Poptalk's Summer Coolers Special: Halo-Halo

POPTALK by Tonipet Gaba will air its "Summer Coolers" special today next week Tuesday? at 10:00pm on GMANewsTV Channel 11. Catch celebrity guest Patani Daño, student JM Araneta, and yours truly as the food blogger, as we review three kinds of halo-halo in this episode :)

We were asked to eat, and eventually rate three kinds of halo-halo from three different establishments. First up was the Giant Halo-Halo of Max's, then the Halo-Halo of Razons of Guagua, and lastly, the Special Halo-Halo of Iceberg's. It was a long and tiring day as we did the shoot in different locations, and we only had one camera so we did more than the usual number of takes for angling and safety. One thing is for sure, the level of utility the halo-halo brought decreased as we transferred to the next restaurant, and as we tasted the dessert on camera, on cue.



Max's Giant Halo-Halo (Php 419) is the first one we tasted. It's REALLY huge with lots of toppings like macapuno balls, sweet beans, red mongo, garbanzoes, banana, kaong, gulaman, nata de coco and langka, shaved ice soaked in milk, topped with ube, leche flan, a generous sprinkle of rice crispies and cheese, plus three huge scoops of ube ice cream, oh, and sticks of chocolate wafer. This dessert is perfect for groups of friends, as it is good for 6-8 people. 4 of us finished a bowl. :)) The good thing about this besides that it could be shared, it can also be taken out or delivered right to your doorsteps.




Next up was the Halo-Halo of Razons of Guagua (Php 90). We weren't asked which one is the best among the three kinds, but I would go for this one if you ask me. Razons Halo-Halo offer you a simple yet flavorful dessert experience. It's made of the usual shaved iced and milk, but this one just has banana, macapuno, and leche flan (my favorite!). This one's creamy and it melts in your mouth. You could arguably say that maybe the best halo-halo could be judged by the texture and taste of its shaved ice.



After the shoot, we took a rest from eating Halo-Halo and indulged on one of Razon's bestsellers, their Sizzling Bulalo Steak. My friend Yuri of Lost Tsinelas wrote about it in his blog. Aside from their Halo-halo, this is definitely one of my favorites in Razon's :)



Last but not the least, we tried Iceberg's Halo-Halo (Php 98). At this point, after shooting at two halo-halo places, we were kind of sick of eating already. The show must go on, as they say, so we mustered enough eating prowess we have, and shot the last of the three. Surprisingly, I like theirs more than Max's. The serving is also good for two people.



After all the shots of us tasting all three kinds of halo-halos, it was time for us to say if it was "POP" or "FLOP" according to taste, presentation and price. I gave all of them a "POP" in all aspects. If I had to choose among the three (which was what I wanted) and rate them in descending order, I would go for 1. RAZON'S HALO-HALO (WINNER!) 2. ICEBERG'S HALO-HALO and then 3. MAX'S HALO-HALO.

Don't get me wrong: All three have their own pluses. Max's Halo-Halo presents an innovative way of enjoying the popular dessert, with friends, at an incredibly good price; also it can be delivered to you with their neat packaging. Iceberg's Halo-Halo comes with heaping yet balanced servings of ingredients, ice and everything else. It tastes better than a lot of halo-halo's out there. Razon's is a sure winner for its creamy and yummy halo-halo which melts in your mouth.



Thank you to Tonipet Gaba, Leah and Jessica, and all the people I was with during the shoot. :) Poptalk airs every Tuesday at 10:00-10:30pm on GMANewsTV Channel 11.

Taters delivers using Quick Delivery

What to do with 300 pesos, and a very boring afternoon in the office? Order food! :))) I recently discovered that Taters delivers using Quick Delivery. This was another opportunity for me to use Quick Delivery, and have good food delivered right to my office, so I immediately dialed 2121212, and ordered from them. :)



I am a big fan of Tater's popcorn, specifically their five fingers (5 flavors in one bag). I was craving for that so I got a big bag (Big Time - 140g) of their Flavored Super Pop (Php 95). The five flavors mixed in one bag include nacho cheese, sour cream and chives, texan barbecue, wasabi and white cheddar. Believe me, it's so yummy! You can opt to have it with additional melted butter, but since I am asking them to deliver it to me, I opted not to add that.



Another bestseller which I got was the Flavor-Coated Tater Chips. I had Sour Cream n' Chives, since they said it was their bestselling flavor for this treat. It's priced at Php 105 for the Big Time (140g).



Lastly, since I had more or less a hundred more, I had another bestseller, their Flavor-Coated Cornachos (Nacho Cheese - their bestselling flavor), also Big-Time (80g) at Php 70.

Paris Délice: Food Made in France!

Paris Délice, an alternative fast food restaurant situated along Juno St. corner Makati Avenue, carries authentic French food, which include breads, pastries, sandwiches, quiches and salads, at reasonable prices. I was invited to try out the newly opened restaurant a week ago, so I went with my friend. After tasting what they had to offer, we were impressed with the gastronomic experience we had!



Florian and Thibault, French co-owners of Paris Délice greeted us to their simple yet cozy restaurant. They explained to us the story of how the restaurant came to be, and how they prepare and present their food to the public - made with ingredients imported from Paris, and made fresh out of the oven daily. With very high regard for quality and authenticity, Paris Délice offers French food as if they were made in France.



One of their best sellers, and my personal favorite, is the Le Lillois. It is one of their yummy sandwiches, made of chicken, bacon, mayonnaise, tomatoes, lettuce. A perfect healthy combination I can eat everyday for lunch. The bread is just so perfectly made, with the right ingredients complementing the taste of the whole sandwich. Not to mention, the baguette was to die for (I've never tasted anything of this quality in the Philippines, until now).



After the sandwich, we tried their Croissant and their Le petit pain au chocolat, and their popular Choquettes. Both the croissant and the le petit pain au chocolat were really fresh, soft, and tasty. The dark chocolate and the bread go well together, while the les choquettes, French cream puffs covered with crunchy nuggets of sugar, then baked until golden-brown perfect, were great with a cup of coffee or hot chocolate, which they owners said to be both sourced locally.



I really love the place! In fact, the next day, I brought with me Pauline, our French trainee at the office to try if it will pass the "French taste." I know she was being home-sick and this might cheer her up, so we pushed through. Guess what, she was all smiles and really happy the moment she saw what was behind the glassed shelves. She wanted to order EVERYTHING :)



I ordered the Tomato Cream Soup with baguette (you just can't get enough of this wonderfully made bread), spinach quiche, and fresh lemon juice. She ordered a sandwich, and Coke. We had desserts after - Chausson aux Pommes (Apple turnover) for her, and Triangle aux Amandes (Almond triangle) for me. We were both happy and satisfied with our food!




She was extremely happy, really, she wanted to write a letter to the owners. We asked for a paper, she brought out a pen, and she wrote them...in French, of course. She expressed how happy she was eating authentic French food in Manila, after more than a month without it.



Paris Délice is open every day from 7am to 10pm. :) You may visit and add their Facebook page here. Check out Un soir à Paris Délice: Authentic French food at the heart of Manila for more information.

New Minute Maid Flavors - White Grape and Grapefruit Orange

I was seeing posters outside 7-eleven showing that there are two new Minute Maid flavors available to the consumers from more than a month back, but not until the other day did I really found these flavors in 7-eleven's shelves. Presenting the new Minute Maid White Grape with real Aloe Vera Pulp, and the Minute Maid Grapefruit Orange with real Orange Pulp, which comes in 450mL PET bottles. Both are great additions to Minute Maid's line up of healthy juice drinks.

Save the Sharks, Save the World!

The Philippines is in the center of the center of marine biodiversity in the World! As such, it should be one of the main focus of not only the government, but also of the people, us Filipinos. We should be proud and thankful, at the same time, we should protect, preserve and be examples to the rest. Right now, activists, I mean eco warriors, and advocates are doing everything in their power to help save our environment.



In Palawan, the Philippines' last ecological frontier, for example, several groups have been campaigning to stop mining and illegal logging in the area. They have set petitions to advance this cause (see petition 1 here, petition 2 here). President Aquino, in his recent trip to the area to campaign for the Puerto Princesa Underground River to be included as one of the New7Wonders of Nature, has announced a moratorium for new mining applications in Palawan.

Tourism Assistant Secretary Enerio and my colleagues in the DOT went to CARAGA recently, and they have noticed and encountered massive logging in the area. They said that it seems to be that it has been the normal day-to-day activity of some people, or an orchestrated group in the region. Rommel Natanauan explains more in his blog post. He overheard that the truckloads of logs operate with confidence because they can easily pass through check-points due to "bribery," or "pag-aareglo." Sad as it might seem, it's happening right here and right now!



But going back to my main point, it's not only this we are facing, the environment's facing several blows everywhere. The Whale Sharks of Donsol Bicol, Tarsiers of Bohol, and a lot more flora and fauna have to be well taken cared of. This goes true with Sharks, which is the subject of this blog post.

We were strolling in the public market of Puerto Princesa City in search for seafood we can cook, when we spotted this reef shark being sold there. My best friend secretly took a shot of it (see photo below). I was surprised, and angered to see this. We weren't able to ask the market man where he got it or how much he was selling the shark, but I vowed that I have to do something about this...and so this blog is that product. I will have to write Mayor Hagedorn about this incident also.



Sharks have been on this earth for around 400 million years. They are often portrayed as evil and dangerous in most if not all of Hollywood's films - a wrong portrayal if you ask me. In fact, we are not the prey of the sharks. We are just mistaken to be seals or we provoke them through shark-feeding expeditions, Anna Oposa explains. She adds that there are "5-10 fatal shark attacks every year," while on the other hand, we "kill 100 million sharks annually."

"How can you help? First, learn more about sharks and shark finning by watching Sharkwater, the award-winning documentary on sharks." Here's the trailer of the documentary, and it is also uploaded in YouTube. I hope to watch it soon (when Anna finally lends me her copy or burns me one as she promised) :P



I am excited that my friends, Anna Oposa, Chris Ng, Kester Yu, and I are coming up with a project to make Filipinos aware of this serious condition. We will definitely update you guys about this the soonest. If you are in any way interested to help this cause, do not hesitate to contact anyone of us. Promise we don't bite! :))))

For me, it is as simple as not buying and eating Shark's Fin Soup or any related product. It would really help a lot and go a long way.

"I Pledge Not to Eat Shark Fin Soup" - Campaign Video - English from Shark Savers on Vimeo.

Also, we must talk and convince our representatives in Congress for this bill (below) to be passed into a law. These are two ways we can help directly. :)

Thanks to Ramon Magsaysay Awardee Atty. Antonio Oposa, Former Philippine President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, now Pampanga Representative, filed House Bill No. 174, AN ACT BANNING THE CATCHING, SALE, PURCHASE, POSSESSION, TRANSPORTATION AND EXPORTATION OF ALL SHARKS AND RAYS IN THE COUNTRY AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES, or the Sharks And Rays Conservation Act of 2010 (see the Scribd file below). She received the commendation of the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) Asia, and the support of this blogger on the specific issue.

In the Senate, Senator Loren Legarda filed Senate Bill No. 2616 entitled BANNING THE CATCHING, SALE, PURCHASE, IMPORTATION AND EXPORTATION OF ALL SHARKS AND RAYS on November 26, 2010.

The bills' status? Pending with the Committee on Natural Resources since July 27, 2010 in the House, and since December 06, 2010 in the Senate.

HB00174

It was reported recently in The New York Times that there is a bill recently in California banning the sale and possession of shark fins, including the sale of shark's fin soup. This is not new, as Hawaii, Oregon and Washington State, have the same bills curtailing "shark finning, a brutal, bloody practice of the global trade in which the fins are typically hacked off a live shark, leaving it to die slowly as it sinks to the bottom of the sea," stated in the NYT.

I hope the Philippine government follow, and LEAD as an example. Let's help save the sharks in the Philippine seas! :)

Credits: 2nd Photo (Logging in CARAGA) by Rommel Natanauan and 3rd Photo (Shark in PP Market) by Yuri of Lost Tsinelas.

A Krazy Love Affair with Garlik

I first heard about knew about Krazy Garlik when I saw their newly opened branch at Greenbelt in Makati, since then I was intrigued about how they would present the cuisine and how they would market the restaurant and the concept to us, hungry eaters. The Bistro group has done a great job once again with its Asian themed restaurant which focuses on a love affair with garlic, as they present a variety of dishes infused with the star of the restaurant --- garlic :)



In my opinion, you can never go wrong with the concept, because for us Filipinos, garlic is a staple in almost all our recipes and food choices. A typical fried rice with tapa would use garlic in both the rice and the salt-cured beef in cooking. So on and so forth. Going back, we tried Krazy Garlik at the newly opened Resorts World Manila branch near Ninoy Aquino Internationa Airport (NAIA) Terminal 3.

And so, this "love affair with garlic" has started, and we ordered our garlic dishes. While waiting, we were served a complimentary appetizer of kimchi and other veggies.



This obsession with garlic has gone too far. They even infused garlic syrup in some of their drinks. We weren't brave enough to try those so we stuck it out with Orange Kiss (Mint Leaves, Lemon, Minute-maid, Lemon-Lime Soda) and Limeade (Lime, Lime Mix, Lemon-Lime Soda).



We ordered a bowl of really krazy rice, Hara-Kiri, which is a house special spicy fried rice with chillies, octopus, shrimps, and bacon. It's good for 2-3 persons. We also got the Gambas Las Palmas, which is shrimp sauteed in olive oil, wine and tomato garlic sauce. Really perfect, if you ask me :p




One of their bestsellers also, the Garlic Snowflakes Pizza. It's a house special with a creamy base, topped with shrimps, pineapple and garlic flakes. As for a person who doesn't eat pineapple, I asked them to make the half of the pizza without pineapple, while the other half with pineapple. They gladly obliged.



It's truly a dining destination that glorifies garlic. It's definitely a restaurant worth eating at! Remember, "Garlic makes it Good." :)

Pilipinas, Tara na sa Panagbenga sa Baguio City

Panagbenga is the annual flower festival of Baguio City, the summer capital of the Philippines. It has become well known not only within the region and its neighbors, but internationally as well. I had to miss this wonderful reception of my cousin, Stephanie Tan-Kingsu (Congratulations!!!), and the regular cousin photo-ops we do because I had to go to Baguio and cover the 2011 Panagbenga Festival and Secretary Alberto Lim. I am not complaining. Hmm, In the service of the Filipinos, I did what must be done. :)))

The official Panagbenga website would paint its origins to be like this, while my colleague at the Department of Tourism would tell me a different story. Miss Aleli said that it was during the time of Tourism Secretary Mina Gabor when the flower festival was commissioned as a replica of Pasadena's Rose Parade. She said that the winner of the flower festival float contest back then was shipped and included in the Rose Parade. The people who rode the float were the Philippines' pride and glory, the Miss Universe title holder(s) and beauty queens. How does she know? She was the one who did the paperwork back then, according to her. Now, I would have to research and delve more into this if there is truth to what she told me. :p

The highlights include the Grand Street Parade on Saturday, which I missed because I had to be in the wedding of my cousin, and the Grand Float Parade on Sunday. Here are some photos of the street parade. Officials in attendance were DOT CAR Regional Director Molintas, Baguio Vice-Mayor Daniel Farinas, Tourism Secretary Alberto Lim, Baguio Mayor Mauricio Domogan, House Speaker Feliciano Belmonte, Jr., and Baguio Congressman Bernardo Vergara.



Secretary Lim and other Tourism officials went to one of the newest tourist attractions added in Baguio City, the BenCab Museum, where they were toured by the National Artist Ben Cabrera himself. Sec. Lim cited museums like this and other cultural displays as possible new tourist draws. He also mentioned wellness and adventure as additional pegs for tourism in Northern Luzon.



After the tour, the Secretary was the main guest of honor at the opening of the new Department of Tourism Cordillera Administrative Region (CAR) office in Baguio. In his speech, he took the opportunity to share the Department’s thrust in appealing to “high-value tourists”, especially in international tourism promotion. “It is not the number of tourists we get that matters," Sec. Lim says, "but the amount of money they spend and the length of time they stay," he points out. "What we want to do is spend our promotions money targeting the high-value visitors like the MICE market,” Sec. Lim said.

The Department’s soon-to-be-launched “Pilipinas, Tara Na!” domestic tourism campaign is likewise a joint undertaking, this time with the private sector. Sec. Lim said a remake of the 2004 “Tara Na, Byahe Tayo” music video will be rolled out in time for the Holy Week rush. ABANGAN! :)



I arrived 2am in Baguio, in time for the 8am Grand Float Parade, which showcased 22 huge colorful floats covered with all sorts of floral arrangements and designs. It was a little bit commercialized as the floats represent different companies, but overall, it was very well attended by tourists from all over.

The photos below show the "making" of the Department of Tourism Cordillera Administrative Region (CAR)'s float, where Secretary Alberto Lim, National Parks Development Committee Juliet Villegas and DOT CAR Director Pura Molintas rode in during the Grand Float Parade along Baguio's Session Road.

Pilipinas, Tara na sa Panagbenga sa Baguio City! :) DOT CAR Float, with Tourism Secretary Alberto Lim, and myself ;)

All photos courtesy of Jahzeel Cruz of the Department of Tourism :)