Beverages – Kain Pinoy

Fresh Favorites At Max's

Max’s enlightens customers through their sense of taste by offering new, delicious, vibrant and freshly prepared dishes in addition to its all time favorite “Sarap-to-the-Bones” fried chicken. Over the years, Max’s only uses the freshest and highest quality ingredients and has been continuously developing more appetizing, palatial but affordable cuisine.

Gambas in Aligue Sauce

The best innovative finds at Max’s Restaurant are the four dish combinations derived from ordinary homegrown non-meaty recipes evident in every Filipino dining table. The mongo and tinapa being both a common Filipino household viand gives a twist to a new dining experience with Max’s Mongo with Crisp Tinapa Dumplings topped with fresh sliced tomatoes.

Monggo with Crispy Tinapa Dumplings

The Pinaputok na Tiyan ng Bangus rooted from the country’s national fish symbol is a fresh bangus belly grilled in banana leaves. Opening the fish will truly burst surprises into you with its stuffed chopped tomatoes, onions, garlic and garnished with fresh tomato salsa.

Pinaputok na Tiyan ng Bangus

The Camaron Rebosado, is a succulent crispy shrimp finely cooked with mixture of fresh ingredients and dipped in sweet and sour sauce.

Camaron Rebusado

Tofu, an adaptable food that is usually fried, baked, mashed, marinated, barbecued, and frozen is enhanced into a scalding plate of Sizzling Tofu glazed with a special sauce and topped with chilis that will satisfy true food connoisseurs.

Sizzling Tofu

Max’s continues to provide exciting dining experiences to the Filipino food enthusiasts with its aperitive and newly innovated main dishes and appetizers – Crisp Tinapa Dumplings and Gambas in Aligue Sauce, a dish where you can savor the taste of luscious shrimp spiced up with garlic and served with soft bread on the side for you to dip in to the flavorful chili sauce.

Crispy Tinapa Dumplings

All these latest food attractions complement their legendary “Sarap-to-the-Bones” fried chicken that will certainly make Max’s not only a brand, but also a cuisine that suits the Filipino palate.

Max’s also introduces the Coco Pineapple Shake, a cool sweet-flavored mix of natural coconut and fresh pineapple- – a truly perfect blend to make your summer delightfully refreshing.

Start getting into a fresh habit, dine-in at any Max’s Restaurant near you or dial Max’s Metro Manila delivery hotline.

Max’s Restaurant
hotline: 7-9000
website: http://www.maxschicken.com

Nescafe Iced Coffee

I’m not really much of a coffee drinker, I have to admit. Despite working nights, I’ve actually grown accustomed to staying up all night without needing to drink coffee to keep me awake and functional. However, I like trying new things and when I see something new, I have to try it!

While grocery shopping with my family, I wandered over to the chiller to pick up some cheeses and see what else is available. Nestled with the Yakult and yogurts was these small bottles of Nescafe Iced Coffee.

Just a tad bigger than the Yakult bottle, the Nescafe Iced Coffee comes in three variants: Original, Sweet & Creamy and Ginseng. Not a fan of ginseng, I picked up a bottle of Original blend, and two bottles of Sweet & Creamy. At Php 10, it’s cheap enough to buy a couple for taste testing. Apparently, it’s a pretty good buy as well. The Sweet and Creamy variant was exactly as it was labled: very creamy and not overly sweet (to me at least). The Original was good too. I was expecting it to be black, but it was already sweetened and had cream, though not as sweet and as creamy as the other variant.

So if you find yourself in need of a caffeine fix, but don’t have the budget for a pricey cup, head on to the nearest covenience store or grocery and pick up a couple of bottles of Nestle Iced Coffee.

The Freshest Picks At PICK Manila

Two weekends ago, I was invited to this weekend market out in Manila. I love going to the market, especially weekend markets because of the wide selection of products available. There’s cooked food, fresh meat and fish, poultry, produce, clothes, home ware, even pets on sale.

At the back of SM San Lazaro in Manila is Celadon Manila, a leisurely residential community by ALVEO Land Corp. Every Sunday for the month of September, Celadon Manila plays host to PICK Manila– the first lifestyle weekend market in city.

If you are a foodie like myself, you’ll be able to go on a food trip with the big mix of culinary delights they have to offer– form Filipino staples like embotido, relleno, aligue (crab fat)–which I had to stay away from (a bit hard, but I managed)- leche flan and other native delicacies to international fare like Japan’s sushi and Italian sodas.

They even sell organic products like organically-grown brown rice and herbs. Gourmet items, foreign and local, like honey and coffee are also sold by some stalls. Fresh fruits and baked products like breads and cakes are also available.

For the fashionistas and home make-over lovers, PICK Manila also offers a showcase of some of the most novel and exciting finds. Shoes, bags, tops and fashion jewelery for the stylish urbanite and intricate home decor made of glass, wood, and fabric inspired by different cultures for the interior-savvy. I spotted a little wooden decoupaged case and a nice big lamp, both of which were just screaming for me to take them home.

Though I wasn’t able to take home the box and lamp, I did manage to snag myself a bag of Kalinga coffee which everyone has been raving about. I also bought some fruit and baked goods.

If you’re not doing anything tomorrow, why not check out PICK Manila. Head on over to Celadon Manila and experience it yourself.

PICK Manila is open on Sundays from 7AM to 2PM.

CeladonManila is a development by ALVEO Land Corp. Please visit: www.celadonmanila.com.ph for more information.

* Promotional photographs were provided by the concessionaires through ALVEO Land Corp.

The dawning of the African Sunrise

We’ve had a sip of the African Sunrise back in April. Since then, we’ve all been eagerly waiting for June, the approximate date when the African Sunrise Tea will be available in Manila. June passed and July set in, and still no new teas were being offered at Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf. Then finally, that invite to get a sneak preview of the tea we’ve all been waiting for.

Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf African Sunrise Tea leaves

The African Sunrise tea they had us try before was the simple brewed tea — no sugar, no milk. This time, we were able to try the Brewed, Iced and the Latte version of the African Sunrise. First, the brewed. As soon as the cups was set down on the table, the tantilizing aroma of the tea wafted up to our noses. Right then and there, we knew it was a definite winner, even without tasting. The African Sunrise Brewed Tea is a heady mix of African honeybush, orange peel, and mallow flowers — each with its own unique flavor and scent that blends perfectly together.

Next came the Iced Tea variant. Unlike the hot brewed tea, the Iced Tea had added sugar, to cater to the Filipino taste. One sip and I’ve forgotten all the other Iced Teas I’ve tried before. The African Sunrise Iced tea was refreshing, and would be the beverage of choice, after a long walk out in the sun. The hot nor the iced tea prepared me for the African Sunrise Tea Latte, though. I’m not much of a latte drinker, but this variant made me a convert. Mixed with Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf’s signature Vanilla powder, the African Sunrise is transformed once again into a great coffee alternative. The vanilla further enhances the tea’s natural flavor, while infusing its own distinct taste.

Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf African Sunrise Tea and Honey Bran Muffin

Each beverage was paired with Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf’s yummy food offerings. The brewed tea was paired with Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf’s Chicago Cheesecake, the iced tea with the Chef’s Tuna Sandwich, and the tea latte with the Honey Bran Muffin. Each pairing was a perfect match, and further affirms my belief that CBTL has the best coffee shop food.

Mark your calendars: the African Sunrise will hit the stores on Monday, July 28th. Which variant will you order?

What the other bloggers are saying about African Sunrise:
Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf’s African Sunrise Tea
Coffee Bean’s African Sunrise tea offering and the Wisdom of Crowds
African Sunrise Tea from The Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf on July 28
July 28. The Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf African Sunrise. MMMMM.
African Sunrise soon in Manila
Travel and Tourism News

Cupping at Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf

Let’s start off with a little trivia I learned at the event: Tea is the 2nd most consumed beverage, next to water, world wide. And here I thought it was beer!

Moving on.

Cupping is the term used for what a tea taster does as he evaluates the tea. And at the Tea Appreciation Seminar, we got to sample some of Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf’s house blends.

Tea! I think this is the African Sunrise

Trying out Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf’s bestsellers

The first tea that was served was the Genmaicha Tea, which is a blend of high-quality Sencha tea and partially toasted rice. I got a whiff of the aroma before I took a sip, and it did smell faintly of toasted rice. As I sipped the tea, I noticed how light the tea tasted, and how the flavor of the toasted rice gave it a wonderful finish.

Next to be served was the Fancy Formosa Dragon Oolong which is a medium bodied tea, with a subtle floral aroma and a flavored with a hint of peach. Now this is an instant favorite of mine, simply because it is peach-flavored. I love anything peach-flavored!

A light-bodied tea, the Apricot Ceylon was the third to be served. I liked this one as well because of its fruity flavor and aroma, which is think is a bit stronger than the Fancy Formosa Dragon Oolong. (Even though it is lighter.)

CBTL Pyramid Tea Bag

If you want spice, then the Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf’s Chai is the tea for you. This full-bodied tea is a special blend of Black Tea, cinnamon, cloves and other spices. These give an exotic aroma and spicy taste to this flavorful tea.

Saving the best for last, our host introduced us to the latest addition to The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf’s roster of house blends– the African Sunrise. This definitely takes the cake–or should i say “tea”?-! A Coffee Bean original blend, it has a very smooth body, complimented with a wonderful flavor and aroma. This is definitely the best tasting tea I had ever had! It has never been released anywhere in the world, and will be first sampled here in the Philippines this June.