Hello Red Cups!

Sunday, November 15, 2009

When Starbucks changes their traditional white paper cups to red, it signals one thing, that it's sticker collecting time! While at Glorietta a few weeks ago, I chanced upon the snowflake glass etchings at the Starbucks stores, signaling the return of the planner. Although I don't follow trends or go where everyone goes (I don't watch Glee, I don't play Facebook games, and I'm not keeping tabs on the Pacquiao-Cotto fight right now), this is one trend I do follow since I've always liked the Starbucks planner where I write down my appointments or discovered Youtube tutorials.




Anyhoo, a trivia I found out is that it's only here in Manila that they have the Starbucks planner program. Although the drinks are available also internationally, we can't collect stickers there like we do here.


And on for the drinks:
Last year's Dark Cherry Mocha still is here but Praline Mocha has been replaced with an old favorite... Peppermint Mocha, which took a break last year. Erika and I were sad that it wasn't in last year's roster of drinks but now, I'm glad it's here. Actually, it's what I've been ordering everytime I'm there, and obviously, with my face right smack on its picture, it's been my favorite. I order it this way - short (or tall), hot, decaf nonfat, no whipped cream with sugar sprinkles please. The mint flavor is smooth rather than shocking cold, so I could have it as an after-dinner drink. The two other flavors, since these are richer, I order with no cream. The sweet buttery flavor of Toffee Nut Latte is a good morning drink, while I reserve Dark Cherry Mocha in the afternoon or again, for an all-nighter shoot.

This year's planner is just like last year, in terms of bulk. I found the leather-bound planner too bulky to fit in my already bulky bag. This one is slimmer, although they come in just one color. Oh, and they have coupons too. Yay for the coupons again!

The coffee bean and coffee ground covers in macro settings caught my eye, since my photography is mostly macro.

I just wish they had grids, though because I can't write in a super straight line.

But hey, at least I could do more abstract cubisms while I'm bored.

I'm almost quarter-filled with filling up my sticker book. However, since it was started early, there might be time for a second one. A friend of mine already had two. :)

Affordable Sushi Platter? Yes Way!

Sunday, November 1, 2009

I just realized that I haven't written for so long here in my food blog more than I do at my makeup blog. Guess I was so neck-deep with work and all that the kitchen and I have very little time to bond. Well, I don't cook for one thing (I'm super basic when it comes to cooking) plus the fact that I'm reinventing my diet since I had a huge bloat problem no thanks but thanks to my new addiction.



Anyway, I've got a lot of free time now so I have more time to work on blogging about food. This time, I actually know about this before but I got to blogging about it just now... after 10+ orders of it. hehehe.



On my way to Mike's I always pass by a stand along Makati that sells really affordable sushi. There's also a branch of it near my place here, so one time, I took down the number. While at Mike's for a shoot, we were expecting quite a number of people and when I mentioned it to him, he decided to give it a try and ordered a bilao this big...



It's bigger than my head! Hahahaha. It's a plateful of maki and kani sushi with a chockful of wasabi. Yummm! And yes, they deliver. Yes, they have a branch in Las PiƱas so I could ask them to deliver when I get my Japanese food cravings.

I really love Japanese food, especially sushi and sashimi. I go for the raw food, and during buffets, I usually latch on to these exotic babies rather than the usual rice bowls. I could have those any time but not this. I really take advantage once there's sushi coz they're really expensive and not to mention quite rare. Wasabi's rates are really affordable and they're perfect for office parties, gatherings, or in this case, a photoshoot with 20 people. Boy the crew could really get hungry here. The rice isn't just authentic Japanese rice but the food tastes good nevertheless.

To order, you could call their two branches:

Makati: 703-0795

Las Pinas: 874-6548

For delivery, there is a minimum order requirement, as with all deliveries, but you could call them anyway for to-go orders.