BIG BITE will be at the Candy Fair 2010!!!

As we ignite our entrepreneurial spirit, Paul, my sister and I will be at the Candy Fair 2010 selling our ever-famous hotdog poppers, chicken nuggets and more!


It will be a fun event as all visitors will be able to join the games, engage themselves in the fun activities lined up, watch cool performances and enjoy our yummy food!!

Look for the Big Bite booth on Saturday, September 4, 2010 at the A.Venue Hall anytime from 10AM - 5PM.

Bring a copy of the September issue of Candy Mag to enter or pay the P100 entrance fee (but I promise it will be worth it!)!!!

Hope to see you there!! :)

Throwing the Dice at the Presidential Suite

It's that time of the year again when the moon is at its fullest, Chinese families will give each other boxes of mooncake and relatives and friends gather around the table throwing 6 pieces of dice into a glass bowl to test their luck.

Last September 22, it was the 15th day of August in the Lunar Calendar and for all Chinese families in the world, this marks the Mid-Autumn Festival.

Next to our birthdays and Christmas, we all look forward to this particular festival as our family gets ready for the annual Mooncake Dice Game. This year, it was I, my sister and Paul's turn to host the much-awaited event. Sharing our luck for winning an overnight stay at Dusit Thani's Presidential Suite, Paul and I invited both families (his and mine) to have dinner and to play the game in the suite. This got everyone excited as we normally would just have it at home.

A room meant for Royalty

Just a couple of months ago, I swooned and raved about our stay at the Swissotel Stamford Hotel in Singapore where service was at its best and the room was just very comfortable. Our one week stay simply made me feel like a princess right on our Honeymoon. This was before I actually walked in and experience staying at Dusit Thani Manila's Presidential Suite.

Entering our suite, there was once again that warm welcome with my full name on the screen. I love how they make me feel specially welcomed in their signature Dusit Thani way. I was amazed at the size of our room!

Inside was a huge sitting area where our entire family can watch TV while chatting with one another. Even little Julia had a blast running around, stopping once in a while to smell the potpourri.

Should our guests want a cup of coffee, we even have our very own Nespresso machine to enjoy freshly brewed espresso coffee in an instant. My dad was overjoyed as he enjoyed his cup of Italian Roast coffee. Mmm...

Initially I was worried that the suite might not be big enough to fit all 20 of us. I worry where will my relative sit while enjoying dinner. Being in a cramped room can just ruin one's festive mood and I prayed really hard that we will have ample space to seat everyone. I'm glad He heard my prayers and our lovely dining table can sit at least 10 people. The others gladly carried their plates to the living room to be able to watch their favorite show on the LCD TV.

Moving on to the bedroom, I was immediately drawn towards the comfy-looking king-size bed. Talk about letting their guests feel at home, you can actually have the option to choose your pillows based on your preference. We were perfectly fine with the pillows prepared for us and so we didn't call housekeeping anymore to change them for us. How I wish I can have a king-size bed. :)

From the bedroom, we enter the bathroom and I stopped for a while to take in all of the details in our marbled bathroom. In front of me is a white bathtub that looks very inviting calling out to me to take a dip.

I love the automated toilet that has a sensor that lifts the cover when you walk in front of it and the seat warms itself too! It flushes with the push of a button and it has a very high-tech bidet installed as well. My cousins all tried it with delight. It reminded us of those automated toilet bowls found in high-end Japanese restaurants.

Lastly, I couldn't help but swoon over the L'Occitane bath products that smells so good and works well on my hair! I truly had a good night sleep as my face was enveloped by my good smelling hair.

Let the (Dice) Game begin!

After enjoying our delicious dinner consisting of Cha Misua, Fried Rice and Bagoong Chicken brought by my in laws, Green Mango and Catfish Salad from Benjarong from me and Paul, Fish Tofu and Steamed Shrimps from Mommy and Fried Springrolls and Meatballs from Kongkong (Grandpa); we cleared out the long dining table and brought out the prizes to prepare for our Mooncake Dice Game.

The rule of the game is to throw 6 piece of dice into a glass bowl. You have to throw it with care so as not to let the dice jump out of the bowl. Doing so will disqualify you for that round. Certain combinations will allow you to win prizes!

6th prize : You need to get ONE (1) dice with the #4. There are 64 pieces of normally the lower-valued item in this category.

5th prize : You need to get TWO (2) pieces of dice with the #4. There are 32 items up for grab in this category.

4th prize : You need to get FOUR of any kind except the #4 (eg: 3-3-3-3-1-2). There are 16 pieces of prizes that may be won in this category.

3rd prize : You need to get THREE (3) pieces of dice with the #4. We normally allocated 8 prizes in this category.

2nd prize : This is my favorite category as your dice should have this combination --> 1-2-3-4-5-6. We have 2 pieces up for grabs in this category.

1st prize : There are various options to get the Xiong Wan such as the--
a) FOUR (4) pieces of dice with the #4 + any 2 number.
b) FIVE (5) pieces of dice of the same number + any number
c) FIVE (5) pieces of dice with the #4 + any number

To determine the winner, it will be dependent on the sum of the remaining number.

The order of throwing the dice differs per family. For us we normally do draw lots on our order or we go from youngest to oldest and vice versa. However, since we are quite a big group this year, we just all sat around the table and starting from Kongkong we went clockwise from him.

There's no time limit as to how long the game should be played, basically for as long as there are still prizes left then everyone will play until all the prizes have been won and the one with the highest Xiong Wan combination gets the grand prize. This year, it was Kuku who bagged the grand prize and even Auntie Rosie and Abigail won quite a lot of items too! What a lucky family! Note, they were all in red! :)

It was a fun bonding moment with the family and we're glad to have both sides with us for the first time. We hope that this won't only be a one time thing but a beginning of years and years of playing the Dice Game together.

Happy Mooncake Festival everyone! Zhu Ni Zhong Jiu Jie Kuai Le! :)

What's up YO?!

After enjoying our filling dinner at the newest branch of Charlie's here in San Juan, I sweetly asked Paul if we can hop over to the next store for dessert. I have heard quite a buzz about this new yogurt place from blogger friends and fellow club members Rowena, Richard and Carlos and I've been itching to try it since July.

I am a big fan of frozen yogurt and I find joy in trying all of the brands that has been sprouting like mushrooms since last 2008. At the moment, I love Red Mango and Yoh-gurt Froz for their yogurt that's not too sweet yet not too tart either. I've tried a number of self-service yogurt places as well but none has made me go back after my first visit.

Enter Yoggle, a hip-looking yogurt place along Ortigas Avenue in San Juan. It offers a total of 8 different flavor ranging from the Plain Tart to Sweet Vanilla. The charging is P20 per ounce. While this might be pretty tricky as you get a big cup at one end of the store and you make your way towards the yogurt machines and then towards the counter where you fill your cup with toppings and syrups.

I was just aiming to get at most 5 ounce worth of yogurt at I will be consuming this on my own. Trying to estimate how much 5 ounce of yogurt is, I carefully controlled the lever as I fill my cup with Sweet Vanilla flavored yogurt. I moved on towards the toppings counter where I added a spoonful or two of almonds, corn flakes and marshmallows. Lastly, I added swirls of chocolate sundae syrup as the finale to my cup of yogurt.

Finally, the weigh-in of my customized yogurt. I handed my cup over to the server and she placed this on top of the scale. Guess what, my cup just weighs 4.22oz (Php. 84.36)!! That's with all the toppings that I've poured in!

I felt like a happy camper as I happily dig into my cup while enjoying the medley of the chocolate syrup with my vanilla yogurt. The yogurt has the perfect consistency and I'm glad that I went for something sweet that evening. I was also very happy with my choice of toppings which made me feel like eating a cup of Chocolate Sundae with lesser calories.

This may not be a very healthy combination but truly a perfect way to cap our delicious dinner date. I'm glad to have found another potential yogurt place that's located very near home.

Yoggle is located at the Ground Floor, Ronac Art Center, Ortigas Avenue corner Santolan, San Juan City. Call them at 359-2473.

To the Man of my Dreams

Back when I was a kid, I always thought and believed that I was somehow a princess living in my own fairy tale. My world back then was filled with happiness that for me, life was simply a bed of sweet-smelling roses. That, I have my dear parents to thank for.

Growing up, obstacles and heartaches were thrown my way but I still continued to keep my head up high as I know I will be able to surpass them all and deep inside my heart I know that someday...someday my prince will come.


Then you came along like my knight in a shining armor, silent yet sincere you stood by me and never left my side. Through the good times and bad you lent me your shoulders to cry on while wrapping me in your arms to give me the comfort that I needed. You were like the son that my parents' never had and the older brother that my sister has been hoping to have. In other words, you were the missing piece to my small and loving family.

My life has been more colorful for the past 7 years. It is because of you that I now believe that true love does exist.

Happy birthday Paul!!
I Love You!!!

Hello, ASL? : My Internet Story

Life before 1998, the phrase “Hello, ASL please” meant nothing to me. I didn’t even know that ASL was a conversation starter. Then the Internet took the Philippines by storm, we find every household owning at least one modem connected to their personal computer that’s linked to a phone line.

We began with a dial-up connection that had very limited access that we even had to list down our usage to make sure we won’t go beyond the allotted hours. Back then; all we did was to create an email account, surf via Yahoo.com and to log on to mIRC where we met online friends here and abroad. Thus, we learned that ASL actually stands for Age, Sex and Location -- the first three things you ask someone in a chat room.

When our dial-up connection would frequently become intermittent, we would buy a handful of prepaid cards from our neighborhood convenient store to make sure that we can still connect to the Internet especially when our homework would call for some research. Little did we know that with our regular dial-up and the back up prepaid cards that we would buy has become more costly for us.

Life with the Internet has never been the same again. Since then we’ve tried so many types of Internet connection, from getting an unlimited dial-up access to give us more surfing time to a lot more options that came our way back then. However I remember my mom would regularly complain that whenever we use the Internet all night long, no one could call through or call out anymore. This was the drawback of having a dial-up connection because you can’t use the phone line anymore.

From the Unlimited Dial-up connection, we tried a wireless broadband. It was good at first but later connection would easily be disrupted whenever it would rain hard in our area. It can, after all, be frustrating to carry your laptop all around searching for the right spot with the strongest signal. Once again, we were disappointed and off we went searching for another, and hopefully, a better Internet connection.

Then my mom came across PLDT myDSL. Upon learning how this works, she was immediately drawn towards this option as it gives us a chance to use the phone even when the Internet is on. You see, they split the line for you giving you dual access to your phone line. Talk about being able to maximize your telephone usage!

By the time we signed up with PLDT myDSL, it was also the time when Youtube was born and in came a number of social networking sites. My sister enjoys the fast connection that allows her to catch up with her favorite US series online while I get to chat with my friends online without any slow down. It’s a good thing mom chose the high speed plan of PLDT myDSL ensuring us for speedy internet access anytime. I also love it that I can upload photos to this blog in a snap!

A couple of days ago, I came across this funny and interesting ad of PLDT that has a very catchy tune. It’s a very short ad yet it basically sums up everything that you can do in the Internet and more. There’s watching the Cebu Inmates over at Youtube, interacting with friends in social networking sites, laughing as the Two Chinese Boys entertain you with their antics and building your nationalistic pride as you update yourselves on the fight schedules of the People’s Champ, Manny Pacquaio.

So far we are all very satisfied with our PLDT myDSL connection as it is directly plugged into our phone socket ensuring fast and reliable Internet connection. Not even the strongest rain and winds can stop our Internet from providing really good service. No more lugging the laptop around looking for a good signal as everywhere in the house gets a connection through our router where our DSL connection is attached.

It has been more than 10 years since I have fell in love with the power of the internet and I am glad that my mom chose PLDT myDSL to give us the best internet service possible. Truly, my mom knows best!

Here’s sharing with you the entertaining PLDT myDSL TVC. Enjoy!!!




* this is a sponsored post by PLDT and Nuffnang Philippines

Turning the Table Around

For years being a blogger, nothing brightens my day more than receiving comments from you, dear readers. Be it a simple message on how much you've enjoyed the dishes mentioned in a particular entry or a heart-warming note telling me to continue blogging -- all these really gives me the encouragement to blog, blog and blog some more.

As a blogger, I am also a reader. I love reading other food and travel blogs and I also look forward to Thursdays as two of my favorite broadsheets have Food as the feature in their Lifestyle Section. I have my own list of favorite writers too. I look forward to reading about their latest food and cooking adventures and yet I have remained to be a silent reader, never letting them know that I have been following their section for years.


This habit changed yesterday when I was reading the online version of the Philippine Star's Food section and I began reading a section called Food for Thought. This is a relatively new section written by mother-daughter team Millie and Karla Reyes. I love Karla's light and joyful way of writing that I've pictured her to be a happy young girl who loves to experiment in the kitchen. Millie, seems to be a very doting mother to Karla who reminds me of my mom, she definitely knows her way around the kitchen and on food. Then there's Lolo Joe, Millie's father who joins them daily as they dine out. Millie and Karla would describe Lolo Joe as someone who loves to repeat restaurants whenever we loves a certain dish.

Yesterday, Millie shared that Lolo Joe was diagnosed with Cancer of the Gingiva I felt my heart wince. For someone who loves to eat, having a cancer in the gums will definitely be a terrible ordeal. After reading the article, I couldn't help but write Millie and Karla a note...

Hi Millie and Karla!

I'm Fran, a follower of your weekly article at the Philippine Star. I was deeply moved by your story today about Lolo Joe's diagnosis of Gingiva Cancer. Through your articles, I imagine him to be a jolly lolo who loves to eat. He reminds me so much of my very own grandfather whom I've inherited my love for food and cooking. I felt a pain in my heart when Millie said "Believe me, there’s nothing as depressing or painful as seeing someone who loves to eat reduced to a mere watcher."

It truly is life-changing when someone in the family gets diagnosed with a sickness, I've had my share of life changing moments when my mom had her mild stroke 6 years ago which really altered the entire family's diet. We have become to be more conscious with what we eat and we try to limit eating out as well. This was really hard as eating out as a family is just so much fun!

I pray that Lolo Joe will get better soon. Truly looking forward to reading more of your mother-daughter stories every Thursday!

Fran
flipflopping my way around town
http://www.frannywanny.com

Today, I opened my email and saw a reply from Millie. Talk about feeling star-strucked, I read her note carefully:

Dear Fran,
Thank you for taking the time out to react to our column. I had a prompting to write and share our experience so that our readers may gain from it. I realize that the power of prayer made everything so much lighter for us during this trial.
We wish you well. Be blessed.

Millie and Karla

It was my first time to write to one of my favorite newspaper editor and I'm glad that somehow I have made them feel that as a reader, I am here praying for Lolo Joe's quick recovery too.

Click here to read the full article of yesterday's Food for Thought.

It's time to Shop, shop shop!

Christmas is less than 85 days away and it's time to bring out your Christmas list and to start shopping for your friends and loved ones!

The best way to get the most out of your shopping budget is to be on a look out for bazaars, sales and great bargains!

Announcing the Warehouse Sale of the Robinsons Retail Group including brands such as Dorothy Perkins, Topshop, Topman, Toys R Us, Warehouse and a lot more!

See you there! :)

Pagbabago

I've always called myself Daddy's Little Girl.

This is probably because I grew up thinking that Papa has always been on my side while Mommy would always be there to protect my younger sister. Whenever my sister and I would have petty fights on who gets the best part of the chicken, who should have more TV time and a lot more, our parents would play referee and it was Papa who would give in to my whims while Mommy has remained to be my disciplinarian, which in my eyes as a kid equals to a villain in any fairy tale.

Papa would shower me with every little thing that I asked for. Be it a weekly supply of my favorite chips and cookies, never-ending purchase of my favorite pocket book, a trip to the amusement center and a lot more. For me, Papa was my knight in a shining armor who showered me with so much love every single day.

Back then, Mommy and I never saw each other eye-to-eye. How she limits my fried rice intake made me feel like she was depriving me of my favorite food. How she tells me to go to sleep and to stop watching TV made me see her as a nagger. Oh how I dread her scoldings whenever I go home with low grades or when my piano teacher would complain that I don't seem to be practicing my piece.

Whenever my mom and I would argue, she would always end her piece by saying "someday when you grow up you'll understand why I'm like this." Repeatedly, I would just shrugged this statement off.

What I failed or perhaps refuse to see were the nine whole months worth of bed rest that Mommy underwent just to have me. I was also blinded by the fact that she have spent sleepless nights to take good care of me especially on nights when I would have a tummy ache. Mommy would also shop for the prettiest clothes to make sure my sister and I would look good all the time. She have also worked really hard instead of just staying home to be a housewife just so she and Papa can send us both to the best schools in town.

My mom had big dreams for us. While my dad showered me with the best things in life, Mommy taught us how to enjoy the simpler things in life. Looking back, she would take us out for an afternoon merienda to our neighborhood Goldilocks store to enjoy a bowl of Dinuguan with Puto, a plate of Pansit Malabon and Fresh Lumpia. Oh, how the sight of the friendly looking girl in golden curly locks can bring a smile to our faces. A trip to Goldilocks is not complete without having our favorite flavored popcorn and rainbow bread where Mommy would use to make pinwheel sandwiches.

Mommy would also make a big deal about our birthdays. Waking up extra early to prepare Cha Misua for us. She would wake the celebrant up to be able to serve the first bowl as the birthday celebrant needs to take the first bite. After breakfast, she will make sure to have a birthday cake ready for us to blow our candles out. Back then, Mommy's choice would always be the rectangular Mocha Chiffon Cake from Goldilocks. Together with our stuffed animals, we would blow our growing number of candles out every single year.

On days when we had a long tiring ordeal in school, Mommy would exert her very best to brighten up our day. Whether it would be a plate of our favorite pesto spaghetti, a bowl of ice cream or a slice of Goldilocks Leche Flan, she would make sure that dinner would somehow make up for the bad day that either one of us had at school that day.

Still, I grew up blinded by all of Mommy's effort as I would always remember her constant reminders and nagging.

During my college years, Mommy and I were able to spend more time together as I had a more flexible time schedule by then. Together, we would wait for my class to start or during long breaks, she and Papa would meet up with me for lunch or afternoon coffee. I have grown to be more mature and the frequency of arguments have lessened. Still there was the constant nagging and Mommy would always end her sermon with "I hope someday you'll understand me."

Despite all this, Mommy has started to become my confidante, especially on matters I was too ashamed to tell Papa about -- my love life. She would give me advice on boys and would openly tell me about her thoughts on so and so.

Mommy has never stopped us to pursue our dreams. She allowed us to choose the college course of our choice and stood behind us as we went on to start our own careers in the corporate world. Everyday, during our ride home, Mommy never fails to ask how our day went. Since then, I have grown closer to Mommy and would regularly seek for her advice on big decisions that I have to make. Just the same, Mommy would always be ready with snacks that I can munch on after work. Be it a bag of caramel popcorn or her favorite Goldilocks Choco Slice, she would make sure to keep my tummy happy with any of these sweet merienda treats.

At present, I am now a married woman and I miss Mommy more and more. Sure, we still see each other every day but that 15 minute ride to work and back is just not enough to update her about my life and vice versa. How I look forward to impromptu afternoon bonding session with her in our favorite Goldilocks shop once again sharing a bowl of Dinuguan with a plate of steamed puto.

Once in a while, Mommy would still call me to remind me to take my vitamins and to nag me to eat healthy but now I do not get annoyed anymore. Mommy was right...someday I will understand her and at this moment, I really do. She did all those things because she love me and no matter how often we've argued and fought over the smallest things, her love for me has never faltered or changed.

Which reminds me of all those Goldilocks moments that we've had growing up. Gone are the days of the friendly looking girl with golden curly locks and a more sophisticated logo can now be seen on the facade of every Goldilocks store. Goldilocks, just like us, have changed through the years. Continuously evolving and improving itself to suit the needs of time. Still, just like a mother's love that never goes away, Goldilocks will always be there to serve our favorite childhood favorites. In my case, I can always count on Goldilocks for the best tasting Leche Flan, yummy Dinuguan and more! You're truly the 1, Goldilocks! I love you Mommy!

* This is my official entry to the Nuffnang Philippines - Goldilocks contest

Coffee on the Go : Starbucks VIA Ready Brew

Who would have thought that you can enjoy your favorite cup of Starbucks coffee even when there's no Starbucks store nearby? You can literally take your coffee with you up to the top of the mountain or to the farthest point of the island and you can still enjoy the same Starbucks experience minus the jazz-y music and the sound of blender going on and off every other minute.

At first, I thought it was a joke when I heard that there will be a Starbucks instant coffee. "How can that be possible", I thought. After working for the Green Siren for more than two years, my mind was set to think that Starbucks will always be about freshly brewed coffee or fragrant espresso-based drinks handcrafted by your favorite barista.


However, the news is true and the Starbucks VIA Ready Brew has arrived here in the Philippines following the first market launch in Japan. It comes in three flavors: Italian Roast, Decaf Italian Roast and my personal favorite, Columbia.

I was excited to give it a try as I love the nutty, bold flavor and aroma of the Columbia. By just adding water, I got myself a cup of Starbucks Columbia coffee in an instant. Each cup comes cheap too!

A pack of 3 retails at P130 and a box of 12 sells for P450. That's roughly Php. 38 per cup!!!

The Starbucks VIA Ready Brew is available in all Starbucks stores nationwide. Grab a box now! :)

*photo by Starbucks Coffee Philippines

Chicken chicken at Peri Peri Chicken!

While planning for our trip to Kuala Lumpur months ago, I got a comment for a reader to try Nando's Peri Peri Chicken. Unfortunately, due to time constraint, we were not able to go with the recommendation but this got me craving for peri-peri chicken the moment we got back from our honeymoon trip.

Thanks to our ever supportive friends, we scheduled a dinner at Peri-Peri Grillhouse at the Greenhills Promenade one Sunday evening. We arrived a little past 7 and the place was already packed. I love the cheerful greeting that you'd get the moment you walk into the restaurant.

Who doesn't love chicken?

While people would have a wide range of food restrictions due to religion, dietary requirement or allergies, rarely have I encountered anyone who is not allowed to eat chicken. Thus, this has been a common choice when dining out in groups. Peri-peri Grillhouse has been around for a while already and they have even undergone one major renovation thus the big change in their menu too. I noticed that the line up has expanded and there are more interesting items that made it difficult for us to make a decision.

Finally, we went for the Chicken Combo 2 (Php. 330) that is inclusive of half a Peri-peri chicken and two sidings. Peri-peri is actually a Portuguese marinade mixed into the chicken meat prior to cooking that's made of chili oil, salt and a bit of lime (for some). This is actually a very popular Portuguese dish and I look forward to trying the real thing in Macau or Portugal someday. We had a pick of any of their sidings, Paul got the tortilla wraps while I had a saucer of creamed spinach. I loved the creamed spinach which went well with the tender chicken meat. Paul also enjoyed wrapping the chicken meat into the tortilla wrapper and he would add a spread of their gravy and their signature sauce.

On the table, there were huge stickers promoting their new dish called the Chicken Espetada (Php. 198). This we also saw in the posters of Nando's in Kuala Lumpur. It looks very much like the Brazilian churrasco or a Chicken kebab hanging on top of the plate. This one is served with their special Peri-peri rice, vegetables and a white creamy sauce. I love the sauce and I even used this for my Peri-peri combo chicken. The rice was very fragrant and we liked the chicken chunks which were perfectly grilled to tenderness. Just like your typical skewer, the chicken alternates with a slice of bell pepper and onion.

The mood was very festive being conducive to dinner with friends as the interiors reminds me of the Mardi Gras (which, is not very Portuguese at all hehe). Despite having a lot of customers, we didn't have a hard time calling for assistance whenever the need arises.

The price may be a bit high but we didn't mind paying for good chicken. Will definitely be back to enjoy more peri-peri in the future.

Peri-peri Grillhouse is located at The Promenade, Greenhills Shopping Center, San Juan City.

Frannywanny is on Facebook!

F is for Frannywanny and Facebook!

Continuing the celebration of my 3rd blogniversary, the official facebook page of Frannywanny.com has now been created! There, followers can expect frequent updates on my latest entries, special contests just for my Facebook friends and more!

Show your love and click here to be part of my Facebook page! :)

Paper Love

Looking back at the past 8 months when Paul and I were busy preparing for our BIG day, I remember that among all things needed for the wedding, I was most excited working on our invitation. I enjoyed the brainstorming session that we had with Soph, our invite maker (and my talented make up artist too), and her sister -- who took care of our layout.

From the type of paper stock to the different accents to make our invitation unique, I enjoyed running my fingers through the different paper types available. I remembered how I squealed in delight upon seeing our final product. Our wedding invitation left me speechless. I really have a long running love affair with paper and I guess this is why I am in the industry where I am right now.

While going around Greenbelt 5 last night before heading to Mr Jones for that much-awaited girls night out with K and B, I chanced upon a cute pink store at the Basement 1 that's called the Invitation House. I entered the store expecting to see shelves filled with invitations for all types of occasions. I was surprised to see a lot more. Aside from ready-to-be-filled-up invites, there also have blank cards, personalized initial invites and a lot more. At the far end of the store, you may also browse through their catalog to have your customized invite made.

In addition to this, they also have adorable mini pads that I think would make a cute addition to my work station. Oh, I fought the urge to buy them all! It reminded me of my very own stationary collection back when I was a kid with designs as cute as these.

They also have large square notepads that I really loved. I liked it so much that I think they'd make wonderful Christmas presents. I got one for myself (can you guess which one?) and I am so excited to jot down my daily things to do in this lovely notepad.

I spent a good 15 minutes going through each rack and I know that I will be back more often as the saleslady told me there will be more products coming in as they just opened recently. Hooray!

This is totally heaven for all paper lovers out there!

Check out the Invitation House at the Basement 1 of Greenbelt 5, Ayala Center, Makati City.

It's so Fluffy!!! I love Despicable Me

I just had two major goals for the long week...first was to get a full body massage with my sister which we did last Saturday at The Spa and second was to watch Despicable Me.

I saw the trailer but initially it didn't appealed to me thinking it will be all about villains and lots of fighting in animation involved. It wasn't until my sister showed me the trailer once again when I fell in love with the cute little girl who went gaga over a stuffed unicorn.

We agreed to watch it last Sunday and initially I was hesitant to buy the ticket as the 3D version in Greenhills was priced at P320. I want to watch the movie but to pay three times more than the average ticket cost..I paused a bit and even considered backing out. Finally after 5 minutes worth of non-stop prodding from my sister, there we were in front of the movie counter buying three 3D tickets to watch Despicable Me.

This ticket came with a bag of popcorn and your choice of drink. Honestly, I hope they would make another option for those who do not want the popcorn and drink and price it lower. I wouldn't mind paying a little more than P200 for a 3D movie minus the frills after all I am not a popcorn fan and I can bring my own water bottle in. Yes, I can really be stingy at time. :)

Was the movie worth the P320 ticket?

Let's just say that it has been 3 days since and I still have the Despicable Me fever. I couldn't get over how cute Agnes (the little girl) was and I love her adorable lines such as "It's so fluffy I could dieeee" and "Does this count as annoying *cluck cluck cluck*". These lines may not make any sense but I suggest that you watch the movie to see how this was incorporated into the story.

The story was about two villains going against each other in stealing the moon. After a number of failed attempts to get into Vector's property to get the shrinking gun, Gru (lead character) thought of adopting three girls who regularly sells cookies to Vector to be his accomplices. Of course, the girls were unaware of this.

This movie talks about building a family and despite all the challenges how we should not let go of one another. Gru and the three girls may seem like a weird bunch but you'll see how they have made am impact into the lives of one another.

Despicable Me is still showing in almost all major movie theaters and I hope you'll enjoy it as much as I did.

Now, to answer the question -- the movie was definitely worth the P320 ticket however I think it can still be enjoyed minus the 3D effects.

Here's the trailer of Despicable Me:

Dining the Escolta way

In contrast to both my parents who grew up somewhere near Chinatown in Manila, I was a Quezon City girl. Exploring the different food spots along Tomas Morato at a very young age was my weekly past time. Even my husband was a Manila boy. Oh how I enjoy it as I listen to their simple childhood stories of them walking around the safer streets of Manila.

When I think of Manila I remember my history class teaching us about how life was back then during the Spanish colonization. Pretty ladies in frilly clothes and men in white coats fill my imaginative mind. I remember how my mom would tell us that two horse carriages would bring her to school and back. She was considered privilege by having this type of luxury.

It makes me realize how colorful our history really was. Having a mix of Chinese, American and Spanish influences, life back then was more simple, fun yet very colorful.

A visit to the Manila Peninsula hotel for a surprise date with my husband just a month after our wedding brought us to Escolta. This new restaurant serves good quality dinner buffet--Do not expect a long line of dishes as the choices here are pretty limited but what we liked about it was that it has quality offerings. It somehow makes us feel good that we are not feeding ourselves with just about anything but with something that was well-planned and prepared for its guests.

I started off with the sushi platter while Paul went straight to the tiger prawns. He loves his chilled prawns with cocktail sauce and it was a good thing Escolta had just that. I, on the other hand, indulged on a plateful of salmon and tuna sashimi, tamago and some hand-rolled makis. Delicious! We were both planning to get some lobster and mussels but decided to just have this on our second round.

For our main course, Paul made sure he had a fill of the roast beef. While the initial slice was too rare for him, the chef gladly grilled it a little bit more to make it medium well--his preferred level of doneness. There are also a couple of pots with different sauces and he went for the good ol' barbecue sauce.

I wanted something light and so I went for the seafood options. I started off with the seafood fried rice and some fish fillet and more tiger prawns. I tried a little veal which I didn't like. It was too grainy for my taste.

While bonding over good food, little did we know that more than two hours had passed. I enjoy laid-back dining as I get to enjoy every single bite and the conversation exchanged is always the best.

It was time for dessert and Paul headed straight to the cake station while I zeroed in on the cold station where all the ice cream and yogurt tubs were. I got a bowl of frozen yogurt topped with fresh strawberries and almonds.

Escolta is not your buffet place when you are into a wide-array of choices, it is perfect for dinner dates where you just want to have a handful but top quality dishes to choose from. Aside from their steak, seafood and sushi options, I also enjoyed their salad station where you can ask the chef to prepare a plate of Ceasar salad for you.

Buffet Rate:
Lunch: P1350 net (monday - saturday), P1842 net (sunday)
Dinner: P1473

Note: I used my Citi Gold Card and got a 15% discount! Weeee!!

Escolta is located at the Ground Floor of The Peninsula Manila corner of Ayala and Makati avenues, 1226 Makati City. Call them at 887-2888.

...and we have 3 winners!!! (Nestle Word Game)

Thank you to all those who have submitted their really creative portmanteaus!!! :)

Enjoying cup after cup of the Nestle Fruit Selection Yogurt with Jelly is just as fun as coming up with the wackiest word creation as those submitted by my dear readers in this entry.

I am pleased to announce that we have 3 winners for this contest.

CONGRATULATIONS to...GLENN ONG, KARNIE and MARITES QUITORIANO!!!

Kindly expect an email from me in a short while on instructions on how to claim your 15 cups of Nestle Fruit Selection Yogurt with Jelly each!!

Till the next contest!! :)

Going Crazy over Krazy Garlik

I can't imagine a world without garlic. No Aglio Olio, no garlic bread, no 40 cloves garlic chicken and a lot more. Perhaps half of the the world's gastronomical masterpiece will become bland without the use of this powerful herb.

Enter Krazy Garlik, the newest go-to place for garlic lovers in the Metro. It's brought to us by the Bistro Group, the same company who owns Italiamnis, Flapjacks and Fish and Co. Barely a month old, you'd be surprise to see the restaurant filled with happy customers even on a weekday. I guess this is a good sign for a new business that is actually just a local concept.

We arrived a little past 12 and there were just two tables available. As the server led us in, I marveled at the cute Alice in Garlic-land mural on the wall. Very whimsical and clever.

To start off our meal, we had Creamy Garlic Fondue (Php. 255) which had a couple of garlic bread slices and a bowl of cheezy, creamy garlic dip. It's light and definitely a perfect starter to your meal.

Next was my personal favorite, the Garlic and Anchovy Affection (Php. 190). I got to give them 1 point for presentation as I thought they look like escargots, and another point for making it really delicious. We were thought to get one spoonful of garlic clove with anchovy and to spread it on our crostini. I love how buttery the garlic was as it glides on to my bread. It.was.delicious.

Another highlight was the Snowflakes Pizza (Php. 385), cheezy melt-in-your-mouth pizza with a generous amount of garlic chips sprinkled on top of the pizza. I love the contrast of biting into a crunchy bit then further sinking my teeth into the soft dough. This is definitely a must-try in Krazy Garlik.

Krazy Garlik is also proud of their Garlicky Crispy Pata (Php. 595). It was very good that I wasn't able to take a photo because the platter was already half empty when I remembered to take a photo of it. Beside the meaty Pork Leg is a whole roasted garlic wherein you are encourage to take a clove and to spread the buttery garlic onto your piece of meat before taking a bite. The meat was very tender and the garlic really made this dish extra special.

I love fried rice and I simply adore the Hara-Kiri (Php. 365). I guess they named it as such because you'd kill to have a taste of this delicious masterpiece. It is a little spicy due to the tiny bits of chili mixed into the rice but I liked it because it tasted like the Japanese Fried Rice prepared teppanyaki style. This one has bits of octopus and shrimps too. Yum!

For dessert, we had the Creme Brulee with Garlic bits. At first, I was pretty hesitant to try this. While Krazy Garlik has successfully controlled the level of garlic-ness in each dish so as not to give you an overpowering garlic breath, I wasn't so sure if I wanted garlic on my dessert...on my favorite dessert at that.

As it arrived on our table, we were each given a teaspoon and with one deep breath, we all made a go for making sure we get a piece of garlic on our first bite. Everyone was quiet, I guess we were all surprised that the garlic actually paired well with the sweet creme brulee. In fact, the texture was very chewy similar to a gummy bear. In other words, it was delicious. We loved it so much we got two more orders for our group of 6 to share.

Adorable Garlic Stuffed Toys!

It was a very filling garlic-themed lunch. I'm glad that the Bistro Group came up with this wonderful concept as Filipinos love garlic and I guess this is one reason why Krazy Garlik was full that day.

Krazy Garlik is located at the 2nd floor of the Greenbelt 5 Mall, Ayala Center, Makati City.

Frannywanny.com turns 3!!!

My dear readers,

I can't believe another year has passed and I am now blowing out three candles on Frannywanny.com's birthday cake! Looking back at the time when I started this blog, I simply just wanted an avenue to share my thoughts on the different dining experiences that Paul and I had plus a few photos, some of which were even taken using my mobile phone.

Year after year, I have been blessed by meeting a couple of great blogger friends, restaurant-owners-who-eventually-became-our-good-friends and of course my treasured readers. Nothing warms my heart more by hearing all of your kind words and encouragement that makes blogging truly fun each and every day.

Blogging has been and will continue to be my passion. A week is not complete without allowing my tiny fingers to type away as I share our latest food and travel finds. This blog has played a huge part of my life, it has seen me at my worst and definitely has been there at my best.

As I enter my third year, I look forward to writing more food discoveries in and around the metro and even around the world! So buckle up your seat belts, leave some space in your tummies and here we go again for another ride!

Love,
Fran