A Merry White Crema from Alaska

Last December 15, Alaska Milk staged the Merry Cremas Food Bazaar at the Eastwood Mall Activity Area to usher in yuletide indulgence.  There were 24 food merchants and suppliers who gathered to showcase their products highlighting the use of Alaska All-Purpose Cream.

 

The Alaska All-Purpose Cream was used as an ingredient in the merchant’s featured specialty dish.  The specialty dishes vary and can either be savory dishes or baked goods.  I was there 1-hour ahead of the public opening since Alaska has asked me to be one of the judges they invited to evaluate the best product made with Alaska Crema All Purpose Cream.

 

It was a little tough picking the Crema of the crop, since there were several good contenders.  I also enjoyed the decors and the booth designs that the merchants have obviously spent time on.

But after much taste testing and filling my stomach with cream-filled goodies, I finally made a very shortlist.

[Read more…]

Midnight Mercato at Fort Gives a New Light to Midnight Snacking

 

 

I’m sure you know how much we all love weekends.  And how much we try to stretch the hours just to enjoy it longer…

 

CW and I run quite a hectic schedule most of the time and sometimes late into the night, we look for a good restaurant that’s still open or a spa for a quick massage after a long day.  It’s quite difficult to find these two things if it is already 12 midnight or so.  Anton of OAP, together with RJ Ledesma (CW thinks I have a huge crush on RJ after listening to me babble and babble whenever I read RJ’s blog before… that might not be far from the truth but I digress), launched a midnight lifestyle market at Bonifacio Global City, Fort and I couldn’t be any happier.

 

 

Night market slash food bazaar dubbed Midnight Mercato is the nighttime counterpart of the successful Mercato Centrale that happens every weekend from 6am-1pm.  Bubba and I were at the Midnight Mercato launch two Fridays ago, February 11, 2011 and the place was crawling with foodies, group of friends, media, late-night BPO professionals and Manila’s society folks.

 

RJ Ledesma took night markets and hawker centers of neighboring countries Hong Kong, Singapore and Thailand as an inspiration when he conceptualized Midnight Mercato with Anton and Mommy Mundo.  Other than the mouth watering food finds, the urban crowd can also enjoy live acoustic music from local bands and musicians.

 

 

Midnight Mercato has a great selection of food that can hit the spot as it promises to be THE late night destination for food enthusiasts in the Metro.  The range is quite good, varying from comfort food to classic Filipino street finds to those hunting for some gourmet taste.

 

Some of the Mercato Centrale favorites are still there:

 

 

My favorite cheesy potatoes

 

 

And that soft liempo with heavy barbecue sauce

that is so delectable that it makes me smack my lips at this very moment.

 

 

 

Chips to Go Twister Potatoes

Flavors to Choose From: Cheese, Barbeque, Sour Cream, Plain

 

 

 

Mochiko offers ice cream filled mochi

with a variety of flavors like green tea, azuki and black sesame.

 

Got sold out before 12 midnight!

 –

Takoyaki!

 

Favorite Barbeques!

 

Like Mercato Centrale, Midnight Mercato still showcases organic products

I got a 2-kilo pack of black rice.

 

 

 

Midnight Mercato presents a clean, comfortable and organized setting inside an air-conditioned tent, where you wouldn’t think twice about eating street foods like innards, gizzards, etc.

 

BPO professionals working within the area that either ended their shift, taking a break or about to go to work can now take a quick and pleasant food-filling stop at Midnight Mercato.  Night caps during weekend gimmicks will now be a deviation from the usual drinking and instead it can shift to consuming great-tasting dishes that make the hang-out all the more tummy worthy.

 

Midnight Mercato is located on the corner of 30th Avenue and 9th Street (across the Spa at Bonifacio High Street) Bonifacio Global City, Taguig, the same location as Mercato Centrale.  It will be open every Friday and Saturday from 10:00pm to 3:00am.  If you are interested in renting a food stall, please email rache@diaz.ph or visit www.mercatocentrale.com

 

 

The weekend warriors have a new place to hang out during weekends that offers food fiesta from the multitude of food stalls, good acoustics, and a Wi-Fi spot that will certainly keep the night alive.  Everybody can satiate their late night cravings with the food extravaganza available at Midnight Mercato.

 

    
Midnight Mercato at Bonifacio Global City is brought to you by Go Negosyo, Citibank, the City of Taguig, RockEd, GeiserMaclang Marketing Communications Inc., Foodie Delivery, Luxe by Goldilocks Jam 88.3, Wav 89.1, Magic 89.9, 99.5RT, 103.5 WOW, PEP.PH and SPOT.PH.   

 

 

Midnight Mercato

Corner of 30th Avenue and 9th Street,

Bonifacio Global City, Taguig.

 

 

Midnight Mercato Album

 

 

Related Post:

Mercato Centrale

Feed Your Passion at Bonifacio Global City

 

 

Mercato Centrale at BGC, Weekend Market Where Food Lovers Meet

 

 

If you have been to the following weekend markets in Metro Manila, then it’s surefire that you have to give Mercato Centrale a visit.

 

Salcedo Market

Legaspi Sunday Market

Banchetto

Market at the Hills

Sunday Market at the Lung Center in QC

 

Mercato Centrale opened about 3-4 weekends ago and I was supposed to go to its opening, except that I had to go participate in the Amazing Race Asia 4 Promo Mall Race that same weekend.  I’m glad though that Mercato Centrale at Bonifacio Glocal City is open every Saturday and Sunday from 6am to 12nn at the corner of 9th Avenue and 30th Street and I had the chance to visit 2 weekends ago.   

 

 

Mercato Centrale is truly a foodie haven because of the many things that a Foodie can find there that can make him/her happy.  I visited initially on a Sunday with FoodieManila.com and TalesfromtheTummy.com and decided to go back the following Saturday since I felt 2 hours were just too short to scour all the offerings, organic or otherwise.

 

 

The 2nd Saturday, Bubba suddenly felt sick 10 minutes we were there and 5 minutes within drinking the fruit juice he bought so it was relatively a shorter trip.  I am definitely going back this weekend again to eat what caught my attention in the previous trips and find new ones worth mentioning… This will be my 3rd straight weekend trip there.

 

 

In the meantime, here are Between Bites’ Foodie Finds at Mercato Centrale (so far):

 

1. February Sweets and Savories Stuffed Temptations 

 

Stuffed Temptations are plump red juicy tomatoes stuffed with combination of spinach and parmesan cheese.  It’s so flavorful that you’ll barely notice you’re eating all vegetarian.  I could eat 4 of these delicious and healthy munchies in one sitting.

 

1 piece PHP 75

4 pieces PHP 275

8 pieces PHP 525

 

 

Other stuff of February Sweets and Savories to try includes the decadent chocolate cake with a delicious center topped with butterscotch frosting called Chocolate Nirvana Cupcakes and their Orange Fever –moist carrot cake with cream cheese frosting that’s 90% fat-free.

 

The following weekend I was here, their stuffed temptations got sold out (as early as 1030am I was told).  I wasn’t able to buy any.  That’s going to be my first stop next weekend.

 

For advance orders, call Christine R. Sevilla at (632) 926 0041/ (0917) 790 8967.

 

2. Bale Dutung’s Pan de Bagnet

 

One of the more popular stalls since it opened is Bale Dutung’s stall.  No surprise there, Claude Tayag’s cooking is simply to be lined up for.  What they are lining up for is Bale Dutung’s Pan de Bagnet. 

 

Pork Belly

Assembly

 

Pan de Bagnet is fresh ciabatta filled with oven roasted pork belly that has a good portion of meat, fat and skin.  It’s lined with fresh lettuce and onion probably tossed in some vinaigrette.  I was surprised that the ciabatta remained to be soft and chewy even after a bit of walking.

 

3. Dulcelin’s Wagyu Tri-tip and Flank Steak

 

READ MORE:

Ultimate Taste Test 3.0 Part 1

 

Dulcelin has gained quite a following for their famous Mango Torte – a mix of crispy chewy nougatine, golden mango and cream.  Unbelievably, I haven’t tried it yet but during the Ultimate Taste Test 3.0, Dulcelin gave me Callebaut Chocolate Ganache Cake to try and it was simply divine.  The whole cake was wiped out at home before I could even save me more slices or take good photos.

 

Other than the sumptuous cakes, what sets Dulcelin apart from the other concessionaires are their flavorful meats!  You cannot simply leave Mercato Centrale without trying their Wagyu Tri-tip or Flank Steak.  I was ordering both only to find out that the Wagyu Tri-tip was completely sold out.  La Fin. 

 

 

Boy, I was whispering thankful hymns to an angel on my shoulder that I was able to still get a meal order of Dulcelin’s flank steak.  A sigh of satisfaction and pleasure escaped my mouth after a bite of their tasty gourmet flank steak.  Bubba kept muttering how good it was.  This was definitely the highlight of our 2nd weekend at Mercato Centrale.

 

4. Inn Café’s Creamy Cheese Lasagna

 

There are a number of stalls selling pasta and lasagna but Inn Café’s Creamy Cheese Lasagna is certainly worth your time.  I bought a personal size from Jean of Inn’s Café during the 1st weekend of visit and bought a small pan of her highly flavored lasagna just last weekend to give to the PBA Committee during their working Saturday right before the Philippine Blog Awards.

 

Personal Size PHP 95

Small Pan PHP 600

Large Pan PHP 1,500

 

For advance orders, call (632) 440 8104/ (0922) 899 8014.

 

5. Cheesy Potatoes PHP 40

 

Marble potatoes or what would be easier to describer to Joyce as “baby potatoes” are soaked in cheesy sauce and sprinkled with bacon bits.  The soft potatoes had the right saltiness from the bacon and cheese flavor.  

 

 

Another noteworthy is their liempo –its heavy barbecue sauce has a tint of heat but mellowed down with hickory sweetness.  Soft meat and fatty part are fantastic with steaming rice.

 

 

6. Oriental Basket Honey Shrimp Sauce

 

This was also another noteworthy food revelation.  If you’re a fan of shrimp paste, Oriental Basket has a new take on it.  Their Honey Shrimp sauce has a good balance of sweet, salty and shrimpy without the miniscule shrimps. 

 

 

If you don’t like the texture of shrimp paste but like the taste, Oriental Basket’s honey shrimp sauce is the product for you.  I immediately got hooked after tasting it with freshly peeled green mango and bought a bottle.  Oriental Basket Honey Shrimp Sauce (PHP 150) comes in 3 choices: regular, spicy and extra spicy. 

 

7. Fresh Walnuts

 

Irene, wife of TalesfromtheTummy.com, bought a few packs of these fresh walnuts.  Walnuts have that certain taste of saltiness and nuttiness that you can only achieve when they are freshly cracked.

 

 

8. Offbeat Café Doughnut Cheeseburger

 

Offbeat Café stirred the Mercato Centrale scene with its doughnut cheeseburger.  Imagine a juicy patty, cheese, bacon and egg pressed together not by your usual burger buns but with Krispy Kreme doughnuts.  All that’s sinful is supposedly GOOD… this can be your prime example of that.

 

 

Offbeat Café also offers Chicago dog made of fish meat which piqued my curiosity and is definitely on Between Bites hit list on the next visit. 

 

 

9. Delimondo Products

 

It’s also another place where you can get Delimondo original ranch style corned beef (PHP 140).

 

 

10. Kitchen ala Ching’s Oatmeal Cookies

 

 

I can only shake my head but Bubba ordered another container of Kitchen ala Ching’s famous oatmeal cookies.  I think it has become HIS tradition every Christmas. 

 

 

There is this Asian foodcart that offers quesadillas and burgers I’m eyeing too.  I also want to try the native chicken, the all-adobo stall, the other barbecued meats, the duck station, paella, Manang’s bon chon chicken and many others.

 

 

For now, I can only put my hands on my face and wail… Why are weekends only composed of 2 days?  Waah.

 

Parvati, Manila’s Best Kept Desserts

 

 

There is a place where the mouth of the river meets the sea… where the moon kisses the sun discreetly… where hubby meets wife halfway… where a corner encounters a new street … darkness greets daylight… creation meets its creator.

 

And there’s also a special place where home-bakers and dessert lovers meet.  A momentary rendezvous at Parvati is where it’s at.  Parvati is located at the Mindanao Lobby of Trinoma and they have Manila’s best kept desserts. 

 

 

Parvati houses 51 dessert products from various home-bakers and suppliers from all over the Metro.  Storage facility is modern, organized and labeled well, with photographs even, which makes it quite efficient to look around for your choice of dessert that particular day.

 

The smorgasbord of desserts and home-baked products stretch from frozen items to cold treats to room-temp pastries and baked goodies. 

 

 

On the Table

 

Triple Decker Chocolate Cheesecake

By: Kusina Torre Desserts and Pastries

Price: (Per Square) PHP 130 (5 Inches) PHP 600 (7 Inches) PHP 1,100 (9 Inches) PHP 2K (9×13 Inches) PHP 2,500

 

 

The Triple Decker Chocolate Cheesecake is compact cheesecake between two layers of chocolate cake.  The top layer consists of the glossy chocolate tier that’s rich and lush that converges delightfully with the light succulent cheesecake accompanied with premium graham-type of crust and ends with a bottom tier of another chocolate port.  It is outstandingly one of the bestsellers at Parvati and fairly so with its multi-layer of luxuriant sweet and partially sharp flavors.

 

 

Coffee Indulgence

By: M Cheesecake and Pastries

Price: (Slice) PHP 120 (Whole) PHP 600

 

 

Cappuccino Cheesecake – most take their cheesecake with coffee but with the Coffee Indulgence cake, you can actually have both in a bite.  Indulge in the semi-bitter coffee taste mixed in your loaded cheesecake.

 

 

Mochi Ice Cream

By: Dezato Mochi

Price: (Box of 6) PHP 275

 

 

Mochi Ice Cream is creamy ice cream wrapped in fluffy sticky rice dough (that’s popular in Japan).  These are supposedly best eaten with your fingers.  The sticky rice dough is not that heavy and wonderfully encases the chilled ice cream.  Comes in 6 mouthwatering variants: Chocolate, Green Tea, Strawberry, Mango, Vanilla and Coffee

 

 

Custaroons –Original or Cheese

By: Gigi’s Custaroons

Price:      (Regular Box of 4) PHP 170 (Regular Box of 12) PHP 350

(Bite Size Box of 15) PHP 200 (Bite Size Box of 30) PHP 300

 

 

I’m sure Gigi’s Custaroons are not new to foodies who have time and again ordered these smooth, creamy, melt-in-your-mouth custards topped with a chewy buttery crust.  It’s like macaroons but with a smoother core that’s as luscious as custard –thus dubbed the name custaroons.  So unbelievably moist, it’s the best custard hyphenated macaroons in town.

 

 

Custaroons Poppers

By: Gigi’s Custaroons

Price: (Tub of 22 Original) PHP 200 (Tub of Green Tea) PHP 330 (Tub of Coffee) PHP 330

 

 

These are bite-sized custaroon balls coated with a premium chocolate powder concoction.  Think chocolate balls or chocolate items with champagne, almond, wafer, marshmallows, or other nuts inside but in Gigi’s case, it’s her famous custaroons inside.  You won’t get to taste this anywhere else.

 

 

Blueberry Panna Cotta

By: Christina’s Kitchen

Price: (Blueberry 1’s) PHP 80 (Blueberry 4’s) PHP 320

 

 

The Italian cream dessert that’s blueberry-flavored with topping of sweet and tarty blueberries on top.  It’s very light and not overly sweet.  It can also serve as a palate cleanser.

 

 

Pistachio Sans Rival

By: Tajabest

Price:      (Whole) PHP 900 (Slice) PHP 115

 

 

Gorgeous green icing covering three layered meringue stuffed with pistachio cream filling, top with roasted pistachio. 

 

 

Oatmeal Chocolate Cookies

By: Vine’s Bakeshop

Price: (Box of 22) PHP 125 

 

 

Oatmeal based cookie topped with a chunk of bittersweet chocolate

 

 

Russian Cookie House Classic

By: The Russian Cookie House

Price: (Regular) PHP 280 (Half Size) PHP 180 (Trial Size) 90

 

 

Russian, Black Russian, Pistachio, Black and White Almond, Jan Hagel

 

 

If you’re thinking about Christmas giveaways and want premium dessert or pastry items to give to family, relatives, family friends, friends or colleagues, Parvati is also your one-stop shop for all your good buys.  Gift boxes are available upon request.  This is not bad for corporate giveaways too.  For orders, dial (632) 901 1428.

 

 

At Parvati , uncover where Manila’s best kept desserts are.  Opulent and quality-based dessert and home-baked treats, mostly those who have made their names in the food industry, are all under one roof.

 

 

Parvati. 

Home Made.  Dessert Shop

G/F Mindanao Lobby, Trinoma Mall

Quezon City, Philippines

(632) 901 1428

 

 

Parvati Album

 

Related Post

FoodieManila Parvati

TalesfromtheTummy Parvati

 

UTT Teaser

 

Guess where I was last Sunday?

 

 

Three words. 

 

Ultimate.  Taste.  Test.

 

Number.

 

3.0

 

Soon.