Forever 21 Weekend Sale

Girl friends unite and head over to Forever 21 SM Makati to get first dibs on their 3-day sale from August 19 to 21.

Aside from huge discounts, F21 has special deals for early birds, BDO credit card holders and Forever 21 Mastercard holders.

On Friday, August 19, from 10 am to 12 noon, take advantage of 10% discount on regular priced items when you present your SM Advantage, BDO Rewards or SM Prestige cards at the cashier. Get 20% discount on regular items if you use your SM Advantage, BDO Rewards or SM Prestige cards together with your Forever 21 Mastercard with a minimum transaction of P5,000, net of discounts.

For those who won't make it early on Friday, you can still avail of 10% discount on regular priced items until Sunday, August 21, when you use your Forever 21 Mastercard with a minimum transaction of P5,000, net of discounts. Those who will use their BDO credit card will get 5% rebate for their purchases.

Want to get your hands on the merchandises real early? Forever 21 Mastercard holders can get inside the store as early as 8:30 am. Just present the credit card together with a valid ID. Sorry but only one person per card will be allowed.

Ain't this weekend fabulous?

Check out F21's sneak preview album of the items for the 3-day sale on Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/forever21ph)

Seussical Equals Magical

If there is one childhood memory that I still vividly remember, it is that of reading books of Dr. Seuss, the Cat in the Hat, as early as kindergarten. Maybe its because of the red and white striped top hat or the whimsical creatures in the stories that got my attention early on.

I have been waiting for Repertory Philippines' staging of Seussical when I learned about it as early as last year and after watching the press preview a few weeks ago and the full production this morning, I can say that the long wait is so worth it. Because Seussical is under Repertory Philippines' Children's Theater, the shows are done in the morning and early afternoon -- my ticket was for the first show this morning at 10:30 so I had to wake up earlier than my normal weekend wake-up call and for the love of theater and Repertory Philippines, I made it on time (for the show proper but missed the press call before that so am using photos I took during the press preview).

Opening scene with Cat in the Hat and Jojo

From the first scene where the Cat in the Hat magically appeared, I was instantly glued, watching everything on stage intently, my eyes only removed from the play every time the young girl beside me would hit me with her elbow whenever she moves to fix her ponytail. I was transported into dreamland, witnessing the story of a young boy's wild imagination which led to the creation of a place called Jungle of Nool, the Circus McGurkus and the invisible world of the Whos, and the colorful characters that live there.

Oh, The Thinks You Can Think!

Seussical is an amazing musical extravaganza! Tony winners Lynn Ahrens and Stephen Flaherty ("Ragtime," "Once On This Island") have magically brought to life all of our favorite Dr. Seuss characters, among them being the Cat in the Hat, Horton the Elephant, Gertrude McFuzz, Mayzie La Bird and Jojo, the little boy with a big imagination.

Arnel Carrion as Cat in the Hat

Repertory's Associate Artistic Director, Ms. Menchu Lauchengco-Yulo, shared that since Seussical will run from August to December each actor had to master and play 2-3 characters each so that in the eventuality that one cast member is not available on any day, another one can stand-in. Kudos to the great talents for such hard work, dedication and love for theater, I can just imagine how confusing juggling roles can sometimes be. And because they have a long list of cast members per character, am just going to mention the notable roles and the actors who played them today:

Cat in the Hat - Arnel Carrion

Jojo - Noah Ramos

Horton the Elephant - Oliver Usison

Sour Kangaroo - Bituin Escalante

Gertrude McFuzz - Charity Grace Walthrop

Mayzie La Bird - Liesl Batucan

Bird Girls - Cara Barredo, Ayam Barredo & Janine Tolentino

Wickersham Brothers - Rem Zamora, Hans Eckstein & Gabs Santos

Bituin Escalante (right) as Sour Kangaroo

Everyone gave a performance worth the loud applause of the audience but most excellent were Bituin Escalante's belting Sour Kangaroo (she also did a great job as a ventriloquist for the baby kangaroo on her pouch), Charity Grace Walthrop's lovable antics and facial expressions as Gertrude and Liesl Batucan's energetic Mayzie.

Horton Hears a Who

Ms. Joy Virata, artistic & stage director/executive producer of Rep's Children's Theatre wanted to make the visual extra special for the song Solla Sollew, where instead of flashing pictures of beautiful spots on a screen during the song, a slide show of children's drawings of their own concept of a beautiful spot full of love, peace and joy will be displayed. She espoused the idea in the hopes that children today will continue the art of drawing, if not to become professional artists, at least to grow up having an appreciation for the visual arts.

Amayzing Mayzie (that's how 'amazing' was spelled)

Joining Ms. Virata and Ms. Yulo in Seussical's artistic team are: Baby Barredo, artistic director; Rem Zamora, assistant director; Edna Vida-Froilan, choreographer; John Batalla, lighting designer; Onyl Torres, musical director; Gidget Tolentino, sound engineer; Adul Lasin, scenic artist; Raven Ong, costume supervisor; Ayam Barredo, company manager; Jojo Amboy, stage manager; Ronnie Cruz, assistant stage manager; and Deana Aquino, assistant stage manager/dance captain.

The stage design was inspired by the art of Vincent Van Gogh and was crafted through coordination using various technologies between New York, where set designer Oliver Roxas-Green is currently based, and Manila, where Ms. Virata closely supervised the design implementation.

Seussical cast at the press con

Seussical is showing at Onstage, 2/F Greenbelt 1, Ayala Center, Makati City from August 13 to December 18, 2011. Call (632)571-6926 to inquire about the show's time and ticket prices. For tickets, call (632) 571-6926 or log on to Ticketworld.

Hong Kong Roast: A Taste of Hong Kong on Your Plate

After a tiring work-week, I look forward to weekends for some retail therapy and a good meal of my comfort food. Aside from Pinoy food, my second choice is Chinese food because the dishes are tasty and there is rice and noodles on the menu. Craving for authentic Chinese food usually leads me to Binondo but since it is far from where I live, I end up eating in Chinese restaurants in malls.

It was such a delight to discover that in the heart of San Antonio Village in Makati, just a few blocks from where I live, there's a quaint little restaurant called Hong Kong Roast Food Express that offers "authentic Chinese food," providing a "taste of Hong Kong." I was skeptical at first because when I went to Hong Kong, I was very disappointed with the food that I tried.

Anyway, glancing on their menu, Hong Kong Roast Food Express (HKR) offers roast, rice, noodles, dimsum, bread/sandwich, desserts, coffee, and milk tea. It can also be noted that it boasts of "the best Hong Kong asado." And so we ordered Siomai for starters, BBQ Roast Pork (Asado), Roast Chicken, Black Chicken Sesame, Curry Beef Camto Noodle, Sate Beef Hofan, and to complete a Chinese dinner feast, Yang Chow Fried Rice. For drinks, we tried Milk Tea with Black Pearl while for dessert, we had Coffee Jelly and French Toast.

Since the dishes are cooked as ordered, we were served a trio of appetizers consisting of boiled peanuts, fried dumpling wrappers and pickled green papaya.

The four-piece Siomai order was delicious and was more flavorful than any siomai I have ever tasted. Each piece is packed with fresh ingredients and is not rancid nor soggy. Just be careful about using too much chili garlic on your siomai sauce, HKR's is super hot that just a little goes a long way.

The much anticipated BBQ Roast Pork (Asado) did not disappoint and it even surpassed my expectations. The meat is tender and the bbq flavor is sooo good it is indescribable. No wonder HKR is confident about claiming that it is "the best Hong Kong asado" in town.

The Roast Chicken is well cooked and each piece is evenly flavored. I think I ate three slices of this chicken because I couldn't resist its texture and taste, which is reminiscent of Causeway Bay roast duck.

Sate Beef Hofan was okay, its just that am not a fan of the super thick flat noodles because for me, it diminishes the flavor brought about by the other ingredients. For pancit, am more of a bihon/sotanghon kind of person.

However, I became an instant fan of the Curry Beef Camto Noodle Soup. The noodles are firm, the beef camto so tender it melts in your mouth and the mild kick of curry brought life to an otherwise simple beef noodle soup.

Next was the Black Chicken Sesame and this was my first time to eat one as I've only been hearing about the silk chicken with white feathers and black skin from stories of my colleague and fellow blogger Joyfully Yours, who happens to grow silk chickens in her backyard. Truthfully, the dish was not visually appealing at all, much like burned food on a platter. I braved my first bite and found it weird at first because it had little meat on its bones and it tasted funny. I guess the flavor grows on you in the next few bites. Black chicken cooked into soup is believed by Chinese to give strength to sick people, helping them recover faster. It is also given to mothers in their post-pregnancy stage twice a day to bring them back to health.

The Yang Chow Fried Rice is surprisingly not as oily as I know it to be that I felt less guilty eating a second serving. Can't deny that Yang Chow is my most favorite fried rice of them all.

I was able to meet the owner, Mary Chan, a simple and unassuming lady who has a degree in Hotel & Restaurant Management but she loves to cook and was trained under Chef Gene Gonzales when she was in college. Because of her love for food, she discovered the true recipe for asado, or barbequed pork, which she wanted to focus on for HKR. The recipe for asado is a trade secret and was only known to Chinese chefs who work for Manila's fine dining Chinese restaurants. But Mary felt the need for a restaurant that can give the true Hong Kong dining experience of excellent food, fast and efficient service, and affordable prices and so she she and her chef trained with Hong Kong and Shenzhen chefs to perfect the recipe of the best-selling dishes at HKR.

Hong Kong Roast Food Express, a hole-in-the-wall restaurant that is truly a gem for people like me who seek the best chow possible. Visit them at 7467C Bagtikan Street, San Antonio Village, Makati City for dine-in, take out and delivery. Call them at 553-7846 and 984-7760, find them in Facebook hkroast@yahoo.com or follow them in Twitter hkroast_makati.

Sweet Charity's Sweet Success

I love watching theater productions especially when I have no clue on what the story is about. I just want to sit back, watch with fresh eyes and mind, and go with the flow of the acts with no biases whatsoever. Such is the case when I watched 9Works Theatrical's Sweet Charity on preview night and because I don't want the experience to be pre-empted, I just kept the programme that was given inside my bag.

As the story unfolded, I joined the heroine's journey of trying to find true love in a crazy world. Charity Hope Valentine is a dance hall hostess who have just been dumped by her love interest who ran away with her hard-earned money. She seeked comfort and solace in the company of her friends, who were dancers for hire in the club, but did not close her heart in the hopes of finding her happiness someday. In the process of sorting things out and finding other things to do with her life, she sought out to join a group for some cultural enlightenment. As she made her way up the building where the group meets, she met shy accountant Oscar Lindguist. Unfortunately, the two got stucked in the elevator for hours and with Oscar being a claustrophobic, things got crazy and funny at the same time. I must say, the elevator scene is THE highlight of the play!

Lady in red, Nikki Gil as Charity Hope Valentine

I won't reveal the rest of the story...that's for you to find out soon while Sweet Charity is still being staged. Will just share these tidbits: the show features the popular song Big Spender; and as director Robbie Guevarra shared at the press con, the show includes numbers that have no relation whatsoever to the scenes but they are there as show stoppers, a performance or segment of a theatrical production, popular way back in the 60s and 70s, that induces a positive reaction strong enough to pause (stop) the production (show).

The Fandango Ballroom girls singing Big Spender

Sweet Charity cast is led by mainstream singer/actress Nikki Gil and a singing contest find Kris Lawrence. This is Nikki Gil's second time to do a theater production, the first time being last year's Legally Blonde The Musical, but she was so good with her portrayal of Charity and showed exceptional vitality in her singing and dancing parts. The newbie to the theater scene, Kris Lawrence was a revelation as he tackled the role of Oscar like a pro.

Leads Nikki Gil and Kris Lawrence as Charity and Oscar

Tender scene on a ferris wheel ride

Joining Nikki and Lawrence are Ciara Sotto-Oconer (as Helene), Sheree (as Carmen) and Shiela Valderrama-Martinez (as Nickie) plays Charity's co-dancers and closets friends; stage veteran Miguel Faustmann plays Herman, the authoritarian owner of the Fandango Ballroom and Charity’s boss; OJ Mariano, who was previously in the cast of RENT, plays the dual role of Vittorio Vidal, the charming, egotistical and confident Italian film star Vittorio Vidal; and Daddy Johann Sebastian Brubeck, the mesmerizing leader of the Rhythm of Life Church; and Angela Padilla as Ursala March, the melodramatic actress and Vittorio’s jealous girlfriend.

OJ Mariano as hippie Daddy Brubeck

Joining the ensemble are Caisa Borromeo, who I last saw in Repertory Philippines' Shakespeare in Hollywood; Chinie Nepomuceno; prima dancers Vinia Pamplona and Carmelle Ros as dancehall hostesses opposite Charity, as well as other theater veterans Topper Fabregas, Job Bautista, Francis Matheu, Anthony Tarrosa Ong, Peter Alcedo and Chai Relucio.

The cast of Sweet Charity

Over-all, 9Works Theatrical's staging of Sweet Charity is a sweet success for the world-class performances and great assemblage of talents both on stage and off stage. Working with director Robbie on Sweet Charity are assistant director Lorenz Martinez, musical director for orchestra Joseph Tolentino, musical director for vocals Sweet Plantado, sound designer Chuck Ledesma, scenographer Mio Infante, lighting designer Martin Esteva, and costume designers Mio Infante and Hanna de los Reyes.

Sweet Charity opened last Aug. 5 and will run with performances on all weekends of August at the Carlos P. Romulo Auditorium, RCBC Plaza, Makati. For information, call 557-5860, 586-7105 or 0917-5545560 or email info@9workstheatrical.com.

Solenn Sizzles

Those who don't know or haven't heard of Solenn Heussaff by this day must be living under a rock. The French-Filipina beauty, who is also a talented fashion designer and make-up artist, has graced the covers and fashion editorials of numerous magazines; is seen on TV and billboards for her endorsements; was a reality show contender and now a TV host and budding actress.

Solenn Heussaff did Q&A before singing before the press

A Jill-of-all-traits? Perhaps. Or maybe she just wants to try out all possibilities in life before she settles on one career to make her mark. Or she is able to do all that and more out of sheer talent plus a combination of good luck and hard work. Now she adds another feather to her cap as she releases her debut self-titled album "Solenn."

The debut album

The album encapsulates Solenn -- fun, sassy and sexy. The carrier single "Fire" is a remake of the Bruce Springsteen original which Solenn transforms into a danceable beat, her seductive singing voice making it hotter. She also takes on hits like Sheryl Crow's "All I Wanna Do", Natalie Imbruglia's "Torn" as well as singing her versions of The Other Two's "Selfish", Prince's "Kiss" and Bruno Mars' "It's Our First Time."

"Solenn" CD plus mini-magazine containing her photos

She shared during the press con that she is more of a singer than a musician (although she took up years of classes for piano and saxophone and wanted to learn guitar because it is "sexy") but she tried her hand at song writing via a collaboration with ex-Rivermaya frontman Rico Blanco for "Chemistry", a song they co-wrote. Another original track to watch out for is "Ladies Night" which features Viktoria Vixen. Solenn's debut album under MCA Music is now out in CD's with a mini-mag of her images.

My signed "Solenn" album

Solenn is nervous about performing before a big audience but her love for singing prevails as she will be having her first major concert "Solenn On Stage" on August 19 and 26, 8 pm at Teatrino Promenade, Greenhills. Joining her are special guests Ogie Alcasid, Geoff Taylor and her brother Erwan Heussaff. For ticket inquiries, please call Ticketworld at 8919999, Music Museum at 7210635 or Teatrino at 7216726.

So what are you waiting for? Whether you buy the CD or watch the concert, Solenn -- the person and the CD -- sizzles.

Empanada Nation: Ilocos Treats in the Metro

I've been to provinces in Visayas and Mindanao but I haven't explored much of Luzon just yet and so far, I've only been to Subic, Pampanga, Batangas, Tagaytay, Bicol and Baguio. Been dreaming of visiting Ilocos for the longest time, mostly because I wanted to see the strip of colonial houses in Vigan and the infamous sand dunes of the region, and of course, taste authentic Ilocos food.

My first taste of the Ilocos empanada -- the orange-colored meat pie of the north --was at the WOW Philippines clam shell pavilion in Intramuros that gathered products of every region in the Philippines to showcase to Manila residents and tourists alike. After that experience, the pavilion was closed and so my craving for the Vigan longanisa-filled empanada had to take a back seat until I make that 12-hour or so trip to Ilocos.

Empanada Nation

It's a good thing that my sweet friend Marnie Herrera-Lapus happened to be helping the owners market the one-year old Empanada Nation restaurant and invited me and fellow bloggers for an afternoon of feasting on Empanada Nation's pride: authentic Ilocos food, including yes, the orange-colored empanada.

A long table laiden with various Ilocos fare was prepared for us when we arrived at their Quezon City branch. Of course, one can appreciate and savor the food more with a little bit of story. According to them, during holidays in Ilocos, when you want to find out who are back in town, the Empanadahan is the place to hang out for an authentic Ilocos night life. Students on semestral breaks, Ilocanos working outside Ilocos, and even vacationers never fail to visit the place. They all missed the empanadas while they were away! And maybe this is one of the reasons why three young Ilocano entrepreneurs namely O'Brien Pangan, Venice Marie Velasco and Juan Carlos Gil, the owners of Empanada Nation, invested on the idea of bringing Ilocos products to Manila.

Empanada Nation started small and opened its first take-out counter store along Roces Avenue corner Scout Tuazon in Quezon City last July 10, 2010. After just three months of operation, it added a dine-in area to accommodate the increasing patrons who crave for the Ilocano taste. To reach more market, they opened the second branch in April 10 of this year at Pearl Drive in Ortigas. Their Ilocano food offering included Rice Meals -- King's Meal, the best seller fit for a king, features sliced bagnet, two pieces of longanisa, one red salted egg, unlimited special fried rice and KBL or kamatis, bagoong and lasona (Ilocano term for onions); Bagnet Meal with sliced bagnet, half red salted egg, special fried rice and KBL; Longanisa Meal with three pieces longanisa, half red salted egg, special fried rice and KBL; and Sulit Meal with two pieces longanisa, special fried rice and KBL.

King's Meal

Special Fried Rice with garlic and longanisa bits

For their empanadas, they have the Ordinary or Vegan Empanad which contains just vegetables and one egg; the best seller Special Empanada with one egg, one longanisa and vegetables; Double Special Empanada for the longanisa lovers with two pieces longanisa, one egg and vegetables; and the Double-Double Empanada, a super hearty treat with two pieces longanisa, two eggs and vegetables. Want more flavor and fillings or want less due to diet? You can custom order your empanada while you wait.

Authentic Ilocos Empanada...as you like it!

To mark its first year anniversary, Empanada Nation relocated its original QC branch to a bigger place to serve their customers better. Their new address is 26 Sgt. Esguerra Avenue, Brgy, South Triangle still in QC. And because they wanted to delight their customers even more, they are adding more Ilocano favorites in their menu: Sarabasab, grilled pork belly and liver mixed with tomatoes, onions, and vinegar; Crispy Dinuguan, Ilocano version of dinuguan; Igado, stewed pork entrails; Crispy Bagbagis, crispy intestines similar to chicharon bulaklak; Inabraw, local vegetables cooked with fried or grilled fish and bagoong broth; Pinakbet, local vegetables slow cooked in bagoong with lots of tomatoes; Puqui-Puqui, Ilocano eggplant dish; and Adobong Utong, adobong string beans.

Sarabasab, Ilocos kilawin, tastes much like menudo without the sauce.

Super tasty Igado with red pepper and garbanzos

Ilocos Pinakbet, you bet!

Peculiar-named Ilocano eggplant dish: Puqui-Puqui

Aside from tasting authentic Ilocano dishes, we also learned how empanadas are assembled and cooked from watching the cooks do their work through the glass windows of the kitchen. Here's the step by step photos:

STEP 1: The orange dough is cooked on a deep pot and is constantly stirred until the mixture is smooth and soft.

STEP 2: A piece of circular dough is flattened by a rolling pin to become the thin empanada crust that will hold the fillings.

Step 3: Assembly of the fillings in a round pattern: bean sprouts, longanisa and fresh egg.

STEP 4: The flattened dough with fillings is folded in half and open ends are pressed to secure the contents.

STEP 5: Empanada is then deep fried until crust is crisp.

STEP 6: Cooked empanada is placed on a steel rack to cool and for the excess oil to drip.

STEP 7: Empanada served hot and crisp. Yum! Best eaten with Ilocos vinegar.

Hungry now and craving for this authentic Ilocos empanada? Visit the Empanada Nation branch nearest you -- the Pearl Drive, Pasig branch is open from 9 am to 9 pm from Monday to Saturday while the Sgt. Esguerra, QC branch is open from Monday to Sunday: 10 am to 10 pm from Sunday to Thursday and 10 am to 12 mn on Friday and Saturday.

Rizal Lecture Series

Fresh from watching the gala performance of Tanghalang Pilipino's "Noli Me Tangere The Musical" last Friday, here's another Rizal event that I wanted to share with you.

The Yuchengco Museum continues its popular Rizal Lecture Series, this time looking into the Knights of Rizal and Jose Rizal’s concept of Filipino nationhood. The series began last July as a highlight of RIZALizing the Future, an exhibit on view at the museum until October 29, 2011.

Two Rizal lectures are scheduled this August, both held on Saturday afternoons beginning at 3 p.m. On August 13, Justice Justo Torres, Jr. will talk about The Knights of Rizal: Through the Years, shedding light on the Order of the Knights of Rizal and its objectives and organizational structure. He will also discuss the Order’s recent activities and programs. Justice Torres is the Supreme Commander Emeritus of the Order of the Knights of Rizal, a fraternal organization that honors and upholds the ideals of the National Hero. A retired Associate Justice of the Court of the Appeals and the Supreme Court, Justice Torres is also the Vice President of the Cavite Historical Society and an official of the Philippine Judicial Academy.

On August 20, Paul Dumol will speak on Rizal and Nationhood, specifically on Jose Rizal’s contribution to the building of Filipino nationhood. Paul Dumol is an associate professor at Department of History at the University of Asia and the Pacific, where he teaches courses on ethics, Philippine history, and Jose Rizal. Dumol is also a playwright, his best known work being Ang Paglilitis ni Mang Serapio.Dumol’s plays have been exceedingly on historical subjects, particularly Philippine heroes of the end of the 19^th century.

Both talks come with museum admission (P100 for adults, P50 for students, and P25 for children and senior citizens). Advance registration is recommended. To reserve, call 889-1234 or emailinfo@yuchengcomuseum.org. The Yuchengco Museum is located at RCBC Plaza, corner Ayala and Sen. Gil J. Puyat Avenues, Makati City.

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