My Kushikatsu Daruma Experience (August 24, 2017)

NOOOO DOUBLEEEEE DIPPINGGGGGGG!!!!! 

If the tissues, wall signages, menu reminders and all that still don't get to you, then wewwww!!! 

The "No Double Dipping" rule is enforced in Kushikatsu Daruma as it's a Japanese chain. In Japan, wherein shared seating is not unusual, sitting with strangers can and will happen. Traditionally, to prevent waste, Kushikatsu Daruma serves one big tub of sauce per table instead of 1 tub of sauce for each diner. One needs quite a big tub of sauce to be able to properly dip and coat the Kushikatsu, so serving one tub per diner is gonna be wasteful. Since there's just 1 tub per table, and in Japan, strangers could get seated together, which is why there is the practice of no double dipping. In Manila, there is no sharing of tables as far as I know, but this is a tradition that the Manila branch wishes to uphold. 

And now, what actually is Kushikatsu? 

Kushikatsu refers to delectable fried foods on sticks. It sounds so simple in theory, but the management of Kushikatsu Daruma had to send their chefs to Japan for a month to make sure they get the technique perfectly! Frying food seems so basic to us non-Japanese people, but to Japanese people, there is a lot of dynamics to frying. Japanese cooking will consider the batter, type of food being fried, type of fryer, and the things together in a fryer at a given time. Adding a new item to the fryer makes the oil a little bit cooler, so in Japanese philosophy, you'll need to know how to readjust the cooking time of all the other things in the oil with respect to the temperature change. AND I am perfectly sure there is still a much, much longer list of complexities I'll never know of hahahaha 

Food News: Happy Hour at Kushikatsu Daruma

You still can’t double dip your Kushikatsu skewers, the perfect beer chow, but you can now double down on your Chu Hais, our Japanese mixed drinks, while also enjoying a price drop for local beers at Kushikatsu Daruma.

From Mondays through Fridays at 4PM to 9PM, you, your friends, and your workmates can drop by our Uptown Mall restaurant to avail of our Buy 1 Take 1 happy hour promo as you dig into our world-famous Kushikatsu skewers.

San Miguel Light or San Miguel Pale Pilsen beers will cost you just P50 (from P65), while two Chu Hais will only set you back P280! Choose from favorites like Lychee, Kiwi, or Mango Blackberry.

See you soon and kanpai!

Enjoy Happy Hour at Kushikatsu Daruma at Uptown Place Mall (2^nd floor), 36th Street Corner 9th Ave., Bonifacio Global City, Taguig City

Life News: CANON GEARS UP AMATEUR PHOTOGRAPHERS IN NEW SEASON OF HISTORY CHANNEL’S PHOTO FACE-OFF

Manila, Philippines – The new season of Southeast Asia’s first and top photography reality competition series Photo Face-off, is set to feature amateur photographers across the region equipped with Canon cameras and printers to deliver stunning and compelling images that capture the “lens-cape” of pop culture taken under pressure. A HISTORY® Asia original production and presented by Canon PhotoMarathon, Photo Face-off Season Four premiers on August 24, 9 pm on HISTORY®.

“In this day and age of compact cameras, camera-equipped smartphones, and instant photo-sharing behavior, it has become easy for anyone to easily take a nice picture, share it with the world, and be instantly recognized as a “photographer”. However, seasoned photographers know that it takes more than that to be really good in the art and craft of photography. Along with eye and talent, a good and fully-equipped camera helps capture a powerful subject that becomes even more interesting when printed with a printer that’s specifically built to bring out the beauty of images,” said Benny Yu, Consumer Group Director of Canon Marketing Philippines, Inc. “This is why Canon has partnered with the HISTORY® Asia, to ensure that the contestants have the right gear to up their game and deliver the best and compelling images they can take even if they are just starting out in photography. They have access to our point-and-shoot range, mirrorless cameras, EOS professional line, and even our specialty photo printers to help them all the way.”

The newly expanded six-part, 1-hour format program will follow the photography adventures of its largest crop of 23 contestants from eight territories who will overcome exhilarating challenges to capture stunning photo stories of popular, socially-trending and culturally-relevant subjects and interests of today.

The fourth successive season of Photo Face-off welcomes back Justin Mott, the resident chief judge and award-winning professional photographer that everyone loves to beat. With over 100 assignments for the New York Times and work featured on the BBC, the reputable photography authority also includes TIME, Forbes, The Wall Street Journal, and The Guardian among his clients. Over and above Justin’s massive internationally renowned photography portfolio, he also runs a studio in Vietnam specializing in commercial photography and video production.

Vibrant, fun and talented Singapore-based Kelly Latimer also returns to host the HISTORY Asia original fan favorite series, just months after welcoming her newborn. She is a popular personality who has hosted a range of programs from motorsports, football, gaming to current affairs.

The first five one-hour episodes of Photo Face-off Season 4 will sweep across Singapore, Malaysia, Philippines, Indonesia, and Vietnam. In each of their respective home countries, four local amateurs compete against each other for the single country representative spot in the season’s grand finale.

Among the challenges that the contestants will have to go through include:

1.     thinking quickly on their feet in the “speed” challenges like shooting a bowl of shaved ice dessert before it melts under the hot noon sun;

2.     delivering on a client’s creative brief in “themed” challenges such as getting action shots for an all-terrain vehicle (ATV) ride while going on the bumpy journey themselves;

3.     going head-to-head on the “final face-off” for the two remaining contestants to determine who wins a ticket to Chiang Rai, Thailand for the finale. In this part, Mott also competes against them, and if he is outdone, the winner bags an additional cash prize and bragging rights for beating the award-winning professional;

4.     bracing themselves as wild cards jostle for an additional spot in the finals to join the competition.

The photography adventure will unfold against the backdrop of some surprising and colorful locales such as quaint Malacca in Malaysia, historical Intramuros in the Philippines, and idyllic Bintan in Indonesia – in addition to the bright lights, hustle and bustle of the capital cities.

Prizes at stake include a Canon DSLR, an all-expense-paid trip to participate in the esteemed Canon PhotoMarathon Asia Championship, as well as cash prizes. Together with Justin, local expert guest judges from each territory will judge the works of contestants.

Viewers can also pick up a fresh array of practical photography advice and handy tips from the judges that they can put into everyday use from Photo Face-off.

Food News: Get Ready for a Different Pinoy Gastronomic Experience at the UFS Funlasang Pinoy Twist Fest!

Manila, Philippines – The thriving food scene in the Philippines has been aggressively growing with different food innovations popping out left and right. With this, Filipinos’ love for food continues to grow, too, together with their developing taste palates and knowledge about different cuisines. Unilever Food Solutions (UFS) Philippines—the maker of Knorr and Lady’s Choice—challenges Filipino chefs and cooks to innovate classic Filipino dishes with fun twists that will surely reignite the appetite of Pinoy diners for their local staples. The culinary showdown happens at the first-ever Funlasang Pinoy Twist Fest on August 26 at Eastwood Central Plaza!

“We have been very excited about this one-of-a-kind culinary competition, which we launched just May of this year. We’ve put this together to create an avenue for our Filipino chefs and cooks across the country to showcase their culinary ingenuity in making Filipino dishes a scene stealer in the dining scene,” said James Benedict Carreon, UFS Philippines Managing Director. “As soon as we saw the entries, we knew that there’s a lot of potential on those dishes and we can’t wait to share them with the Filipino diners and make them excited about their favorite Pinoy dishes like they’ve never felt before.”

After a rigorous selection of more than 160 entries, only ten Filipino chefs and cooks will battle it out at the grand culinary showdown that will start at noon on August 26, 2017 at the Eastwood Central Plaza. Filipino diners can witness firsthand how the finalist chefs unleash their creativity as they create their own take on the beloved and classic Filipino dishes such as sisig, caldereta, pansit, sinigang and tapa using Knorr® products and Lady’s Choice® Real Mayonnaise.

The chefs’ creations will be judged according to the following criteria: creativity of the twist, food presentation, and the use of Unilever Food Solutions products included in the competition. The first-ever Funlasang Pinoy Twist Fest champion will be taking home P100,000 cash prize, exclusive publicity features, and will have his recipe featured in the official Funlasang Pinoy Cookbook.

Aside from witnessing chefs in action, Filipinos from different walks of life and appetite are in for a gastronomic treat as the Funlasang Pinoy Twist Fest becomes a venue for everyone to try different Pinoy dishes that will surely ignite their passion for the Philippine cuisine.

Great tasting food, exciting promos, and special surprises await! Don’t miss out on this one of a kind culinary competition, and a chance to get your stomachs full this August 26.

To know more about UFS and Funlasang Pinoy, visit www.ufs.com.