FLAVOURS OF ILOILO

Tinapayan's Chocolate Cake Decorating Contest is back to highlight it's annual Chocolate Festival coming this October. Expect another jam packed event at The Atrium mall this coming September 23, 2011 from 2-5pm, as culinary students from Iloilo City participate in this eye catching and mouth watering competition. With 10 teams expected to join, the crowd and mall goers will surely be enthralled with the amazing cake designs crafted right before their eyes. It's still more than a month to go but the excitement builds in - for me at least. So here's a first look on the poster, the rules and regulations, criteria, prizes and a lot more related to this upcoming event. Rules and Guidelines 1. A cake theme for this year’s competition will be announced via draw lots during the participants briefing. 2. A selection on the theme will be the following: Chinese New Year, Birthday, Christmas, Easter, Halloween, Baptismal 3. To prepare and presen...

Every place has a signature product is which always apt for pasalubong. Be it a one of kind product or something ordinary yet made extra special that makes it a must buy. There’s pastel from Camiguin and Cagayan de Oro, pomelo and durian (and durian based products) from Davao, otap and dried mangoes from Cebu and biscocho, barquillos and butterscotch from Iloilo. Across the sea in Bacolod City, the capital of the sugar capital of the country, it follows that most it’s pasalubong are sugar based like piaya and kalamay-hati. But if there’s one that characterizes the ultimate pasalubong from Bacolod, it’s napoleones. From the looks of it, it’s one great way of having a sugar rush. Made with layers of pastry (phylo or filo) filled semi sweet custard like cream and topped with fondant (like) icing made with confectioner’s sugar. Each bite is like heaven – the melts in your mouth topping, the crunchy-chewy layers of the pastry and the yummy filling that you’d surely have another one. I...

There’s a new pizza place in town and it’s out to satisfy your cravings – no matter how big it is. Welcome Calda Pizza – an import from Cebu and is now is Iloilo City to make every Ilonggo pizza dreams come true. The pizza parlor opened last Friday despite the heavy downpour and was well attended by friends, relatives and media including members of the Iloilo Bloggers Inc. The simple opening rites started with with Ex-PNP Chief Gen. Robert Lastimoso and the first lady of Iloilo Province - Cossette Defensor, leading the ribbon cutting. A short mass officiated by Father followed afterwhich the whole restaurant was blessed. G uests were then treated to not one but four Extra Large pizzas as freebies as many other sides were made available during the opening feast – ordered from restaurants like Tuki and Griller’s Oyster House as informed by franchisee Rommel Lastimoso. He also mentioned that they are also considering customers importing orders from these restaurants so that customer...

It’s been a while since I featured (read gorged on) Iloilo's most popular chinese bun - Roberto’s Queen sio pao. Aside from being unavailable most of the time (I think it’s now every two weeks rather than monthly), the restaurant is out of my usual way. Good thing I got an errand in the area though not expecting to find one (it’s Friday and usually it’s from Tuesday to Thursday), I literally g rabbed one, lest I might not get one. Still priced at PhP65 and though the size isn’t that overwhelming as before yet still big compared to other sio paos in the city. It was still hot when I got it from “Roberta” LOL and around two hours later with some rainy escapade, I was surprised to sense it warmth when I got home. Aside from what’s inside, I really like the bun of Roberto’s sio pao. With a hint of gumminess yet soft to each bite, it greatly complements the filling. Though I got a rather one sides sio pao with the filling almost bursting out the bottom part while the top was all bun. ...

Or as our host, Flord Nicson Calawag, said " Tanum, lagaw kag pamahaw sa Tibiao ". Indeed our visit to this municipality in the province of Antique last weekend was filled with adventure and gastronomy - all for a cause. The town's 1st Agri-Enviromental Tourism Tree Planting program dubbed as Tanum-Lagaw sa Tibiao was foremost a tree planting activity organized the office of Congressman Paolo Javier & the Provincial Government (through the initiatives of SP Victor Condez, Committee Head on DENR) in cooperation with the local government Unit of Tibiao (through the leadership of Mayor Walden Lim). It aims to promote environmental awareness on the value of forests that serve as carbon sink, enriching nutrition through planting fruits trees and providing employment opportunities through tourism development. This is also in line with Tibiao's thrust of becoming the adventure capital not only of the province but for the whole island of Panay as it hosts an internati...

Wine tasting is a fascinating experience - full of new flavors and new discoveries. Events like these are designed to give enthusiasts (as well as newbies) the opportunity to sample a range of wines. They can be seated, seminar-like sessions or they can be more like cocktail parties with tasters milling around, informally. During a wine tasting, one can learn from his fellow tasters, as well as make new friends who share the interest in wine. Most importantly, one is in the company of some individuals who are more experienced, which is a real boon in training one’s palate The premiere dining and entertainment complex in Iloilo City, The Avenue, recently added a whole new line up of wines to serve its clientele. From the cellars of S ommelier Selection Inc ., come a total of 10 French wines that will add color and flavour to the sumptuous dining experience in various restaurants at the complex. Romain Geitner of Sommelier Selections Inc. A special wine tasting session was hosted ...

From award-winning filmmakers Michiko Yamamoto (write r of the excellent tearjerker Magnifico), Jade Castro (director of the charming love story Endo), and Raymond L ee (writer of box-office gems Anak, Milan, and In My Life, and producer of Ang Pagdadalaga ni Maximo Oliveros,) comes a one-of-a-kind thriller/comedy/coming-of-age story about a curse, gay zombies, and a boy’s journey into ga yhood and back–while being chased by a pink pashmina and a congregation of dead Diana-Ross-lookalikes. The film is Zombadings 1: Patayin sa Shokot si Remington , and it opens in theaters nationwide this August 31. The first output from the all-writers group Origin8 Media, the movie is headlined by an extremely winsome cast composed of young stars and veterans: Lauren Young, Janice de Belen, John Regala, Angelina Kanapi, Kerbie Zamora, Leandro Baldemor, Daniel Fernando, and introducing the 21-year old Martin Escudero as Remington. Comedy royalty Roderick Paulate and Eugene Domingo, portraying piv...