming up with mediocre dishes while trying to please everyone.

And this is exactly why we fell in love with Yabu. Though they have other items on their menu, you know that they’re focused on one thing: to give you the best Katsu experience – consistently. With every slice and every bite, you’ll sense the technique and passion put in every katsu they serve. It’s no wonder people are coming back for more, hence the Katsu craze.

“Delicious is in the details. At Yabu, everything is prepared meticulously, and nothing is left to chance: from using Koshihikari, the finest japanese rice, to knowing the exact second of lifting the pork from the bubbling oil. Discover what makes our katsu better than the rest.” It’s no wonder since they claim to have learned the art of making the perfect katsu from Chef Kazuya Takeda, the head chef of a renowned tonkatsu restaurant in Tokyo.

Continue reading Yabu : An Extraordinary Katsu Experience

Xin Tian Di Chinese Restaurant at Crowne Plaza Manila

It’s been awhile since Ken and I last ate at a Chinese restaurant together. I think the last time was when we went on our DIY Binondo food tour (which we’ll be blogging about very soon!) last year. So when we were invited to check out Xin Tian Di restaurant at the Crowne Plaza Manila Galleria, we gladly accepted.

Located on the fourth floor of the hotel, Xin Tian Di is Crowne Plaza’s signature Chinese restaurant. Aside from a menu of Chinese dishes, they also offer various Asian cuisines such as Indonesian, Singaporean, Szechuan and Nonya (Peranakan). Upon entering the restaurant, you’d feel the welcoming ambiance of the whole place, from their friendly staff up until their comfy chairs and tables.

I love the colors and the interiors altogether, offering a very warm atmosphere and good acoustics, making Xin Tian Di a perfect venue for business meetings or get-together with your friends or family.

Xin Tian Di Dim Sum Unlimited and Yum Cha

Before we go to what we had for dinner, let me tell you first about one of their famous offerings: unlimited dim sum.

Xin Tian Di’s Dim Sum Unlimited is available now during lunch (11:30am-2:30pm) where you get to choose from over fifty (50) dim sum for only Php 1,188 nett per person. The Dim Sum Unlimited menu includes appetizers, entrees and desserts, so you can enjoy a complete meal for that price.

And good news for all you morning people! Starting on July 14, 2013, that’s this Sunday, Xin Tian Di will start offering a breakfast edition of their unlimited dim sum – their Yum Cha promo, which will be available from 7am til 10am. For the price of Php 588++, you’d get to choose among 36 varieties of dim sum, and even includes rice, congee, noodle, dessert and house tea.

These are awesome deals you shouldn’t miss, especially if you feel like hoarding some dim sum over breakfast or lunch. 😉 Oh, and make sure to check out Deal Grocer since I’ve seen them offering deals there. A few months ago, I bought vouchers for dinner at 7 Corners (will blog soon!), Crowne Plaza Galleria Manila’s other restaurant.

Continue reading Xin Tian Di Chinese Restaurant at Crowne Plaza Manila

Krispy Kreme Speculoos Cookie Butter Doughnuts

With all the hype surrounding theÂ Cookie Butter these days (and it’s for good reason!), it was inevitable that people will start thinking of various ways of enjoying and sharing these heavenly cookie butter spreads. We’ve only had a chance to taste Biscoff‘s, and we’re still on a long queue of frantic foodies clamoring for a taste of Trader Joe’s Speculoos Cookie Butter, so we thought that our closest chance to finding out how it measures up to the other brand was withÂ Krispy Kreme’s Speculoos Cookie Butter Doughnuts.

We were at Ortigas last Monday and I insisted that we drop by the Krispy Kreme store in Robinsons Galleria. Sadly, they ran out of the Speculoos doughnuts (at 8pm, what was I thinking?! 😀 ), but I had no issues ending up with a dozen of Krispy Kreme’s Original Glazed doughnuts. We love, love, love them! Argh. Writing about this makes my mouth water. Too bad I ate the last one this morning. Pfftt. 🙁

Imagine my glee when we came home and found out Krispy Kreme delivered a box of doughnuts for us to enjoy. I was supposed to rest for a bit before work, but how can I when there’s a dozen of these yummy treats waiting for me?!?! 😀

Continue reading Krispy Kreme Speculoos Cookie Butter Doughnuts

Sugarleaf Organic Market and Cafe : Haven for Health Buffs

For us who grew up enjoying savory dishes and sweet desserts, the mere mention of healthful food gives us this impression of bland, sacrificial eating. And we think this is normal since our brains and bodies were mostly programmed to relish anything with salt or sugar. However, through this blog and our desire to be healthier, we’ve started to go out of our ways to discover more nourishing yet flavorful food, and we found one of the must-go places for health buffs: Sugarleaf Organic Market and Cafe.

We were invited for lunch in SugarleafÂ at their Medicard Lifestyle Center branch in Makati. It was the first time we felt genuinely excited to learn more about how to eat well… and smarter. 🙂 That nutritious lunch forever changed our perceptions of what healthful food tastes like. Thanks to Angelo “Jello” Narciso Songco, co-owner of Sugarleaf, who shared with us his passion for healthful eating.

We are well aware that by just changing your diet, you can drastically improve your health. Food can be medicine, or our poison. But, we’re not here to preach about health since we love bacon, desserts and chocolates. 😀 We just want to share this with you so you know your options. 🙂

When it comes to healthful food, we usually think we have to compromise flavor – this has been instilled in us, not just here in the Philippines, but everywhere in the world. We have this impression that only food products and dishes that have actual sugar, pork fats / oils, and salt can be tasty. We have learned over the years that there are other more healthful alternatives.

Continue reading Sugarleaf Organic Market and Cafe : Haven for Health Buffs

SARSA : Gourmet Sauces for Quick and Delicious Meals at Home

When it comes to home-cooked meals, we’ve got very high standards because of an excellent cook at home – our nanay. She can whip up sumptuousÂ dishes from scratch without any need for a recipe guide, and just flavoring each dish from taste. We’re THAT lucky and blessed as kids. 🙂

Enjoying her home-cooked meals has been one of the many highlights of our childhood. For us, it’s of utmost importance that families enjoy a home-cooked lunch or dinner from time to time. And if you don’t have the know-how to prepare delectable meals at home, no worries. We discovered delicious, ready-made sauces you can use that will make cooking at home less of a hassle. We’re talking about SARSA Gourmet Sauces by Chef Eugene Catipon.

We were sent three (3) samples of SARSA’s gourmet sauces to try at home. We were delighted to see the ones we received: Beef Stew, Korma (curry) and Kare-kare. We were expecting to be disappointed by the latter since our nanay prepares a killer Kare-Kare, but we were pleasantly surprised.

Continue reading SARSA : Gourmet Sauces for Quick and Delicious Meals at Home

Wee Nam Kee Yellow Chicken Festival and Other Scrumptious Dishes

For a limited time only (til June 30th, but hopefully they’ll extend or make this a regular item), Wee Nam Kee is serving up the Wagyu, Kobe and Kurobuta of chicken – the imported Yellow Chicken from Malaysia.

You might have heard about Wee Nam Keeâ€™s Yellow Chicken and thought it’s just a fancy, overrated version of the regular poultry we enjoy. When they invited us to get a taste of this, along with other Wee Nam Kee dishes, we can guarantee that it’s far from your ordinary chicken.

Continue reading Wee Nam Kee Yellow Chicken Festival and Other Scrumptious Dishes

Gift Ideas for the Self Confessed Foodie

Self confessed foodies can be very easy to buy for, if you know them well enough. But when it comes to birthday cakes, party nibbles and other edible goodies, theyâ€™re likely to have their hawk eye out for perfection. Foodies generally love food but they also have naturally high standards in both presentation and taste so shopping for them can sometimes be a little challenging.

But be patient. Here we have some great ideas for gifts for the foodie in your life. Here are our top 6 pressies for food lovers everywhere:

1. Dinner at a top-rated restaurant â€“ for a food lover, nothing beats the experience of eating out at a world renowned and critically acclaimed culinary hangout. Make a special night of it, dress up, splash out and enjoy the exciting high quality food served to you.

2. Homemade chocolates â€“ if you want to impress a loved one, what better way of showing that you care than slaving away in the kitchen for hours cooking up everyoneâ€™s favorite sweet treat, chocolate? Homemade chocolates are a very rare and luxurious treat so box them up nicely and make them look pretty.

Ken's homemade truffles — Ken’s homemade truffles

Continue reading Gift Ideas for the Self Confessed Foodie

Weird and Wonderful Foods of the World

This is a guest post by the food lovers at Corr Chilled. Continue reading to delve into the crazy-cool world of weird and nasty looking food (some which taste delicious, and others no so much).

If you consider yourself to be a little squeamish then this post is probably not your cup of tea. But if you have a little sense of adventure in you yet, prepare to check out some of the worldâ€™s strangest delicacies.

Here are some of the weirdest and wonderful dishes, sourced from around the world:

1. Fried tarantula â€“ this is a well known delicacy found in Cambodia but it can also be found in parts of Thailand too. This famous fried tarantula dish is said to be flavored with garlic and herbs for a less terrifying experience but weâ€™re not sure we believe those rumors.

Continue reading Weird and Wonderful Foods of the World