Category: Products

‘Creamy with a kiss of caramel na nakaka-inlove‘.  That’s the tagline of the newest Coffee-Mate flavor by Nestle Philippines.

When I saw the gift pack at my desk, I realized how cheezy this product is!!  Look at the packaging – hearts were printed all over it, the color was red and the shape of the box was like a candy.  Romantic is the word that came into my mind when I inspected it.

So Creamy Caramel is the newest flavor of Coffee-Mate.

I drink coffee whenever I feel a bit sleepy throughout the day.  Sometimes I put Coffee-Mate in it but sometimes I don’t.  It really depends on my mood.  This time though, upon seeing Coffee-Mate Creamy Caramel, I had to try it out.

What would coffee taste like if it has a hint of caramel?

I invited a colleague of mine to taste Coffee-Mate Creamy Caramel with me.  We put in the usual 1 tablespoon coffee, 1 teaspoon sugar and 2 tablespoons of Coffee-mate creamy caramel.

The drink was very fragrant, you can really smell caramel in it.  However, when we drank it, the taste of caramel was actually pretty light.  We still have the same creaminess in Coffee-Mate but we had this good after-taste of caramel.  Yummy!  I like this new flavor!

I like the way Nestle is marketing Coffee-mate Creamy Caramel.  They connected coffee drinking with love.  In love, it’s the small things that made life more special and with coffee, a hint of caramel can slowly make you fall in love.  Nice connection, right?  I found it cute!

A new character was introduced by Nestle Coffee-mate Creamy Caramel to help people get that perfect creamy caramel kiss.  He’s Kisstopher and he’s the world’s greatest kisser!  Hahaha, so funny!  I was laughing while I was watching each of the videos that was out on YouTube!

Here are the videos they released so far:

Meet The World’s Greatest Kisser – Kisstopher Caramello – In the video, Kisstopher, with his partner Kisstina, shared to the world how simple it is to achieve that sweet, creamy, caramel kiss na nakakain-love.

How to Kiss : The Beso – In this video, Kisstopher shared to the world how beso can spell the difference in the language of love.  Do we beso with cheeks or with our lips?

How to French Kiss – In this video, Kisstopher, the world’s greatest kisser, shared how to perfect the French Kiss.

I loved watching the videos!  I was first worried about how Coffee-Mate can pull those videos through considering we are a conservative country.  Apparently, the kissing tips videos worked out pretty well and I was very much entertained!  I’m positive that Kisstopher Caramello will be a famous personality (if not already) real soon!  I can’t wait for the next batch of videos to come out!

What a great way to introduce a new product!  Coffee-Mate Creamy Caramel definitely had a great impression on me.

We usually hear of Queso de Bola during Christmas.  I, however, with so many bloggers in my Facebook timeline, have been hearing about Queso de Bola Cheesecake.  Yes, a cheesecake made of Queso de Bola!

I was curious but didn’t know where to get one.  As I read more and more bloggers (especially the food club) rave about the queso de bola cheesecake, I found out that it’s actually a creation of Irene.  Irene is the wife of Richard, owner of Tales from the Tummy blog.  Apparently, Irene bakes!

I was ecstatic when Richard brought a 4.5-inch solo-size queso de bola cheesecake for me to try out.  Just by the looks of it, I already felt that the cake must taste good.

Since I got the Queso de Bola cheesecake at night time, I put it on the refrigerator for me to bring to work the next day.  You see, I always get hungry especially when I’m at work.  I was truly excited that day as I can finally try out what everyone was raving for!

I invited a colleague of mine to try out Irene’s Queso de Bola Cheesecake with me.  We got our forks out and used it to enjoy the very cheesy cheesecake.

I must say after I finished half the mini cheesecake, I was completely satisfied.  The bloggers were right!  The Queso de Bola Cheesecake is really delicious!  No wonder Irene finally made it into a business and she called it Indulgence by Irene.  Her first product?  No other than the fast-rising Queso de Bola Cheesecake.

I appreciate that Indulgence by Irene created such high-quality cake.  Imagine a cheesecake that you can truly say CHEESE!  If you love cheese (especially if you love edam cheese), then this is for you.  There weren’t any fillers at all.  You know that every bite of the cake has pure goodness of edam cheese.  A type of cheese that most people prefer!

After finishing the cheesecake, both me and my colleague were too full! hahaha!  Actually, I had a very light dinner as our merienda was full of honest to goodness queso de bola yumminess!  Just a few bites of Irene’s Queso de Bola can make your stomach satisfied and full.  I’m definitely a happy camper and I’m just glad that my first try of a Queso de Bola Cheesecake was the one created from Indulgence by Irene.

Irene’s Queso de Bola Cheesecake comes in 2 sizes.  The 4.5-inch one which I reviewed in this post costs about Php200 while a family-size one which is 9-inch costs Php 900.

I wonder what the next product of Indulgence by Irene is… I’m looking forward to it.  For now, I know that Irene is busy baking her Queso de Bola Cheesecakes as orders kept coming in.  Congratulations Irene and Richard! 🙂

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Indulgence by Irene
9-inch (Php 900)
4.5-inch (Php 200)
+63922-8303900/+63917-6225800
http://www.facebook.com/IndulgencebyIrene

Whatta morning!  Today, I’m working from home.  At around 9:00AM, the doorbell in my house rang.  I opened the door and had the shock of my life! hahaha!

Before I continue on with my story, let me break the surprise already.

KFC Double Down is BACK!  Yes, it’s definitely back and with a big bang!  I know a lot of us do miss it as it was just a limited release last year.  I remember that I had to go back multiple times in different KFC branches because it was always out of stock.  A lot of us were so anxious to try it out.  Since the promo ended, we missed it a bunch too… well, it’s time for us to rejoice again!

Now back to my story, I saw this energetic man with a fireman costume at the door.  He was so giddy!  He was in a hurry and told me that he was there to deliver to me something good and very very hot!

He opened his bag and reached down to get KFC Zinger Double Down!  Oh my gosh!!!  I knew it!  The long wait is finally over!  It’s really the famous double down!

Now packaged as KFC Zinger Double Down.  I immediately took a picture of the product and started eating.  I wanted to see if it has any difference with the one that they released last year.

Another surprise!  The chicken!!! It’s now HOT & CRISPY!!!  I remember the Double Down that was released last year only had the original chicken flavor.  It’s now hot & crispy, yes, hot & crispy!  Sorry, I kept repeating myself.  I was wishing before that they do a hot & crispy version but KFC didn’t release it last year.  So I just had the biggest surprise earlier when I noticed that the chicken is indeed hot & crispy.

Finally, my perfect KFC Double Down and it’s now called — KFC Zinger Double Down.  Most probably because it’s hot & crispy!

I finally broke the news!  You might want to check it out at KFC stores today but I’m so sorry, it’s not out YET.  You don’t have to wait for long though because KFC will be launching it tomorrow!!!  That’s October 28, 2011.  You can get the exact timing from the KFC Philippines Facebook Page where they have a countdown on when exactly the KFC Zinger Double Down will come out.

I’m so happy that I was the first who got to try it out.  According to the team who delivered the wonderful yummy product to me earlier, I was first in their list.  So technically, I was the first one who got the chance to try out KFC Zinger Double Down.  I had to allot time and write this entry as I cannot handle my excitement any longer!

I was hesitant at first when I got invited to attend the Ultimate Taste Test at Rockwell Tent.  I remember the first time I tried it at Eastwood wherein it was a mess.  It was like 4-6 years ago but it was just too traumatic that I didn’t attempt to attend the next ones.  However, I decided to try it again this year because several of my colleagues are going.  I don’t want to miss the chance to bond with them.

Oh, it was surprising indeed!  When I entered the venue, it was a different aura altogether.  It was pretty obvious that it was well-organized!  I didn’t even experience any difficulty getting samples from each of the merchants!  The Ultimate Taste Test was exclusive to 1,000 foodies and there were 55 merchants who participated in the event.  Tickets for Rockwell’s Ultimate Taste Test were sold at Php 585.00 per person.  I was happy that I attended!  It was a great foodie experience!  😀  The organizers got it right this time at their 6th year!  Ultimate Taste Test 6.0 was a success!  Congratulations to the organizing team!

You might be wondering what Ultimate Taste Test is.  It’s basically a yearly event wherein we can be food critics for a day by sampling food products from different participating merchants.  You better come to an Ultimate Taste Test (UTT) event in an empty stomach.  If you missed this year’s event, don’t fret as you still have next year.  I’m sure UTT will be here to stay.

So how does it work?

We are given a Passport as we register for the event.  Using the Passport, we get to rate the food on a scale of 1 to 5, 5 being the highest.  We can also share our feedback to the food supplier.

Tips on how to enjoy Rockwell’s Ultimate Taste Test:

1. Taste and Savor each food.
2. Hold on to the score sheet.  Go and taste one dish at a time then Rate the food you just tasted.  Include more descriptive comments.
3. Recycle your plastic water cups.
4. Clean as you go, there are waste bins around the area.
5. Submit the form at the exit.

Score Sheet legend:

1 – Thanks, but it could be better.
2 – It’s Okay!
3 – We had a good time!
4 – I love it!
5 – Awesome! I would recommend it!

Aside from the awesome food, we also got to experience great entertainment in Rockwell’s Ultimate Taste Test event.  There were bands that played music but the highlight for us was the belly dancing group by Jill.  They were dressed in beautiful belly dancing costumes.  They also invited some guests to dance with them on stage!  Two of my colleagues were there!  Too cute!

I was interviewed by UTT 6.0 host Marian the foodie.  However, I just arrived that time and wasn’t able to share my experience yet.  Anyway, I have my blog to share with you the food that I enjoyed in the event.

Here goes my top picks from the 55 merchants who joined UTT 6.0:

• Eat my GF

Eat my GF specializes on Garlic Fries with toppings as well as virgin chips.  This was the first booth I visited but the flavors of the chips and fries were just too rich that I couldn’t forget how tasty they were.  I love the supplier’s tagline as well: “Don’t cheat on your GF… stay loyal…”.  Hahaha!  Double meaning FTW!

• Almost Gourmet Food Service

Their Frost Bites cook it yourself offering is a winner!  Each pack includes the sauce already.  All we have to do is fry or bake the meat and we’re good to go.  Yummy!

• The Flying Chef

Their ham & cheese and chocolate & bacon empanadas were so delicious!  However, for the chocolate & bacon empanada, the chocolate overpowered the flavors of the bacon.  Will it bother you though?  I’m sure it won’t as most of you love chocolates!

• HKR Food Express

Thanks to Rockwell’s Ultimate Taste Test as I got to experience the food being offered at Hongkong Roast Food Express.  This shall be my best discovery in the event.  Now, I have another good option for our daily lunch!  HKR Food Express’ Roast Chicken and Asado were so good!  I couldn’t get enough of the food!  I shall ensure to order their asado for lunch next week!  Good thing, they are located in Makati City.

• Luigi’s

Who would ever thought that Aga Muhlach’s son can cook delicious food?  Luigi Muhlach’s creations: Chicken Cordon Bleu and Phillychanga will surely be in everyone’s favorites list.  I have no doubt.  They even ran out of pamphlets and cards considering it was only 4:45pm when I asked for it.

• Dek A Thai Authentic Cuisine

I surely think the food was authentic as the person manning the booth was from Thailand.  I enjoyed the Cha Yen/Thai traditional iced milk tea being served as well as the Poh Pia Tod/Spring rolls and vegetable salad.  I just love Thai food!

• Farm N’ Deli

I loved each and every kind of food I tasted in the Farm N. Deli booth.  The Tinapa spread was delish, yum!  I also find it interesting that they offer ALL kinds of longaniza in the Philippines!  I never even thought that we have like 11 kinds of longaniza based on its location in the country.

• PinakBEST

I love munching on things whenever I work.  I was able to taste the chicharon as my colleague had it in our table.  As soon as I tasted it, I knew I had to look for the stall that has it.  Fortunately, I was able to find it.  The supplier is apparently, PinakBEST.  They have a stall in Mercato Centrale.  The chichacorn is being sold at Php 120 for a big pack.  So delicious!

• Mang Pedro Food Products

It’s a good thing that the supplier wasn’t that strict as I had to have multiply servings of their taho.  Gosh, their almond flavored taho was definitely the best taho I have ever tasted so far.  I highly recommend Mang Petro Food Products for your taho needs.  If I’m to rank my favorites, this will be number 1 🙂

• Merry Moo Artisan Ice Cream

Merry Moo uses fresh local dairy in making their ice cream.  Among the flavors that I tasted, the berry corny was my favorite!  Those homemade ice cream has unique flavors and I’m sure you would want to have more.

• Chef’s Table

I wasn’t surprised that I saw Chef Bruce Lim’s famous creation in UTT 6.0.  His buko pie martini is a must-try.  I remember raving about this when I visited Chef’s Table for the first time.

Whew!  Spent 4 hours trying to taste food and rating it in Rockwell’s Ultimate Taste Test.  A great way to experience food with fellow foodies.  Will we do it again?  Oh, I’m sure!

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Rockwell’s Ultimate Taste Test
September 3, 2011
Rockwell Tent, Makati City, Philippines