certified foodies second anniversary giveaway Archives

About 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. 😉

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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. 🙂

KEN: What’s not to love aboutÂ 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!

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. 🙂

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Marios Sunday Lunch Buffet

A few months ago, we went up to Baguio with a couple of fellow foodie friends and bloggers to celebrate Mario’s Restaurant‘s 40th year. Throughout our 2-day, 2-night stay, we enjoyed meals in their restaurant in Upper Session Road (watch out for part 2 of our feature). The whole Baguio trip concluded with a sumptuous meal at Mario’s Sunday Lunch Buffet.

Since this was an eat-all-you-can buffet, I initially thought that the dishes they’re going to serve won’t be the same as the ones on their regular menu. Most of the buffets we know only serve mediocre food compared to the items on their ala carte menu, but I was pleasantly surprised to know that Mario’s Sunday Lunch Buffet spread will give you a chance to enjoy their delicious regular menu dishes eat-all-you-can style.

Since I usually take a round of photos first before I eat, I initially planned on going to each buffet table armed with my camera. But, when I passed by the meat table, I couldn’t help, but pause my photo-taking. 😀

I went straight to get a serving of the Cochinillo, a suckling pig roasted to perfection! They serve this with lechon sauce, but the crispy, thick skin and the meat of the pig are flavorful enough on their own. I had to control myself and not get another serving of this. However, I couldn’t resist to take some from Ken’s plate when he went back for seconds. 😀

They also have a big slab ofÂ Roast Sirloin of Beef, sliced as you order and then served with Brandied Peppercorn sauce.

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Breakfast Magazine : Uniquely Fresh, Satisfyingly Delicious

There is no doubt about it, my love for food can be traced back to my younger years when I first learned how to cook with my nanay‘s guidance. Since then, my thirst to learn more about food continued to grow and I enjoyed reading about everything related to food, may it be on a magazine, book, or a website. I lived vicariously through the writers’ stories of their latest food discoveries, how they travelled different parts of the country and the world to satisfy their curiosity (and tummy). And I share this passion for food with my brother Ken, one of the major reasons why we get along well. Little did we know that this year, 2012, after almost two years of writing for this blog, we’d be given an opportunity to write for a food magazine – Breakfast Magazine.

Breakfast Magazine is a bi-monthly publication. Their maiden issue was released last February 2012. I can describe the magazine as fresh and young, just like the team behind it led by Editor-in-Chief Alexis “Kim” Cuizon.

The first thing that comes to mind when you hear “Breakfast Magazine” is it’s going to be all about the most important meal of the day. But, they’re more than that. They aim to acquaint us with the people, where the ingredients come from and the stories behind the food, the restaurants, the products. Just like this blog, Breakfast Magazine is more personal. They take on a unique angle in their feature stories and theme in every issue. Heck, even the covers are so fabulous. 🙂

You’d probably expect a food magazine to have photos of delectable dishes on their cover, right? But, no. Breakfast Magazine’s first 3 issues feature people on the cover as they’re as interesting as the stories they have to tell. First was Judy Ann Santos-Agoncillo. Second is the lovely Iza Calzado. Followed by Pokwang – unlikely and unexpected, right? But, just look at how fab she looked at the front cover of the latest issue. I say the whole Breakfast Magazine team did an AWESOME job. I seriously can’t stop looking at that glamorous photo of Pokwang. 😉

And we’ve said it before, food triggers memories that we most likely have forgotten already. It can bring people together. It can heal us and comfort us on those very stressful days. What we eat, our relationship with food can somehow reveal something about us, what we’ve been through, our personality. And Breakfast Magazine puts focus on that. 🙂

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Tupperware Speedy Chopper : A Kitchen Must-Have

When Ken and I decided to feature some of our top favorite restaurants and products we wrote about here on our blog over the past year for our anniversary giveaway, the very first thing that came to mind was the Tupperware Speedy Chopper. I swear, it’s one of the niftiest kitchen tools ever. 🙂

Among everyone in my family, I’m the one who’s most ecstatic about the Speedy Chopper because I don’t like the hassle of finely chopping ingredients for anything I’m planning on cooking at home. I mentioned on our first post about it that I do love to cook, but because of my very busy schedule, preparing ingredients has been one of the reasons why I spend less time in the kitchen actually cooking. This lightweight chopper has changed that. 🙂

The one ingredient I HATE chopping the most is garlic, and I bet a lot of you can relate to this. I don’t like its pungent smell on my fingers. But, it’s one of the best ingredients there is that can give dishes a kick of flavor. Thankfully, with the Tupperware Speedy Chopper, I won’t have to worry about its strong smell staying on me.

Hand model is our nanay 🙂

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Our New Yummy Favorites from Jollibee

Jollibee has been a part of our lives since we were really young kids. I know we’re not alone in this. Throughout the years, their menu has evolved and almost every year, we get to taste their new offerings that have proven to tickle the Pinoy’s fancy, young and adult alike. We love their Chickenjoy,Â Jolly Hotdog and spaghetti, but let us share with you the most recent additions to our Jollibee favorites:

The Jollibee Hash Brown Burger is the ultimate comfort food. Potatoes and the tasty beef patty Jollibee is known for – it’s like a complete meal rolled into one. 🙂

The Jolly Crispy Fries that come in Cheese and Sour Cream flavors. Ken prefers the latter, while I like the salty-sweetness of the cheesy fries.

Jollibee Chicken and Mushroom Pasta – I swear, when I found out about this new pasta offering from them, I couldn’t wait to try it. My nanay and I share a common liking for it. 🙂

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J.CO Donuts : Now in SM Mall of Asia

Oh, you know how much we love J.CO Donuts. We’ve blogged about them here before the opening of J.CO’s first branch in the Philippines. We also featured their J.Pop bite-sized donuts, which we absolutely adore. They’re definitely one of our top favorites from the past year. 🙂

Their first branch is in SM Megamall at The Strip. ~~This Thursday, May 24th,~~Â (update!) On May 28th, Monday next week,Â J.CO Donuts & Coffee is opening their SECOND branch in SM Mall of Asia! We know that’s definitely good news for all you foodies who are from the South or Manila area. 🙂

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Sariwon Korean Barbecue at Bonifacio High Street

Sariwon Korean Barbecue, a newly opened restaurant in Bonifacio High Street Central, proves that Koreans and Filipinos are not only similar with their love for music and cheeky telenovelas; they also share a discerning palate for good food.

Awarded “Best Korean Restaurant” by NBC Broadcasting Company in 2005 and by the Seoul Metropolitan Government in 2007, Sariwon had a rather humble beginning. Her husband suffering from diabetes pushed Mrs. Bun-Im Koo to create her own bulgogi sauce from a mixture of various fruits and vegetables without using a single speck of sugar. Urged by neighbours and friends, they established their first restaurant in 1938, which transformed from a small diner with 27 seats to a whopping sitting capacity of 350 at their main branch in South Korea.

Every table in Sariwon is equipped with imported ceramic smokeless grills that have exhausts on the sides that suck out smoke from grilling, so you don’t have to worry about your clothes smelling of smoke upon leaving.

After we’ve settled into our seats, we were warmly welcomed by our server, Joy, who was carrying a tray with six side dishes called Banchan. The first thing I recognized was Korea’s national dish â€“ Kimchi.

The names of the other side dishes, I asked our server to write down because there’s no way I could spell them myself. Shigumchi is blanched spinach leaves. Moosangchae, or seasoned Korean radish, reminded me of our very own achara. Kochu Meolchi Dokkeum is roasted anchovies with green chilli. They also have seasoned Korean bean sprouts or Kongnamul. Finally, there’s Tanhobak Sarada, which is mashed sweet pumpkin and potato, perhaps the Korean version of mashed potatoes. We forgot that these were side dishes, not appetizers, so when the other food arrived, there’s barely anything left on the plates.

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