Seafood Archives - Certified Foodies

San Marino Premium Spanish Sardines : A Newfound Favorite

Ever since I started living on my own, I’ve made sure to stock my little kitchen with different groceries, ranging from meats and vegetables for when I’m in the mood to prepare special meals, and ready-to-eat food items for times when I’m exhausted from work and have no energy to cook. Just recently, I added a new favorite: San Marino Premium Spanish Sardines.

Sardines have been a favorite of mine since I was a kid. I can polish off 1 to 2 bowls of rice in one sitting with just one can of sardines. When I was in high school, I got exposed to Spanish Sardines for the very first time and I got hooked ever since. 😀

I love San Marino’s Corned Tuna, and I use it in my sandwich spreads, pasta dishes (I love it spicy!) and tuna omelet. So when I found out they also have their own Spanish Sardines, I just had to try it!

Upon opening the jar of San Marino Premium Spanish Sardines, I felt my mouth watering as the aroma of the sardines inside tickled my senses. I was surprised to see that there were more than 10 pieces of sardines inside. I can enjoy 1 bottle for lunch AND for dinner. Indulge yourself to a luxurious dining experience without breaking the bank – Php 95 for a 240g bottle. Sulit, right? 🙂

I emptied the jar of sardines onto a plate. Inside, you’ll see slices of pickled cucumber, carrots, hot pepper and peppercorns soaked in corn oil. They don’t use preservatives, so you should refrigerate the bottle as soon as you open it.

Their Spanish Sardines are made with select freshly-caught herring fish, with intact scales that you won’t even feel when you eat them. I love spicy anything, and this Spanish Sardines had the right amount of kick and flavor that made me eat more rice than usual. 😀

Our nanay actually haven’t had sardines for quite a long time. She said she didn’t like them ’cause of the scales and they taste too malansa for her. I asked her to try the San Marino Premium Spanish Sardines, and she loved it! She even asked me for extra serving of rice. We both agreed that it’s the best-tasting Spanish Sardines we’ve ever had. 🙂

I especially love the fact that it has Omega-3 that helps lower one’s blood cholesterol level, which aids in reducing risks of heart problems. It’s also a good source of protein and energy; perfect for someone like me who usually eats quick dinners when I come home after a tiring work day and needs the energy to head to the gym or work on my other hobbies afterwards. 🙂

Have you tried San Marino’s Premium Spanish Sardines? Visit their Facebook page – https://www.facebook.com/SanMarinoCornedTuna – for more information. 🙂

Our #ClaraOlePotluck Fiesta, Boodle Fight Style!

We’re from Malabon, and if you know anyone from there or you’ve attended at least one fiesta or party hosted by someone who lives in our hometown, you know how festive ourÂ celebrations could be. And if you’ve been to one of our parties at home, you’ve seen how lavish we are when it comes to preparing food for our guests. We did just that when we hosted our own Clara Ole Potluck Fiesta party a couple of weeks ago.

The party took almost a month to prepare. The Clara Ole team gave us one task – to prepare a menu showcasing the wide variety of dishes you can make using their products, and how convenient and easy it is for anyone to serve delicious dishes, whatever level your cooking skills are and however small your kitchen is. We personally use Clara Ole products in my little kitchen in my Makati condo, and I tell you, everything I cook with their products come out perfect. 🙂 My favorites would be their pasta sauces and marinades.

Going back to our party, Ken and I thought of hosting a boodle fight, and we all agreed on the Pinoy Fiesta theme for our friends. Since it’ll be a boodle fight, Ken knew serving a couple of dishes won’t be enough. So, he came up with a menu composed of 14 dishes + the punch, which serves as my only contribution. 😀 All of the dishes were made using Clara Ole products, as listed below.

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Cheesy Tuna Pasta made with UFC Spaghetti Sauce with Century Tuna

Though Ken and I will pick meat over seafood any time, the Lenten season is that time of the year when we enjoy a variety of delicious seafood dishes. And last week, we got to try UFC Spaghetti Sauce with Century Tuna and Cheese.

I love tuna in sandwich spreads and pasta sauces, so I was looking forward to finding out if I’ll like this ready-made spaghetti sauce from UFC. It’s pretty convenient since you don’t have to get all messy in the kitchen. All you need is to cook up some pasta, then heat up the UFC Spaghetti Sauce in a pan. Perfect for those lazy nights, like the one I was having when I decided to cook this up. 😀

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Fun Times, Good Food at Detalle Bar + Kitchen

Because we’reÂ food bloggers, Ken and I are usually our friends’ go-to resource personsÂ when it comes to restaurant recommendations. We haveÂ manyÂ favorite places (we haven’t written about most of them yet though), and so we have an arsenal of personal recommendations. One place that has been on top of my list since we went there a few months ago is Detalle Bar + Kitchen in Ortigas.

Detalle is sort of a hidden hangout. They don’t have a huge sign that’ll help you pinpoint their place, but that’s one of the reasons whyÂ I love them. The thingÂ that’ll help you locate this restobar is the Century Tuna billboard at the corner of Meralco Avenue and DoÃ±a Julia Vargas Avenue – they’re right below it. 😀

Detalle is owned by sisters Bernice and Denise Lim, with cousins as partners who also happen to be their friends, which is why you’ll get that friendly vibe as soon as you enter their restaurant. Detalle has this particularly chill environment where you can spend time catching up with friends or even getting to know someone new… and special. 😉 It’s the perfect venue to enjoy their cool drinks, aÂ relaxing ambiance and delicious food.

My favorite spot is on the second floor lounge where you’ll find big couches and coffee tables. They also have a bar there so you can easily order food and drinks whenever. Their staff has been quick in attending to our orders or needs the 2 times we’ve been there. 🙂

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VIP Experience at Chef’s Table in Finestra of Solaire

One might wonder why Italian food thrives in the Philippines when most of our cuisine’s influences resulted from years of colonization or inter-country trades, neither of which the Italians were ever involved. However, there’s one possible answer: Filipinos and Italians are both innately family-oriented. Cooking and eating are always a family affair, and the servings are, more often than not, geared to accommodating big families. And that was exactly what the Chef’s Table of Finestra Italian Restaurant in Solaire Resort and Casino aimed to do â€“ to submerge an intimate group into a one-of-a-kind culinary experience.

Finestra Italian Restaurant

Solaire Resort and Casino brings the authentic colors and flavors of Italy closer to home at Finestra Restaurant. Among the four world-class food establishments that are housed in Solaire, only Finestra has a breathtaking panoramic view of Manila Bay â€“ the best place to enjoy a sumptuous meal while watching the sunset.

Aside from the big smiles and courteous greetings, the bar welcomes you like an old friend, egging you on to try their imported wines and special drinks that are not available anywhere else in Manila.

But the real center of attraction in Finestra is their show kitchen, where you can see your chefs hard at work in preparing exquisite Italian dishes.

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Kimukatsu: Japan’s Favorite 25-Layered Tonkatsu

Just when we thought the katsu craze is over, Japan’s favorite 25-layered mille-feuille style tonkatsu finally arrives in Manila, giving Yabu: House of Katsu a run for their money! Kimukatsu opens their 5th international branch in the Philippines after their great success in Hawaii, California (2 branches), and South Korea.

Imagine our delight when we received an invite from Kimukatsu to try their famous tonkatsu. With our extreme love for Japanese food, how could we say no? 😀 We headed over to their Shangri-La branch for lunch and met with Kenji Komuro, Kimukatsu Philippines Director of Public Relations, who gave us a quick tour and a rundown of their menu.

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Where to Eat in Malabon : A Food Tour

Growing up in Navotas and then moving to Malabon almost a decade ago, my bro and I have always had easy access to really good food. This has shaped our lives, which is why we now have this unconditional loveÂ forÂ food and cooking.

Malabon, in particular, is known for hearty and flavorful dishes, so it’s no wonder that there are many hole-in-the-wall places here that would surprise you with their straightforwardly delicious food.

I’m sure many of you are already familiar with Dolors Kakanin (a staple in parties here), Pancit Malabon and Arny-Dading’s Peachy-Peachy. To be honest, we’ve been busy scouring the Metro for new restaurants that we haven’t finished discovering all the local and must-visit food places here in Malabon (we’ve already started since we were planning on a The Burp Society Malabon food tour).

After the successful Malabon Kulinarya Festival that we attended in 2012, we were more than glad to help out when we were contacted by Cleah (from the Office of the Mayor) about organizing a bloggers food tour in time forÂ the 400th anniversary of San Bartolome Church, one of the oldest churches here in the Philippines.

Early Sunday on Mother’s Day, we met our fellow bloggers at the city hall. Ken and I didn’t have breakfast since we knew we were going to be stuffed by the end of the tour. Well, ‘stuffed’ is an understatement. Let me just say that we all underestimated what Cleah and the participating food places had planned for us. 😀 Read on.

Update:Â We know there are many other places here in Malabon that we weren’t able to cover because we had limited time to go to all of them during the food tour.Â We’ll have a separate post to feature the rest of the ones thatÂ have been around for ages and other scrumptiousÂ dishes you can find here in Malabon. 🙂

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Celebrate the Best of Filipino Cuisine at Corniche of Diamond Hotel

There are but a few world class hotels in the Philippines that celebrate the culinary heritage of their host country. Diamond Hotel is one of those few, and they promote our rich cuisine by launching an annual Filipino Food Festival. This year, they have asked 3 of Manilaâ€™s most celebrated chefs to come aboard and showcase their prowess by reinventing all-time Pinoy favorites at The Best of Filipino Cuisine lunch and dinner buffet in Corniche RestaurantÂ from May 13â€“23, 2014.

FILIPINO CELEBRITY CHEFS + DIAMOND HOTEL EXECUTIVE CHEF

Filipino celebrity chefs Bruce Lim, Sau del Rosario and JP AngloÂ join Diamond Hotel’s Executive Chef Marko Rankel in celebrating the flavors of Filipino cuisine. We loved every twist they added to the dishes they prepared for this food festival. 🙂

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Eat Like a Viking at Vikings SM Megamall

If it’s not obvious yet, Ken and I love eat-all-you-can buffets. We’ve had our fair share of both good and mediocre buffet restaurants. As we eat our way through all of the buffet places here in the metro, our standards continue to heighten. But, really, it was all because of Vikings Luxury Buffet.

We first had dinner at their SM North Edsa branch a year ago on a weekday. We were amazed by the variety of dishes they were offering, and the best part is you can enjoy everything for only Php 688 during lunch time andÂ Php 888 for dinner and weekend/holiday lunch. There are other buffet restaurants that offer less quality selections for a higher price, so we were happy to see we’re getting much more than justÂ our money’s worth at Vikings.

Fast forward to last month, we were invited to dine in at Vikings new branch in SM Megamall, at the Mega Fashion Hall. We already loved their buffet in SM North Edsa, but this new location is pretty special. 🙂

With an abundant selection of dishes – from Filipino, Japanese and Chinese dishes, to generous servings of flavorful meats, and custom pizza and pasta – Vikings Luxury Buffet in SM Megamall will definitely satisfy your every craving. Let me start by telling you about the highlights of our lunches at their new branch at the Mega Fashion Hall – first was with family, and next was a generous invite extended to The Burp Society (post about our meet-up there soon on TBS’ blog!).

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A Luxurious Lunch at Spiral in Sofitel Manila

Our family loves eating at buffets. It all began when our Nanay finally decided that she’s too old to throw grand parties at home. We can’t blame her though. She painstakingly handles everything from planning, shopping, cooking, and even cleaning up. Since then, buffets have become our go-to place when we’re celebrating something special. We’ve tried a number of buffet places like Yakimix, CafÃ© Jeepney, Seoul Garden, 7 Corners of Crowne Plaza, F Restaurant at F1 Hotel and our recent favorite, Viking’s. But one place we’re dying to try is Spiral at Sofitel Manila. We were supposed to celebrate our nanay’s birthday at their restaurant earlier this year, but she had something else in mind.

The New Spiral

After the devastation Typhoon Pedring had caused, Spiral had to close for 13 months as it went under an $11-million renovation. They took inspiration from the Filipinos’ resilience and viewed all that has happened as a blessing in disguise. They were given a clean slate and a chance to start all over again. And as the saying goes â€” “When you’re down, there’s no way to go but up.” Boy, did Spiral soar high! The old Spiral was already great, but the new one definitely blew all competition out of the water!

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