Foodie for thought

Now that I’m officially on break expect a series of delayed microblogs about the past semester.  First up is Foodie Festival which was my first ACOMM project of the school year.

Last summer I was trying to think of a new project that would be fun and relevant for communication majors. It came to me while watching an episode of Junior Master Chef.  I don’t remember if it was just because I was hungry or how cool the kids looked chopping and sauteing with my penchant for food, but that was it. Food! Everyone loves food, especially with the emerging foodie culture in the Philippines! 

We were surprised and thankful when Mercato Centrale, the foodie haven, agreed to become our partner because we didn’t have a contact with them beforehand. Ah, the wonders of Twitter!

But we foodgasmed when Anton Diaz, the man behind the foodie culture himself tweets about the experience afterwards and your past presidents notice! Plus, on the day itself Rj Ledesma, one of the organizers said they wanted us to plan something similar for when they open in the South!

Anyways, the first part of Foodie Festival was a food blogging workshop given by Anton himself. He’s the founder of Our Awesome Planet. I always admire people who have the guts to leave a job of security to pursue a job of passion, especially a path that has not been traveled by society before. It takes guts to pursue, it takes heart to persist because there’s no one else to assure you that what you’re doing is right until you get there.

I’ve been blogging since middle school but even after almost 10 years I can still learn something new about my hobby. Generally, people think blogs are quite ego-centric and self -centered and vain (guilty haha). But if Heidegger was to describe blogging he  would say that we are blogs being in the internet with other blogs! In other words, we are personally writing the collective history of our generation and through our stories we affect each other.

That’s me, being ever so attentive during the workshop.

Food girl moment! Kevin, Ericka and Daphne and I with Anton Diaz.

The second part of Foodie Festival is the competition itself! I could not wait to get my hands on all this food! Neither could the rest of us. Hi Idge.

Xavi…. whatta long isaw you have there.

I would have bought my usual Manang’s Chicken but I decided to not be boring and try something new. Normally good babyback ribs are expensive and you order them in saucy places but my meal was cheap and saucy just the way I like it — all over my rice. P100 meal! I decided to double the carbo-load and order spuds for P50 on the side.

Kevin, on the other hand,  still wants his Manang’s and aint’ going to let anyone change his mind otherwise! Nomnomnom.

But the one thing I can’t resist buying over and over again  is Merry Moo’s ice cream! I forgot what flavor this was but they’re all good.

Mercato is not only about the food though. So, regardless of what you buy, it’s the company that makes everything taste better!

Don’t be selfish. Share the food.  Please Idge, please!

I hatchoo Idge. What was I thinking allowing myself to be “pushed” all the time by this guy?  

Just kidding.

Im so proud of Daphne. She was my project manager and despite our never ending problems with this project she was such a fighter. She stepped up and took charge of responsibilities that should not have been hers. Thanks Daph, from the bottom of my matakaw stomach.

Last summer I had this amazing idea for this project about food and blogging. The best ideas emerge from things you love and know to be true. All you have to do is take the time to look around and see it in a new light! There’s potential in everything if you just paid more attention.

Although i may have thought of it on my own, I would not have been able to realize the idea alone. Share your vision. Never do anything alone. Thank you guys <3

If you missed it, check out the post-project video.  Good eats, good friends, good vibes! :)

Calling all foodies!

I’m really excited for my department’s first project this year which is also the first of its kind. I love creating project out of things I love — food, blogging, and Mercato Centrale. If you love the same things, look below for the mechanics. Get a chance to meet Anton Diaz, get featured on his www.ourawesomeplanet.com blog and win thousands worth of Mercato GC’s :)

If you’re a foodie, especially if you find yourself taking pictures of what you eat, then this project is for you!

Have good times and good eats with ACOMM and Mercato Centrale’s Foodie Festival! We give you a two-part ultimate food experience:

1) Catch the owner of Mercato Centrale and OurAwesomePlanet.com, Anton Diaz as he gives a talk on the ins and outs of food blogging. (September 17, 10-12pm at SecB 201) Sign up here: http://tinyurl.com/Foodblogging

2) Join the photojournalism competition where teams comprised of one writer, one photographer, one videographer, and one taste tester try out Mercato Centrale’s stalls to create the best food blog entries. Winning entry gets featured on OurAwesomePlanet.com plus Mercato Centrale gift cards worth thousands! (September 24, 11 to 1 pm at Mercato)

To inquire about the mechanics and application details:
http://tinyurl.com/FoodieFestivalMechanics

This is open to ALL ATENEANS. Apply now and experience a food trip like no other!

Event page –> http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=211705668889402

<3 ACOMM

Foodie Funday at Mercato Centrale

On Dec 12 my friends and I decided to trade in Sleep In Sundays for a Foodie Funday at Mercato Centrale, The Fort instead! Since I have class on Saturday, Sunday is really the only day I have the luxury of not waking up to an alarm clock. The market is usually only open until 12pm, except when there’s a lot of people it extends till around 2pm so we had no choice but to get our lazy selves out of bed in the morning.

For a barkada hang out it was a nice change of scenery from the usual late nights, excluding our once a week lunch dates. How come our default gimmik setting is always at night?

Anyways, sometimes I forget how the rest of the world looks and feels like in the morning especially when you’re not busy scurrying along Katipunan to make it to your class.  Personally, basking in the morning air, watching the quiet hustle and bustle of passerby’s makes me feel so alive. The simplicity of the day – exploring the market for foodie finds, and chilling with friends is so relaxing and peaceful.

My friend Paco and I project-headed the gimmik. While we were chatting about the plans, we couldn’t help get excited at the prospect of food tripping!

But there are so many choices to pick from! Marji is overwhelmed haha.

It has 4 tents filled with an assortment of food from actual meals to desserts to food-combos-you’ve-never-heard-of-but-excited-to-try. One of my favorite parts is going around hoarding the free food samples!

Since we wanted to eat almost everything in sight, our food strategy was to divide, conquer and of course share! It’s best to go to these places with a lot of people.

I forgot the name of this stall but I was slightly disappointed with the burger. The main selling point was that within the burger patty was the mozarella which makes me salivate at the thought of it. Unfortunately, because everything else was too dry this mozarella bit became forgettable.

Because we were curious we tried the donut burger which was also a disappointment! Asides from the small taste of sugar from the krispy kreme bun that disappears almost instantly after you bite into it, it was nothing out of the ordinary. This goes to show that just because the concept is original and innovative, doesn’t necessarily mean the execution is anything great.

But all is not lost! My favorite out of the 3 dishes was the Manang’s chicken wings. I’m a sucker for sauces and the chicken was perfectly immersed in a sweet flavor that neither over or underwhelms you.

Another thing I’m a sucker for is ice cream. I’m a sweet tooth by heart but out of all sugary concoctions it remains to be my favorite indulgence! This love for ice cream runs in the Facundo side of the family. Without fail there’s always ice cream present in EVERY get together. I kid you not.

We tried Merry Moo Ice Cream which serves unusual flavors that you can’t buy at the supermarket.

This one is spicy chocolate. It was successful in marrying the spicy and sweet flavor and I enjoyed it. But it’s not something I’d have all the time.

When we were done eating, we did another thing we do best – camwhore. I couldn’t help it. The back ground with the bouncy castle looks kinda quite carnival-esque.

With my SLR camera and Fez’s hipstamatic iphone application…

I’m a hipster, bitch.

And so are my friends haha.

Overall, it’s really a great way to spend a Sunday morning. For more information about Mercato Centrale check out the Anton Diaz’s Our Awesome Planet’s blog.

The Battle of Katipunan’s Extension: Banapple VS Conti’s

This is my second food review and i’ve learned that writing about food is definitely a lot harder than it tastes. Nonetheless,  it’s still fun to do and my partner Lexie & I tried our best to get our inner foody out.  Click the link to see whether Banapple (Lexie) or Conti’s (Me) won!

 

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With new restaurants popping up along Katipunan every few months, Ateneans’ dining choices are endless. It’s certainly easier to stick to the establishments near school, but resisting the call of Katipunan Extension’s Banapple Pies & Cheesecakes and Conti’s Pastry Shop & Restaurants is becoming quite the challenge. They serve similar fare that satisfies both an empty stomach and a sweet tooth, but before you hop into the car or hail that elusive cab, g has the verdict on which restaurant actually deserves the trip.

Aspiring Appetites

My feature writing class is like a breath of fresh air this semester. One, because the class feels more like a comedy stint where all you do is laugh (and learn.)

Second, because I obviously enjoy writing and I don’t mind going to class when you learn more about something you love to do.

Anyways, as I said in my earlier blogoyears, I want to keep track of my essays/ articles somewhere. So,  I’m posting our first individual writing assignment which was to profile someone we find interesting.  Thanks Diego for letting me write about you!

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Aspiring Appetites

Everyone craves to do something they love when they grow up. It’s an insatiable appetite that grumbles in our gut, pestering us to feed it with a satisfying meal. Some ignore the feeling and are simply content with the usual menu of going to a university and taking a blue collar job.  While others like aspiring chef Diego De Rivera go straight into the kitchen and concoct their future directly after high school.

Appetizing Beginnings

Prior to graduation your typical 19 year old in the Philippines would be busy studying for entrance exams and writing college essays. Afterwards they would attend the big name universities, mostly with their high school barkada’s. But Diego didn’t have any of that. After he received his diploma from De La Salle Zobel, he enrolled in the International School for Culinary Arts and Hotel Management (ISCAHM) for a 14 month course. He was “All set for culinary school. I knew what I wanted so I knew what I had to do” he chimes.

All it took was a plate of eggs and French toast and a love for eating to know that he was hooked. “My love for eating came first. My family always enjoyed eating, either big meals at a relative’s house. I started cooking when I was around 7 or 8.” Now he hasn’t even left teenagehood yet and already he’s cooking for local celebrities.