Showbiz at Fernwood Gardens

Part of my work is conducting cooking demonstrations. It has brought me everywhere, from North to South, mountains to beaches, urban cities to remote areas. Sometimes, I get the chance to do this on cam too, just like what's going to happen this weekend in GMA7. Jessica Soho's show, which airs Saturday night will have a segment on Pandesal, and I, together with Chef Paul, taped a short segment demonstrating stuffed pandesal similar to what 7-11 (the convenience store) sells.

The taping brought us to Quezon City. Twas our first time in Fernwood gardens, a favorite venue for weddings. It was a very pretty garden setting, really, and now I understand why it is popular. Its charm may be easily associated with its huge trees and landscaped garden, it had an appeal perfect for outdoor activities minus the hassle of worrying about the rains coming since it is covered. Ponds and ferns everywhere, absolutely pretty, we just had to take some souvenir shots.



I would have appreciated it more though, had we done the taping late in the afternoon. We, however, started taping at lunchtime which really didn't help us at all, what with the manual kneading Paul and I were doing. Our sweat glands were actively working that we had to pause every three minutes so we could wipe perspiration off our faces and still come out fresh on cam.

See for yourself if we do look "fresh" in that segment. Check out Jessica Soho's pandesal episode this Sat!

Diet, Ho Hum

A week ago, I vowed to finally start anew and commit to eating healthy. I knew I needed to lose weight. I was faced with the realization of losing weight just recently, with our annual Physical Exam in the office being due, I had no excuse but to face my fears and read with my own eyes the weight I wear now.

And so, being overweight bordering obesity, with much conviction, I prepared my food journal and planned to list all my consumption, from the littlest of mints to cups of rice.

To this day, the journal is blank. I failed. On the first day of my so called mission, I was invited to dinner with a much respected culinary expert who hosted dinner with some of our marketing people. To think that the meal was composed of mostly seafood, I couldn't resist. We had dinner at Crustacia in the Podium Mall, Ortigas and we were happy to discover that they have revised their menu offerings, with flavors much better than the last time I was there - over a year ago.



Chili garlic crabs, baked oysters, grilled spareribs, roasted chicken, seafood salpicao, and of course, their vietnamese coffee complete with condensed milk, whew, bye bye diet!

So, after that fateful day of frustration and fulfillment (burp), I was determined never to fall again and really stick to my plan. I started the following day with a very light breakfast of ripe mangoes and coffee. Lunch brought me to Serendra with some officemates due to an official business. As such, the row of restos beckoned and brought us to one of my favorite places - Conti's.



Forget the diet - I indulged. Mango bravo cake, Turtle pie, Chicken teriyaki, brewed coffee. Just like their first outlet in BF Paranaque, this establishment never fails to delight customers like me with their home-style cooked meals and rich and painfully delicious desserts.

There goes my diet.

This is bad, really bad.

Luckily, results of my annual PE came out normal.

Heroes

My trips to Batangas have been more frequent these past few weeks. I just came from a team building activity in Nasugbu Batangas with our food service team. Don't get me wrong, I love out of town trips, and this one was even more fun mainly due to the presence of people you wanna be around with, learn with, and have the same passion for.

Of course, trips like these also pose as opportunities for us to eat and discover. We decided to make a quick stop at Starbucks along South Luzon Expressway for our caffeine fix. Some ordered the cold coffee with coffee jelly, while some had the cold frap. I am not much a fan of cold coffee concoctions, so I settled for the hot caramel machiatto. Starbucks isn't really my favorite coffee place for plain and simple brewed coffee, so normally, I order a more sophisticated preparation such as this, just to mask the subtle sourness their coffee has. I still am geared towards having cafe americano in a Figaro or Amici. I couldn't help but take a photo of their pretty table though (check out the prints).


Chateau Royale country club is a favorite among various companies and multinationals for their sales convention and team building activities. It was our first time there. The club boasted of its facilities - a pool, golf area, spa and sauna, orchidarium, organic vegetable farm, wall-climbing facility and its log-cabin-inspired rooms. A massage freak myself, I am quite dissappointed that I wasn't able to try the spa due to our full schedules. Hmmm, maybe next time. Orchids (polynopsis - I hope I spelled that right) are sold at Php500 to 600 per pot (I just wish it'll survive the heat of Manila).




The highlight of our event was the awarding ceremony, which gave recognition to the over-achievers of 2007. Heroes, being the theme of this event, we came in clad in our superhero costumes. All of us confidently paraded ourselves in the suit of our choice. I went in my Trinity (The Matrix) costume - (thanks to my ever helpful sister) and her full closet, I found a beautiful trench coat and comfy leather boots (akin na lang!?!!) that is perfect for the "Trinity" look.


My team, on the other hand, resourceful as they are, came dressed as boxers (Manny Pacquiao) and as Hulk - imagine what they did with their shirts, hahaha.

Others were dressed in more popular characters - Lara Croft, Wonderwoman, Batgirl, Superwoman, Spiderman, Gabriela Silang and the Incredibles (yup, one team formed the whole "Incredibles" family, in fact, they received the "Best in Costume" award that night).


After all the activities (we were there for almost 2 days), we were on our way home. As I am forever a fan of Mushroomburger, we made a quick stop and grabbed each a burger and mushroom pancit canton, which a friend introduced to me. Apart from the meaty burgers that they offer, they now offer breakfast and an all mushroom burger (it is actually sauteed mushrooms in a bun) for the vegans. I also grabbed a bag of peanut bar (which I used to call peanut cake) found at the pasalubong area, together with the bags of dried mushrooms ideal for travelling guests.


With a full stomach and a refreshed spirit, we all headed home, all ready to face the beautiful weekend and the work challenges thereafter.