Recalling childhood in Amici and Fr. Colombo

Posted by Jayvee Fernandez at August 21st, 2009

When I was little, part of my routine with dad would be to accompany him to the office. Going to office with dad was considered the highlight of the week. This was mainly because dad’s office always had the most advanced computers. When he was working in Makati, he had one of the first IBM XT computers that could boot up Load Runner and Dig Dug. When he was with PCSO, we had a machine that could run Civilization, Police Quest III and Flashback without lag.

Ah those were the days. My childhood was definitely highlighted by geeky insertions, but of all the offices that my dad held, one comes to mind — the one in Makati near AIM, for the sole reason that he’d walk me to Don Bosco to meet the friars, not to go to confession, but to indulge in perhaps the best ice cream (later on I found out it was called gelato) I’ve ever had in their little restaurant, Amici.

Amici because a staple meeting place for my dad’s barkada. It served as a waypoint to such an extent that if he was “lost,” he was most probably found in Amici. And there was good reason for this — my dad knew the friars including Fr. Colombo himself, and the staff of cooks and waiters who have been there for ages. They’d always send in extra heaps of pasta for my dad’s friends, and would overflow my little paper cup with gelato — so much ice cream that tested the physics of mass and density if I had only asked. His group composed mostly of high school friends and members of the Defensores Fidei foundation that teaches Catholic apologetics, of maybe some of you are familiar. Nonetheless, Amici was forever forged in my childhood as the most affordable best-kept-secret since the 80′s.

It was only recently — in industry terms that Amici grew in popularity. You see, since it was run by the friars, it was what you could barely call a business. I assume they were at least breaking even, but the store hours were odd as they only opened for lunch, closed for “siesta” and then opened again for about another hour in the afternoon before closing right before dinner.

When I started working, Amici had grown into a full restaurant, serving both Filipino and Italian dishes and thank heavens, had more decent store hours like any regular restaurant. I saw Fr. Colombo less, but one time after accidentally parking the car in a wrong spot, my post-dinner walk back was affronted by a huge pice of paper stuck on my wiper saying “Next time look at the sign or else I’ll punch out your tires!!” Let’s just say that if anyone of you met Fr. Colombo, well … there. You’d know.

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I rarely go up north, past Makati. So one time, when I had to meet the fine people behind Virtuoso to discuss the blog awards and to pick up the Sony Marine Pack for review, they took me to a relatively new restaurant called Cara Mia. I didn’t know it was part of the Amici group up until I saw the menu offering and the familiar gelateria bar which served, the classic items they had (i.e. Ferrero gelato!) plus cakes, which previously were not available.

I had heard of the Amici franchise being bought and scaled up into a real chain of restaurants. I guess that’s how things really are these days, and the “oldies” like me were of course a bit skeptical on the quality of the “authentic” Italian feel. No longer could Fr. Colombo sprinkle an excess amount of bacon and Italian ham on top of your pizza if he liked you. No more extra scoops. But business is business and what they’ve done to Amici, I must honestly say, is not bad, not bad at all.

Sure the food tastes slightly different. And yes the prices are a bit higher, but there are a few classic elements that were retained (i.e. how soft drinks were sold by the liter to share, big tables since they assume you’re never dining alone, no WiFi to “inspire conversation”). In essence it is still the same restaurant.

“Cara Mia” is apparently the gelateria line, but they serve the same food despite the different name, so I really don’t know what the difference is. Maybe it’s for tax purposes. Heh.

Parting with the old Amici is bittersweet. I mean, the name is still there. The food may taste a little different (it’s still good, by the way), but you can no longer look back into the kitchen window to see a familiar fat friar mixing a big vat of pasta sauce, adding that extra fistful of Italian ham when he knows you’ve arrived.

Unboxing Lachi’s Sans Rival from Davao City (PHP 285)

Posted by Jayvee Fernandez at March 22nd, 2009

I’m no food reviewer, but it doesn’t take an expert to know if something’s good — like REALLY GOOD. I recently came from a Davao Food Tour organized by good friends from the Mindanao blogging contingent. I hand carried one whole Sans Rival from a nice little place called Lachi’s. Some of the foodies who went coined Lachi’s as the “Conti’s of Davao.” That’s actually very close to the truth, in my humble opinion as someone who is barely exposed to the rudiments of gastronomy.
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Twenty One Plates by Tinette Villanueva-Miciano

Posted by Jayvee Fernandez at March 2nd, 2009

Editor’s Note: Oh no, I’m being sucked in further into writing about gastronomy … O tempora! O mores!

Tinette Villanueva (now Miciano) was a former professor from college, and like most teacher-student relationships in UA&P, we (students + young faculty) all pretty much became a close knit group outside of class. Add the fact that Tinette was moderator for the theater org — AND it was also known fact that she cooked very well. She used to bring batches of her sun dried tomato pasta to our strat plan meetings — and now the updated version of her recipe is in the menu of her newly opened restaurant, Twenty One Plates.
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Nitrogen Ice Cream at Zenses

Posted by Jayvee Fernandez at January 27th, 2009

So so geeky! Thus, this restaurant deserves a post. There’s also a Plurk thread discussing reactions.

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So Anton Diaz asked me out on a date. Don’t worry — it wasn’t a HOT date. It was actually pretty cold. More than 100 degrees below zero cold.

We were both a little early for a meeting so after editing my last slide, Anton huddled me down to the next door restaurant – Zenses Neo Shanghai Cuisine. It really didn’t strike my eye at first as a place that had great ice cream and drinks. But Anton is pretty good at sniffing these places out, so I tagged along for some nitrogen powered ice cream.

Chef OJ is an applied physics major who really dresses for the occasion. I just had to take photos and write this down for everyone else to try. The place has been open since October 2008. If you want to know the details of our Osmanthus Ice Cream (P480.00 for two orders) and the Zenses Sweater (P240.00) which Anton ordered, check out his detailed review.

As for me, I just wanted to shoot! Check these out:
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Believe it or not: BEER Ice Cream from Elfav (!!!)

Posted by Jayvee Fernandez at January 26th, 2009

At 3% alcohol, the P60.00 per scoop ice cream is the only one of its kind that comes with a warning label: 18 years and above only.

I wrote about Elfav a couple of days ago, being happy that we finally have a decent malt shop in the south. Elfav is short for El Favorito, that brand of ice cream that Filipinos may be familiar with – especially to suppliers. Have you ever tried the ice cream sandwiches from Brother’s Burger? Well, the ice cream between the cookies is El Favorito. So today, we got to indulge in a few scoops of ice cream, P99.00 T Bone steak and eggplant lasagna.

So how does it taste, Jayvee?? Well … ummm … It tastes like lager beer. 3% alcohol. The concept of ice cream with alcohol isn’t alien as we have the liquor based flavors like Bailey’s for instance. But beer? Wow.

Definitely not something I’d order on a regular basis – but yeah, it does taste good. Imagine a bottle of beer chilled with the Beer Below Zero technology – and freeze that moment (pun intended!). That’s exactly what the ice cream tastes like.

So I had to ask – yes they can manufacture a batch of this for your private parties. You need to tell them a week in advance.

Elfav serves Yakult Ice Cream

Posted by Jayvee Fernandez at January 8th, 2009

Addition: Just found out from the owner that “Elfav” is the flagship store of the El Favorito brand of local ice cream. Apart from Yakult, they also have Wasabi, Turrones, Fruit Cake (!!!) flavored ice cream.

One of the reasons why I’m not a food blogger in the professional sense is because I retreat to myself in restaurants. I’m too timid to ask if I can take photos, peeping at the store manager or owner whilst I open my camera bag with a muffled zzzzip.

So whenever I do fancy talking about food, it’s really just because I find what’s offered rather compelling, it’s a meme by itself. That happened with the Baconator and now it’s happening with Elfav’s Yakult Ice Cream — well it’s more of a sherbet that ice cream, but what the hell.

The idea of a Yakult flavored ice cream is perhaps more enthralling than the photo above. The thought of your ice cream with a lot of swimming Lactobacilli (together kids … the Lactobacilli Shirota Strain!!!) may sound weird, but isn’t that what yogurt is as well?

Elfav’s store took this long to open. The sign’s been up since October of last year and now that they’re finally open, I’m glad to have a decent ice cream parlor cum diner two minutes away from home. Elfav makes their own iced cream, so although they have traditional and eccentric flavors (Coffee, Cheese, Ube, Bailey’s), you’ve never tasted their concoctions before in any other ice cream parlor. The trip’s worth it.

For P99.00 I went all out and had lunch. That’s what I got above – a really delish deboned T Bone steak and a serving of ice cream in a shot glass (note that a regular order of ice cream comes in a bigger bowl – the one pictured in the first photo is the “free” version).

Scoops vary from P40.00 to P60.00 depending on the flavor. A proprietary blend of iced tea is also available for P25.00.

And apparently, Elfav wants to keep customers in so the place is littered with board games such as Chess, Scrabble and Dominos. So if you’re from the south, you know where it is – the top floor of Pergola Mall right above Kopi Roti. They close at 9 PM.

Pardon the weird angles of the store shots. I told you, I’m shy to ask!

The Spin: Wendy’s Baconator in 3 Philippine Magazines

Posted by Jayvee Fernandez at December 22nd, 2008

This isn’t a blog about food, so when I do talk about food I approach it from a different angle. Here are some samplings of how Wendy’s latest offering – the Baconator appeals to different niches. The photos below are magazine ad pegs for three different publications: T3, Men’s Health and FHM.

Notice how the ad is essentially the same except for the take away quote on top of each Baconator. Sometimes, it isn’t about the product but with how the product can be spun into the content making it more relevant and less disconnected from the reader.

So have you tried it? It’s a killer!

New San Miguel Premium Beer: It’s good!

Posted by Jayvee Fernandez at August 28th, 2008

Monday night had me and Phoebe at Manong’s for her 25th birthday countdown. Perhaps the highlight of the evening was our discovery of San Miguel’s new Premium beer for domestic shipment only. Well, I myself am not a connoisseur of beer so all I have to say is that, it’s good! Goes down easy and leaves a slightly nutty taste afterward. At Manong’s this cost P50.00 so it shouldn’t be too expensive as well in regular bars. We tried ordering the same yesterday at Murphy’s in VA Rufino, Makati but it was sadly sold out. The bottle is green, with white “Premium label” wrapping on the neck and the body.

Have you tried SMB’s new beer offering? Do you like the new bottle? Do you like the taste?

Kopi Roti BF Homes Pergola is OPEN FOR BUSINESS!

Posted by Jayvee Fernandez at August 3rd, 2008

Yay! They’re finally open! Sonny Young, Mike and Ven opened Kopi Roti this 08.08.08. I was not able to attend the store opening and blessing but I was able to grab a freebie yesterday (I was the hamster guinea pig for their very first batch of buns during their dry run). I dropped by today and the place was packed at around 10 AM. I ordered take out for myself and buns for Phoebe as well. Also got to see Nicky Mapa from my Southridge ’98 batch.

I love Kopi Roti. Not only is the coffee, iced tea and food really good, they are also very affordable.

As of today, the store is still running on generator but the official opening hours will be from 7 AM to 1 AM and they will try to be open till 2 AM on weekends.

This is Sonny’s invitation letter:

Dear Family & Friends,

Finally, our Kopiroti branch in BF Homes, Sucat is opening! Months of planning and preparation have been poured into this project – and we really hope that you would drop by and patronize our store (and help spread the word!) in the coming days. We are soft-opening on 08.08.08 (for good fortune), and will be open daily from 9am to 9pm. We are still running on generator power for the next 3 weeks and aircon will not yet be available – but we promise on the great food/drinks!!!

We will hold a simple blessing on 08.08.08 at 9am. Please drop by and tell your friends!

Kopi Roti Pergola
Unit 104 A Ground Floor, The Pergola Lifestyle Mall Aguirre Ave,
BF Homes, Paranaque City
Store Hours 7AM to 1AM

Coffee Bean’s African Sunrise tea offering and the Wisdom of Crowds

Posted by Jayvee Fernandez at July 19th, 2008

Have you ever wondered how the “hive mind” works? Science fiction writers have brought forth the concept of a certain intelligence that exist within crowds into such forms as The Borg from Star Trek, The Zerg from Starcraft, and The Reavers from Mass Effect.

You’ve probably come across the concept of public opinion, viral marketing, or really, the jist of an “overall consensus.” There is a certain wisdom that’s inherent in large groups. Given that certain conditions of diversity are met (read here for those conditions) the crowd can be more intelligent than the few geniuses. In other words, Wikipedia can actually be more authoritative and efficient compared to the Encyclopedia Brittanica.

So when we take that concept of popular opinion (in Latin the phrase is Vox Populi, vox Dei – the Voice of the People is the Voice of God) and apply it on a micro level one example could be Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf’s African Sunrise and how the tribe has spoken, wanting this product to be retained as a permanent offering in CBTL’s menu. Members of the Internet community, mainstream media and friends of CBTL were offered African Sunrise tea several weeks ago and the feedback on its taste (“it’s sweet and creamy without cream and sugar”) is pushing their management to make this a permanent offering.

So a small informal event was launched for tea lovers to announce the coming of the African Sunrise, being pushed as a regular product offering due to the wisdom of a sampling of consumers.

And thus ends my pathetic attempt at linking media events with a social phenomenon. LOL.

Kopi Roti Pergola, BF Homes has a blog!

Posted by Jayvee Fernandez at July 6th, 2008

Editor’s Note: Kopi Roti BF Homes is now open! You can proceed here for more details and photos.

Many reasons why I’m plugging this:

1. Kopi Roti is an excellent brand. Anybody who knows good coffee (and BREAD!!) knows Kopi Roti! And now finally, us folks from the south need not go up north to savor Kopi Roti. Their complete address is:

Unit 104 A Ground Floor,
The Pergola Lifestyle Mall Aguirre Ave,
BF Homes, Paranaque City

This is in the new promenade mall across BPI, right beside Jollibee BF and the Ruins Night Market.

2. This particular franchise is operated by my high school batchmate from PAREF Southridge ’98 (Sonny, pa-libre naman dyan!).

3. They have a blog. And this blog is rather specific to the franchise in the south. The anticipation is building as they plan to open this July. Sonny and Mike sure know how to market this thing. The anticipation begins with photos of the store under construction.

Finally construction of our Kopi Roti store started last June 26. We are estimating the construction to last only 20 days long. Our neighbor tenants in the Ground Floor Sarabia Optical, Simply Bread, Baker’s Depot, and Figaro are nearing completion in their construction and will open mid to late July. We will be opening shop before the month of July ends

Photo c/o www.kopirotisouth.blogspot.com