Author: Rochelle Sy Chua

Yoshinoya Lenten Season Offering

Yoshinoya Lenten

Yoshinoya is one of the popular Japanese fast food restaurants in the world.  With over 1,200 outlets in Japan, USA, Hong Kong, China, Singapore, Malaysia, Taiwan, Indonesia & Philippines, we know that it’s definitely a big & important brand.

Here in the Philippines, there are currently 5 branches.  Yoshinoya started operations in the Philippines under Century Pacific Group (makers of Century Tuna) back in 2001.  I personally discovered Yoshinoya in 2002 and I immediately fell in love with its beef bowl.

Whenever I order the beef bowl, I always order for extra sauce.  It was soooo yummy and delicious especially seeing the beef and rice swimming in that yummy special Yoshinoya sauce.  Delicious!!!

As much as I love beef bowl, lenten season is coming up.  A lot of us do practice the rule of not eating meat during that time.  In relation to that, Yoshinoya launched 2 products this lenten season.  Both products will only be available till May 31, 2011.

  • Yoshinoya Bangus Kabayaki (Php 140)

yoshinoya bangus kabayaki

Deep fried, lightly-breaded fish fillet poured with Kabayaki sauce.  The Bangus Kabayaki was a clear winner in my book among the 2 dishes being offered by Yoshinoya this lenten season.   The sauce was sweet, very, very tasty and the fish was heavenly.  It’s not surprising that they use Century Bangus for this dish.  Yoshinoya is owned by Century Pacific Group anyway.

  • Shrimp Katsu (Php 140)

yoshinoya shrimp katsui

Another limited offering of Yoshinoya is their Shrimp Katsu.  It’s deep-fried breaded shrimp patties served with mixed vegetables and plain rice.  I enjoyed Bangus kabayaki more but it doesn’t mean that this shrimp patties weren’t delicious.  I was able to bring home some for my mom and this was her choice.  It really depends on your preference.  Shrimp Katsu is also available in jumbo plate with beef bowl (Php 185).

See the smile from the group?  We really enjoyed the food served to us.  I’ll definitely be visiting Yoshinoya soon.  I will get more of Bangus Kabayaki and my ever favorite, beef bowl! 😀

yoshinoya group picture

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Yoshinoya
SM North Edsa | SM Megamall | Robinson’s Galleria | SM Mall of Asia | Park Square 1, Philippines
(02) 920-8177 | (02) 632-1276 | (02) 635-2206 | (02) 556-2649 | (02) 893-8176

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Recipes from the Century Bangus Kitchen

Century Bangus

I was lucky to be one of the invited bloggers to taste the dishes created from Century Bangus.  Now is really a great time for me as I need to lose a lot of weight.  I know that eating fish will be the best way for me to achieve that goal.  Plus, we all know that fish does have a lot of healthy benefits.

I actually saw Century Bangus product line in the supermarket but never really took time to notice them.  Good thing I attended the bloggers’ event or else, I’d be missing a whole lot.  Next time, I will actually look for Century Bangus in the grocery and will buy some for sure.

Century Bangus is the newest addition to Century Canning Corporation’s products.  I’m pretty sure you’re very familiar with Century Tuna.  Now, Century Bangus is their newest baby with a whole range of products that come with it namely:

  • Century Bangus Fillet
  • Century Bangus Chunks
  • Century Bangus Sisig
  • Century Quality Premium Boneless Bangus
  • Century Quality Premium Bangus Belly Unseasoned
  • Century Quality Premium Boneless Bangus Belly Marinated
  • Century Quality Premium Bangus Tocino

Why do those products worth looking into?  Well, it’s because they are healthy, delicious and most importantly, fresh.  Century takes pride in the processing of their bangus.  It was grown and farmed in seawater cages somewhere in Southern Mindanao.  As the fish are harvested, they are brought immediately to Century’s facilities where the fish is processed and packed on the same day.

We are assured that whenever we buy a Century Bangus product, it’s of high quality and fresh.  Plus, do you know that Century’s facilities have even been accredited by the EU and US FDA?  Now, that can definitely give us a peace of mind 🙂

So you bought a Century Bangus product but you wanted to get more ideas as to how to prepare it.  You’re in luck because I’m going to share with you the recipes of the 3 yummy dishes Chef Apple prepared for us that night.

chef Apple Century bangus

Century Bangus Salad with Caramelized Pear & Walnuts

century bangus salad

Ingredients:
1/4 cup cooking oil
1-450 grams Century Premium Boneless Bangus Marinated

Caramelized Pears:
2 tablespoon granulated sugar
1 cup canned pear, sliced

Honey Lemon Vinaigrette:
1/4 cup lemon juice
2 tablespoons honey
salt & pepper to taste
1 cup extra virgin olive oil

6 cups mixed greens
1/2 cup chopped toasted walnuts
1/2 cup cherry tomatoes
3 tablespoons reduced balsamic vinegar
*** to reduce balsamic vinegar: pour 2 cups balsamic vinegar into a skillet or saucepan. Allow it to simmer with occasional stirring for about 5 minutes until a little syrupy or desired consistency is achieved. Remove from heat to allow it to thicken some more as it cools.

Procedure:
Heat cooking oil in a large pan and fry Century Bangus until golden. Spoon out bangus meat from the skin & set aside. Sprinkle sugar on pears. Pan-grill on a skillet brushed lightly with oil until caramelized. Set aside. Whisk together lemon juice, honey, salt, pepper & extra virgin olive oil. Cover & chill until ready to serve.

Toss together mixed greens, walnuts & cherry tomatoes.  Arrange on a plate topped with bangus flakes & caramelized pears.  Drizzle with vinaigrette and reduced balsamic vinegar.

Makes 6 servings.

Century Bangus & Kani Burrito

century bangus burrito

Ingredients:
1/4 cup cooking oil
1-410 grams Century Premium Boneless Bangus Marinated
1 cup Japanese mayonnaise
1/2 teaspoon wasabi paste
4 pieces kani (Japanese crab sticks), cut into strips
1 cup cucumber, seeds removed & sliced into thin strips
1 cup ripe mango, sliced into thin strips
1 cup torn lettuce
4 large regular sized tortilla wrap

Procedure:
Heat cooking oil in a large pan and fry Century Bangus until golden.  Spoon out bangus meat from the skin & set aside.

In a bowl, combine mayonnaise & wasabi.  Add bangus flakes & kani, mixing it well.  Chill for 30 minutes.

Fill tortilla wrap with bangus mixture, lettuce, cucumber and mango.  Roll then serve.

Makes 4 servings.

Century Bangus and Farfalle a la Genovese

century bangus pasta

Ingredients:
1/4 cup cooking oil
1-450 grams Century Premium Boneless Bangus Marinated
200 grams farfalle (ribbon pasta)
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon minced garlic
3 cups whole cream
salt & pepper to taste
grated parmesan cheese for garnish
1 cup pesto sauce
*** make your own pesto sauce by blending together 3 cups sweet basil leaves, 4 garlic cloves, 1/4 cup walnuts, 1 tablespoon grated parmesan cheese and 1 1/2 cups olive oil in a blender or food processor until smooth. Transfer to a clean airtight jar or container. This may be stored in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.

Procedure:
Heat cooking oil in a large pan and fry Century Bangus until golden. Spoon out bangus meat from the skin and set aside.

Cook pasta as directed in the package.  Set aside.

Heat olive oil in a pan and saute garlic until aromatic.  Stir in pesto sauce & cream.  Season with salt & pepper.  Add pasta & bangus to the sauce & toss well.  Remove from heat and top with Parmesan cheese.

Makes 4 servings.

We were given ample servings of all 3 dishes.  I must say all of them were delicious.  My favorite was the salad.  It was delightful!  I hope you can try out the recipes yourselves too!  Don’t forget to use Century Bangus with them 🙂

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Bistro Miyake

Bistro Miyake

I saw Bistro Miyake while I was on my way to Jo Avila‘s class.  I said to myself that I would try it.  When I saw the promo at Ensogo, I immediately bought 2 coupons without hesitation.  One tuesday afternoon, I brought my mom there for a late brunch.

It was pretty hard to find parking as they only have 3 parking spaces (w/c was filled already).  We drove around Annapolis street until we found one parking slot.  We walked till we reached the restaurant.  Bistro Miyake have an ongoing promo wherein you can order as much as you can for Php 495++.  The catch is you have to finish all that you have ordered.

I immediately was in awe when I entered the restaurant.  It was big!!  You can definitely use the venue for any parties or events.  The lighting and decorations were super nice too!

bistro miyake ambiance

My admiration was cut short as soon as I talked to one of Bistro Miyake’s servers.  I had a reservation and I asked to be seated.  She was obviously thinking about something else that you can really feel that her mind was floating.  She just let us sit anywhere and didn’t even clean the table for us.  Other than that, it was really so hard catching her attention.  It is also important to note that she was the only server around except for the manager.

I told her that we would like to get the eat-all-you-can promo using the vouchers I bought.  She told me that it wasn’t possible as it was stated in the voucher.  I immediately read the guidelines word per word and didn’t find any provision that it wasn’t allowed.  I showed it to her and she insisted that it wasn’t possible pointing me to the guideline “cannot be used with discount card”.  I was like “Is ‘discount card’ the same as ‘ala carte promo’?  Those are 2 different things!”
** to Ensogo & Bistro Miyake, I hope you clear up your guidelines.  If there’s an anniversary promo, then it should be clearly stated if the promo can be used for it or not.

I then asked for the restaurant’s manager.  After waiting for more than 10 minutes, she totally ignored us and didn’t call for the manager.  I motioned another guy and luckily, he was the manager.  He told us it was okay to get the all you can eat ala carte promo.  He became our server for the rest of the meal.  I was a bit furious already but can’t walk out as I already paid for the Ensogo vouchers a few weeks back.

Anyway, Bistro Miyake’s all you can eat promo was ala-carte style.  They give you a checklist and you can just choose whatever you want to eat.  Once you give it to the server, they’ll cook and serve it to you.  Each person will need to pay Php495++ if you want to avail of their anniversary promo.  I think it was reasonably priced especially if you eat a lot.  Just make sure you have enough appetite or else, you need to pay double for leftovers.

ala carte buffet bistro miyake

I was hungry and I believe I can really eat a lot if I want to.  My mom can’t eat a lot though so we can only order so much.  Here’s the list of what we have tried and finished.  I hope we ordered more but we were too full to have any more food haha!

  • Tofu Miso Soup

miso soup bistro miyake

  • California Maki

california maki bistro miyake

  • Mixed Fried Rice

mixed fried rice bistro miyake

I initially thought that the beef teppan was part of mixed fried rice.  Apparently not.  The fried rice was just fried rice.  Nothing special.  I think I appreciate garlic or plain rice better than this.  It wasn’t good.

  • Salmon Belly Teriyaki

salmon bistro miyake

This was good and tasty.  Belly is definitely the best part of salmon.  Tasted so delicious especially when newly cooked.

  • Ebi Tempura

tempura bistro miyake

They could have improved the presentation by putting it in a basket.  I love shrimps but I just didn’t feel any excitement upon seeing the dish.  We didn’t order more of ebi tempura.  Enough said.

  • Tofu Steak

tofu steak bistro miyake

I love tofu steak and I don’t remember not liking any other restaurant’s version of this.  I don’t know with Bistro Miyake but my experience was just too bad with this restaurant.

burnt tofu bistro miyake

See the black thingy in the dish?  Yes tofu was burnt!  I didn’t bother complaining anymore.  It was too stressful just to call out their attention.  We just ate the tofu inside and separated the skin.  Too disappointing.

  • Beef Teppan

beef teppan bistro miyake

We ordered 2 servings of this.  We loved this dish as it was newly cooked.  The best time to eat a newly fried dish is simply fresh from the pan.  You can still taste all the flavors plus the meat was still hot.  Yummy!

  • Yakitori

yakitori bistro miyake

A definite winner from all the dishes we orderd at Bistro Miyake.  I hope we ordered more but we were too full already.  The sauce was perfect and it was cooked just right.  Delish indeed!

  • Kani Bacon

kani bacon bistro miyake

Kani Bacon which is actually crab stick wrapped in bacon has always been my favorite thing to order in Japanese restaurants.  I had to order this too just to be able to have my share of Bistro Miyake’s version.

  • Beef Asparagus

beef asparagus bistro miyake

I hated this dish.  The beef was hard to chew, it felt like I was having a chewing gum.  The asparagus were a bit overcooked too.  What a way to leave a last impression.

I think it’s very obvious that I won’t be going to back to Bistro Miyake.  I wish they train their server (she was the only one thus singular).  I’m not sure if I’m the only one who had bad experience there but I really hope we were the only ones.  You usually go to a restaurant to find good food and experience (of course, at least) decent service.   I didn’t get both in Bistro Miyake.  I wish them luck and super hope they’ll improve in the future.

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Bistro Miyake
33 Annapolis St., Greenhills, Unit 101, Intrawest Building, San Juan, Metro Manila, Philippines
(02) 721-9793

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Group Buying Sites in the Philippines

Group Buying Sites

A lot of people have been asking me what group buying sites are.  I decided to just put up a list here in HeaRty’s Haven.  This can serve as a reference for all of us.  I myself have to clean up my bookmarks and create a folder just for this alone.  The group buying sites are increasing (really increasing in number).  It’s very hard to catch up.

My experience with group buying sites started when I saw one of my Facebook friends post a link about a discount in a restaurant.  Since I’m a self-professed foodie (hehe!), I immediately clicked on it.  I found out that I don’t need to buy those yearly discount cards (e.g., enjoyPH) and limit myself with discount coupons listed there.  I can just go through this group buying site and choose whatever I’m interested in and buy them.

But, hey, there are more group buying sites!  Wow!  Those sites just kept popping up.  I got overwhelmed a bit after buying too many vouchers.  I had to control myself or else, I would be spending too much money for stuff I don’t really need.

So, what are Group Buying Sites?

Group Buying Sites are websites that offer products & services at a significantly low price.  It can go from 30% discount to as much as 100% discount!  Yeah it happens!  There’s a catch though.  The deal will only be activated if there are minimum number of people buying the promo.

Group Buying Sites work with retailers promising them more customers/clients in exchange for discounts.

So, how does a Group Buying Site work?

  1. Log in to the group buying site (registration is free!).
  2. Browse through available promos/deals.
  3. Choose the one you like and confirm purchase by clicking on the “BUY” link.
  4. Pay through any of the options listed by the group buying site.  Most of them offer PayPal, bank deposits and credit card payments.
  5. Confirmation will be sent via email or the site itself.
  6. You can print voucher through the email they sent you or under your account page in the site.
  7. Bring the voucher with you when claiming with establishment.
  8. Enjoy your discount!

Now, the information a lot of people have been waiting for: the list of Group Buying & Shopping Sites in the Philippines.  If I missed any group buying sites, do let me know by commenting here 🙂

A-Deals Auto Deal
cash cash pinoy DealAmigos
DealGrocer Deals Di Ba
street deal Ensogo is now LivingSocial
Lazada metrodeal
Okay Okay Pinoy Great Deals
Sakto Deal SMAC Deals
supreme deals tcat

Updated: September 23, 2015

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Sanyo Xacti PD1 Gadget Review

I was lugging around Sanyo Xacti PD1 yesterday and I must say it’s quite useful.  With a size similar to a mobile phone, it’s definitely portable.  We can easily capture every detail of our most memorable events in full HD video and high-resolution photographs.

Sanyo Xacti PD1 is perfect for people who are on-the-go, ready to capture every single moment as the multi-featured ‘lil gadget is so easy to use.  Beginners will definitely love this!

Let me share several of the many reasons why Xacti PD1 is worth looking into:

  1. A dual camera that has a 10-megapixel digital still camera and full HD 1080 30p camcorder.  Amazing right?  With a dimension of only 63.1x22x110.8mm, we can have both high quality videos and photos.
  2. Sanyo Xacti PD1 is so easy to use!  Performing a function is as easy as pressing a button.  We don’t even need to read the manuals anymore.  Just press either the camera or video button to start capturing pictures or recording video.
  3. The Xacti PD1 features 3x optical zoom.  If we’re far away from the subject, we can use optical zoom to capture it better.  The good thing about optical zoom is that it preserves the quality of the image as you zoom in.  Also, when we record a very cute moment in video, we can zoom in between shots.  Just use our imagination and creativity and we can definitely produce a professional-looking video.
  4. Viewing photos and videos is as easy as A-B-C.  We just connect Xacti PD1 to any USB-compatible computer or any HDMI-compatible TV and we can show off our work.
  5. I would like to emphasize the integrated USB in Sanyo Xacti PD1.  No more cables to worry about.  We can attach the USB to a computer to either charge the camcorder or sync videos and photos.  A definite must-love feature of the gadget!
  6. Not having to download any PC software to transfer videos and photos from PD1 is great!  Once connected via USB, we can upload content to any location that we choose.  Another awesome feature is if we have an Eye-Fi SD card, we will be able to upload videos to YouTube easily on-the-go.

using sanyo xacti pd1

Sanyo Xacti PD1 is available in red and black.  It is compatible with all available SDXC cards namely SD, SDXC, SDHC & Eye-Fi cards.  It has 2 microphones on each side to record on stereo.  It uses space-serving video format, MPEG4 and uses JPEG format for photos.  It has built-in flash.  It has digital image stabilizer for videos.  I can go on and on.

Admittedly, I ended up using the video more than the photo function.  I was out using Xacti PD1 the whole day.  I didn’t have to worry much about the battery as it provides energy up to 170 photos, 65 minutes videos or 240 minutes playback.  Plus, if you ended up forgetting your SD card, Sanyo Xacti PD1 has internal memory of 80MB.  We can’t go wrong with this dual camcorder.

We’ll be able to capture full HD 1080p video at 30 frames per second and we get great sound performance with 2 microphones embedded in the gadget.  We can easily upload the finished product thus making it a great camcorder of choice.

Designed vertically, it wouldn’t matter whether we’re left-handed or right-handed.  With such ease of use, we can use it with just one hand.  I remember my friends wanting to check it out when they saw me using Sanyo Xacti PD1.

I believe it is a good dual camera for beginners.  As for photography enthusiasts like me, this will be a great backup.  But the full-HD function is totally awesome, I wouldn’t mind using Sanyo Xacti PD1 as my main video camcorder.

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The article can also be found in Manila Bulletin’s February 28 issue. Also posted in MB’s website.

manila bulletin article

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