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Monday, December 29, 2014

KTG CHRISTMAS PARTY (2014)

This holiday season, ERICJAZ FOODIES have been so blessed to be invited at what we feel is THE foodie Christmas event of the year.

The KTG Christmas party 2014!!!

Now this calls for one big "Ala Homer" WOHOO!!!!

You may remember our first KTG Christmas party where we were only about 20 gluttons and we pigged out on truffle lechon, wagyu burgers, etcetera etcetera.  For this year, everything (pwede ding everyone... tee hee) just got BIGGER... CRAZIER....

AND hungrier! Ha ha ha ha ha!

You could just imagine how wild it could get when you pack about 50 food fanatics with overflowing grub and drinks to stay in one big ballroom.

Insanity I'm sure.

But let me assure you, that our Christmas party that night was also about "food insanity" with a purpose.

Yup! And that is the beauty that is KTG!

Happy Holidays!

Homer burp! He he he he he he!

KTG logo by THE PICKIEST EATER

KTG CHRISTMAS PARTY 2014.

For those still wondering what KTG means, behold!




Venue for the night was the Titanium Ballroom in F1 Hotel Manila!

Wow! Not too shabby!

We were supposed to stay in the Canary Lounge at the poolside but because of the unpredictable weather, the party was moved indoors.




When we got there right at the dot, there were already a handful of KTG peeps already settled in.




In no time, the Titanium was packed!

That's one more thing I love about the KTG! Everyone is so punctual. No Filipino time here!



That awesome KTG Christmas night was attended by some of my favorite bloggers and foodies!


We saw there Len of  THE MOMMIST, her hub, Yen of  THE TUMMY TRAVELLER, and Chuckie of ALL CHUCKED UP!



Eugene of THE HEFTY FOODIE, Gio of THE HUNGRY GIANT, B'ley of BLOGALAG, and dear Yedy of YEDYLICIOUS!



Jeeves, Joko, and Vlad of ABS CBN online, Kat of  THE HUNGRY KAT!



Richard of TALES FROM THE TUMMY, Guia of FOOD REVIEWS MANILA, and Ate Irene of INDULGENCE BY IRENE!




Jane of SUGAR AND SPICE AND EVERYTHING NICE, her funny hub Kap, Joan and Abet of THE FOOD ALPHABET!



Dear Spanky of THE DAILY SPANKS, Michelle of Jamfoods, Joaquin of BERTO IN BROGUES, his girl Agee, Chef Ed Bugia, and Karla of THE PLAZA!



Lynne and Ray of EN ROUTE, Richie of  THE PICKIEST EATER, Rina of RINA'S RAINBOW, Chef Cecille of Silk Road, and Mr. Jeng (FOOD IN THE BAG).... doing something. He he he he he he!




PLUS!!! Our table!!!!


Of course, our group wouldn't be called KTG without the KAIN part of our lives!! So here's the food that we all pigged out on! I suggest you check them all out for your New Year's Dinner, potluck event, OR for whatever special getogether you'll have with your loved ones!!!!


Presenting...

OUR FOOD!
Photo from SUGAR AND SPICE

F1 HOTEL MANILA not only provided our venue for the KTG Christmas party but they also served us an abundant spread of mouth watering grub!!! 



Thank you so muchos F1 Marketing Coordinator Mr. Pau Esmedilla for taking care of us during the party. You and Director of Operations Mr. Tony Co rock!


For your next event or if your thinking where to spend your next staycation, check out F1 HOTEL MANILA!!!


F1 HOTEL MANILA
32nd St, Taguig City 1634
(02) 928 9888
Instagram = @f1hotel



It was so fun bumping into the ladies of THE SOSHAL NETWORK! I am an instant fan of their blog! I cannot get enough of it! Of course, it's also great standing beside the lovely Jill of  THE FOOD SCOUT! I hope some of her beauty and ladylike elegance rub off on me! Ha ha ha ha ha!




It was truly a festive Christmas dinner with the addition of NEIL'S KITCHEN Roasted Turkey with Chestnut Stuffing!!!!

I really loved this and had about 2 servings of the juicy meat with the cranberry sauce! Wow! Now I don't have to fret about not having Thanksgiving here in the Philippines. You can now have this big tender bird anytime you need it! For P795/kilo (minimum of 6 kilograms) you could easily ORDER UP!


It's a massacre!!!!!!!

Juicy. Juicy. Juicy.




NEIL'S KITCHEN of course, offers more than just turkeys! They also have a mean US Black Angus Rib Eye Roast Beef with Mashed Potatoes, Bleu Cheese, and Gravy at P2,800/kilo (minimum of 4 kilograms).



Do check out the other mouth watering dishes from NEIL'S KITCHEN! 
Lot C 701 and 704 Westgate Filinvest
Alabang Muntinlupa City
7108962 / 09285247404 / 09178300190





Now it may not look like it but that is a very moist paella underneath all that toppings! This wonderful food tray was from TORCH and it was one of the reasons why my carbo loading doubled that night.

This paella was so insanely good!!! I didn't even bother with the toppings as the arborio rice was already very tasty in itself!

You have to forgive little ol' me as I thought before that this sosy restaurant along Connecticut avenue in Greenhills only served fusion and specialty grub. Who knew they could make a kick ass paella that could easily beat how the other restaurants (who claim it's their specialty) do it?




And to further shut me up from my mundane ideas about the restaurant, TORCH also blessed us with some Chilean Sea Bass in Garlic Butter Miso and a very inviting Cream Cake. 

One word.

Yowza!


Thanks for all of this Mr. Mike Chua of TORCH!



Do bring your family soon to TORCH! We might bump into you guys too since I just GOTTA have some more of that paella!

TORCH Greenhills 
63 Connecticut St. 
Greenhills, San Juan
477-3771 or 502-0000

TORCH
Katipunan Ground Floor
UP Town Center
Katipunan, Quezon City
287-8675




Early on in the KTG Christmas party, my husband was always missing. He blamed it on taking pictures of what was going on in the event but really, he admitted later on that THIS was the culprit!

SALINI'S HOG LOG!




The reason pala that my husband was always MIA-ing was because he was on the look-out when the SALINI guys were going to cut up their mouth watering boneless lechon belly!




Now I've had other boneless lechon bellies in the past and believe me when I say that THIS will make the others shrivel up in shame. Wow! The skin of his hog log was wickedly crunchy even at the end of our party! OMG sa lutong!




Add to that the very flavorful filling of lemon grass, garlic, and other secret spices, this SALINIS boneless lechon belly is truly a winner!


 

Of course, my arteries might beg to differ, but sorry, who cares??? This was just awesome! And besides, it's Christmas! Everyone should be happy! He he he he he!




To "apologize" for missing at the first part of the party, my husband brought me a plate of SALINI'S boneless lechon cubes.

Awwwwww..... And now he's inside the kulambo again!




Thank you so much Mikel Sala and Ilan Bacher for bringing this boneless Cebu Lechon belly to us. Your hog log will certainly satisfy us lechon lovers on SO many levels!


SALINI'S HOG LOGS
(P800/kilo with average weight per order is at 3.5-4.5kilos)
For orders call 0998-9946095





AND since it's Christmas, a familiar sight greeted my hungry and expecting tummy.




THE PLAZA ham!!!!



Really... You cannot NOT have Christmas without the ever default ham and I think THE PLAZA makes the best one there is!

Of course, they wouldn't be in the business for 50 years if they don't know what they're doing!

I tell you while the chef was slicing up the very tender ham, my mouth was open. Good thing nobody shot a picture of me doing so. Ha ha ha ha ha! You see, I don't really like ham. I find the other popular ones very salty and just... blech!

Now THIS I love! I just had 3 helpings of it in a hot pandesal!!!!!

If you haven't tried the awesomeness of THE PLAZA ham, check out their menu below!




THE PLAZA
GF, BJS Compound, 1869 P. Domingo Street, 1207 Makati
For catering Inquiries and Food to Go
Tel No : 890-8446 / 729 0001


THE PLAZA PREMIUM BAKED HAM locations
G/F SM Mega Mall Bldg A, Mandaluyong City
Petron Square Dasmarinas Edsa Cor. Arnaiz Ave., Makati
4/f Rustans Makati Home Department
Rockwell Powerplant Cinema Snackbar (for sandwiches)





Ah... eh... Koya I could still see you!!!! 

Of course, we needed something to quench our thirst and to push (read: "panulak") all that delicious food. Thanks to Sheena Gabaldon of VITA COCO, we did not only have drinks for the night, but they were FUN and HEALTHY at the same time!




VITA COCO is all natural and free from fat, cholesterol, and loaded with nutrients and electrolytes to keep us all party hardy!



I'm sure you could see the part where it says PURE right? Yep! No artificial flavorings nor whatever extender you might suspect on this one. All natural never tasted this good and refreshing!!!!




The great (AND unbelievable) thing about VITA COCO is that it could also be the base of your favorite cocktails! In an instant, we had some Vita Daquiri, Coco Mojito, and Vita Summer!!!




This went on all night long! BUT, as much as I wanted to try out the colorful VITA COCO drinks, I think I had too much coconut water in me already.




WAITAMINUTE KAPENG MAINIT... I just changed my mind. 

VITA COCO drinks for all!

Oh and HELLO biceps! He he he he he he!

Kidding.



And just like that, we had another round of drinks again!


VITA COCO COCONUT WATER




Besides the food, KTG was also blessed with foodie friends who made the night MORE enjoyable!!!!



I have only heard about the "magic" of VILLA DEL CONTE since I'm always under the spell of Miss Hershey, Mr. Cadbury, and the little Snickers. Imagine my delight upon seeing the very chic box of these famous chocolates for me to take home!



After one toothy bite, I was reeling with happiness! It was just so darn luscious and fudgy! The chocolate was silky smooth and felt all velvety going down. I was really licking my fingers afterwards and hungrily searched for another one to pop inside my messy mouth! I usually go for choco bars with nuts and veer away from the uber sweet ones with cream filling, but this one bite just made me a bit of a convert.  I know that I'm already a chocolate person and VILLA DEL CONTE just sealed the deal! 


Photo from SUGAR AND SPICE

Oooh.... me drooling senor.

Wait. I just remembered this came from Italy.


VILLA DEL CONTE 




Photo from SUGAR AND SPICE

I am never lucky at raffles, but in the KTG CHRISTMAS party I may have won a jackpot by receiving GC's from one of popular restaurants in Powerplant Mall -- KULINARYA EXPERIENCE KITCHEN!

Yes! Since we live nearby, it is so handy for me and the Chinese Adonis to have our date night in Powerplant Mall. With the GC's I received, we'll have more reasons to indulge in our Saturdate habit! He he he he he he!



Thank you so muchos KULINARYA! Await our invasion soon!


KULINARYA EXPERIENCE KITCHEN
Power Plant Mall, Rockwell Center, Makati City
(632)8981738




Photo and hand from the TUMMY TRAVELER!

2015 should be the year to go for the healthy route! Yes CLAIM IT! And with that resolution, you could never go wrong with LAURIN PURE COCO MCT as your  helping buddy!! 


Photo from SUGAR AND SPICE

LAURIN COCO MCT helps lower your risk of heart disease by increasing levels of HDL (good cholesterol) and helping balance blood chemistry. Not only that, it also has this magical ability to suppress your appetite, regulate digestion, and increase metabolism to reduce body fat. Don't worry about feeling sluggish while taking it, LAURIN COCO MCT will even give you a quick source of energy!!!!



LAURIN COCO MCT

ECHO store Salcedo
G/F NDC Building,116 Tordesillas St., 
Salcedo Village, Makati City

ECHOstore Serendra
G/F Serendra Piazza
McKinley Parkway
Bonifacio Global City, Taguig

Nurture Nook Shop
Unit D 78 Estrella St., Bel-Air Village.






You'd think after all that food we will not have the appetite to take in anything the next day.

Uh... Hello?? Have we met???

With the GREEN BAKER goodies though, reaching out for a PACK, yes a PACK, of cookies will not give you the guilt willies as their creations are more on the healthy side!



We got 2 boxes from GREEN BAKER and we were at first curious AND concerned with the flavors:

Imagine.... Almond Ginger? Pinatubo Cookies? Garlic Cookies? Carrot Squash Cookies?

Red Beet Cookies? Malunggay Cookies? Lemon Basil???

Choco Dipped Malunggay Cookies?

Oh well... The ingredients might not be your usual "cookie buddies" but they will certainly be a "good influence". He he he he! My KTG friends raved about these healthy and tasty munchies that I know being GOOD inside and out this 2015 won't be much of a problem anymore.

And yes! I get what they mean. These healthy cookies were just nummy yummy! Now gimme another pack!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! He he he he he he!


THE GREEN BAKER
To order
63998-984.2339, 632-433.3741



=========== 

Going back to the KTG Christmas party.... 




While waiting for the buffet to be ready, we munched on some chips with sour cream dip! YUM!




When we were given the go signal to raid the buffet, I did so with such a happy smile!



Yep! Food brings out the sweetest smiles from all KTG members!!!!



My plate! My first plate of appetizers!!!!!!



My plate! My second plate of appetizers! He he he he he he!

Could you guess where these are from?

(Cue in Jeopardy music)



Would you believe that the Chinese Adonis eats so fast that while I'm only starting with appetizers, he's already hitting on his dessert?



While I was going for my main food, the uber hot Chef Cecille came up.

Oh wow... My male hormones are raging!

Yes! I have them! He he he he he he he!




It was also great catching up with the ever fun Karla of THE PLAZA!!! My pose may be hammy but that's what I usually do when I'm happy as a clam!




I also love Simply Abet of THE FOOD ALPHABET!!!! He and his wife Joan are so cool! 



My first plate of the main grub!



The Chinese Adonis and I really had fun at our table because our table mates were such a nice and happy bunch!!!!

Dear Sumi of THE PURPLE DOLL, her bf, Mr. Jeng of FOOD IN THE BAG, Karla of THE PLAZA, Jill of THE FOOD SCOUT and her pogi bf Oliver! 



My chikamate for the night! Dear Sumi!!! It's always great talking with her because I also learn a lot about blogging. She's also awesomely nice!!!!




What I really like about eating out with the KTG bloggers is that besides sharing our deep love for food, they are also very, VERY good with the camera!!!

Yes! They are so talented in taking magazine worthy pics that I am always shy sharing my pics to them. 




Towards the end of our dinner, dear Spanky set the ball rolling for our KTG program!



If you're wondering about the bag, it was my gift to the KTG in our Christmas party last year! So happy that Lyn and Ray of EN ROUTE did not forget about it in our fetish for "loot bags". He he he he he!!!



Paying attention to the Bossman!




We started with an opening prayer with Mr. JC Libran, author of the inspirational book BYAHE NI JUAN.



The very kind Mr. Tony Co (Director of Operations - F1 HOTEL MANILA) graciously welcomed and gave warm wishes to all the KTG bloggers.



After that, dear Spanky called up the raffle for our KTG VIP guests! Since I was the one who painstakingly made the raffle stubs (I had blisters because of it I tells ya!!!), I also assisted him in picking out the random winners. 



Egad! Am I carrying a basketball???!

#hayopsapuson



After the raffle, we revealed our "babies" in our KTG Kris Kringle! Theme for our "monito monita" was SOMETHING RAWR!

I picked out the lovely Jill! I was really hesitant in buying her racy lingerie since she is very sweet and lady-like. Lucky me she just asked for a GC so that I wouldn't have a hard time shopping!!!

I told her she will be my baby forever na!



Chen, the very kind and friendly SO (Significant Other) of FOOD IN THE BAG, picked Eric.



I was so touched because Chen said since she loved us, she gave not one but TWO gift certs from THE SPA. 

SO! The Chinese Adonis is stuck with ME for his spa day! No happy ending for him!



My husband picked pretty Nines of NINES VS. FOOD and since my husband did not know her too much to give something RAWR (he got shy) he just gave her some GC's to buy that. 

Nines in turn got Kap, husband of SUGAR AND SPICE!



The t-shirt Nines gave him was HILARIOUS!!! It was definitely MORE than just RAWR!

Wait... I just saw that pill now. I was thinking of something else for the "lunok".

BWA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA!



My "mother" for our KTG Kris Kringle was dear Guia of FOOD REVIEWS MANILA.



Yeyyy! She gave me this very elegant gold chain necklace that I instantly fell in love with!!! Wow! Expect to see a lot of THAT in my future posts.



After our KTG Kris Kringle, dear Spanky once again took the stage and announced our surprise for Eugene of HEFTY FOODIE!



I won't go into details but it was indeed a touching moment for all of us.



We were so happy for Eugene and I felt so proud to be in a group that truly extends help to its foodie family.




Afterwards, the night was far from over.

It's KTG PARTY AND PICTURE TIME!!!!!



Of course, with KTG, eating and taking pictures only occupy 3/4 of the fun!

Still, that last 1/4 is allotted to making chika! Believe me, it is still a strong fraction in making an awesome night! 



My NFFTS (New Found Friends To Stalk) Chen and Nines!



It's always a fun chika session with Ate Irene of INDULGENCE BY IRENE!



Lovely ladies Lyn (EN ROUTE), Joan, and Yen (THE TUMMY TRAVELER)!!!



The very sweet and dedicated Mommy Rina of RINA'S RAINBOW!!!




As always, I could never get enough hugs and chika from Yedy of YEDYLICIOUS!



Of course, I will not forget my favorite KTG member of all.

NAKSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS........................




It was truly a happy Christmas for ERICJAZ FOODIES and there is only ONE guy we will be ALWAYS in gratitude for it. 

Dear SPANKY!!!!!!! 

Like I said in our KTG birthday surprise for him, we love Spanky to the farthest of Milky Way and back! Thank you for including our silly little foodie blog in KTG!!!



This..... Is....... SANTAAAAAAH!

Although you have a weird way of showing your love for us, we know that you will always care. 

Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!




When it was time to take a class picture, my favorite blogger THE PICKIEST EATER got first dibs on the seat AND pose! He he he he he!




Time to take our KTG class picture!



Photo by Chuckie Dreyfus of ALL CHUCKED UP

And may I present to you...

THE KTG!!!!

(thunderous applause!)



It was definitely NOT goodbye yet as we still have time for videoke!!!! As expected, the person with the most soothing voice in the group sang first!



The Chinese Adonis also belted out a tune.




I was really shy to screech in front of a lot of people but all in the name of fun I overcame my mini ounce of shyness.



YEP!!! It's raining men!



After a lot of over the top song numbers, the night was ended by a duet by B'ley (BLOGALAG) .... 




And our newest star, Joaquin Valdez of BERTO IN BROGUES!

========= 

Going home, the Chinese Adonis and I were so thankful and felt blessed to be part of the KTG!

And if that was not enough, we were loaded with presents from our foodie family!!!!



Crates and Barrel goodie from THE MOMMIST, my new favorite mug from ALL CHUCKED UP and TUMMY TRAVELER, and a very weird tasting popsicle from THE FOOD SCOUT!




Luscious chocolates from VILLA DEL CONTE, delicious cookies from PINK WASABI, Godiva chocolates from THE FOOD ALPHABET, Marks and Spencer sweets from IN BETWEEN BITES, and a canister of old time candies from Joko and Jeeves (ABS CBN).



Baby Rain (cutie daughter of THE PICKIEST EATER and RINA'S RAINBOW) gave us Andrei's favorite cookies, while I received heaven in 2 boxes from INDULGENCE BY IRENE!




Dear Jane of SUGAR AND SPICE also gave each of us this kick ass KTG shirt!!!!!!!!!!!!!




Super thanks to ZOMATO.COM for giving us personalized mugs and notebook, GREEN BAKER for the healthy cookies, and F1 HOTEL MANILA for the 2015 planner!




Yohoo!!! Delicious electrolytes from VITA COCO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!




Now it may not be directly referring to ERICJAZ FOODIES (he he he he he) but Chef Ed Bugia (of Pino, Burger Project, Breakfast and Pis) posted this very touching message about the KTG in his instagram account. 

This is already a Christmas gift for my ever grateful self believe me!

===== 

Merry Christmas everyone!!! May your holidays be filled with food and plenty of sleep! Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!

I know WE will!

So. There.



4 comments:

  1. -Wow! Ang saya-saya naman ng party niyo! Yan din gusto ko, on-time, hindi Filipino time! =)
    -Sana andyan din ako para na-meet ko ang aking favorite blogger and foodie - si EricJaz Foodies! Kilala mo siya, I'm sure. hahaha
    -Nabasa ko na din ang The Soshal Network at nakakatawa nga sila
    -masarap ba talaga yung turkey? I've never been a fan of that fowl, pero kung nagustuhan mo, I will definitely try it out.
    -juice colored!!! P2,800 per kilo nung roast beef!!! *hinimatay*
    -Medyo paella overload na ako for this month, so my eyes got riveted to that Chilean Sea Bass from Torch... mukhang promising!
    -oooohhhh... those hog logs! Will try that sa 2016 if they're still open, hahaha... (2016 pa, kasi baka di ako mag-Pasko dito next year, huhuhu...)
    -I LOVE THE PLAZA HAM! Nanalo ako kay Jane ng isang ham, and it was soooo good! Seriously, amoy pa lang ang sarap-sarap na! Tapos di pa madami ang taba... and it was soooo flavorful! Ubos agad siya nung Christmas. Will definitely include that in our Christmas tradition.
    -I am so intrigued that coco water can be mixed in with alcohol, parang feeling ko masisira ang tiyan ko, hahaha... masarap ba? di naman weird ang lasa?
    -HOMAYGULAY!!! KULINARYA!!! Peborit (as in super peborit!!!) ni TP diyan! Masarap ang pagkain diyan... swerte mo naman. =)
    -alam ko na ngayon ang tamang modulation ng boses mo when you say "My plate!... hahahaha
    -Male hormones talaga! hahahaha...
    -"hammy" pose with karla? Pun intended ba yan? hahaha
    -sino ang VIP guests niyo?
    -mukhang karamihan GC ang binigay na pang monito-monita
    -I love that t-shirt that Kap got! kakatawa!
    -WOW! Gold necklace nakuha mo... teka, bakit korteng pang-bigti yan? May subliminal message ba siya sa iyo? hahaha
    -ang damin gifts! ang daming food! ang daming bloggers! ang saya!

    HAVE A HAPPY NEW YEAR, JAZ! Enjoy your vacation in Lucena. Mwah! =)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hiya Mr. Snuff!!!! How are you??? How was Christmas?????

      1) Super!!! It was an epic Christmas party again. And masaya kasi kahit san ka umupo may kachika!

      2) Ay wala si ERICJAZ FOODIES... nag Christmas sa Paris... JOKE!!!!!!!!! HA HA HA HA!

      3) i looooooooooooooooooove THE SOSHAL NETWORK!!! They are soooo funny!!!

      4) Yes the Turkey from NEILS KITCHEN was very good! Ang juicy niya!!! I had seconds with extra cranberry sauce!!! Do try it!

      5) For the hog logs, dapat matikman mo bago umalis!!! Oh no ang tagal mo naman mawawala!

      6) YES! At first I was grossed out but when I tasted it, there was only a hint of the taste of the coco water pero it worked well with the cocktail. It became more refreshing! Sarap!

      7) DI BA??? Omg sarap sa pandesal nung plaza ham! Especially with the garlic mayo! I had 3 servings in one sitting nung nagtake home ako dati!

      8) Bwa ha ha ha! Talagang dinemonstrate ko right? Pero ang pitchy masyado ng boses ko kaya I hope di ka nasiraan ng ear drums... ha ha ha ha!

      9) Yung sa HAMMY pose referral... no pun intended! Ngayon ko lang din sya narealize! Ha ha ha ha ha! Galing mo!

      10) VIP guests yung mga foodie friends who are not bloggers (eg. Chef Ed... Significant others.... Karla of the Plaza...etc etc)

      11) Hindi kami lang ang nagGC!

      12) Di ba super funny? Galing ni Nines! Riot yung shirt!

      13) CHE!!!! Love ako ni Guia I'm sure!!!!!! Ang ganda kaya!!! (pero baka may point ka... kidding!!!)

      14) SUPER SAYA TALAGA! IT WAS A HAPPY NIGHT FOR ALL!

      THANKS! YOU TOO AND THE PARTNER!!! See you very soon! mmmwah!

      Delete
  2. Next year. 3-part series na ito I'm sure! ;) Happy new year YUPpies! :-*

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Ha ha ha ha ha! Korek dear SUGAR AND SPICE!!!! Pahaba ng pahaba... Pasaya ng pasaya!!! HAPPY NEW YEAR to my ideal family!!!! We love you!!!!

      Delete