My South Hall by Chef Josh Boutwood

Thursday, October 31, 2019




It looks like folks from the south are in for a treat as Chef Josh Boutwood and the Bistro Group just opened up My South Hall, an upscale food hub located at S Maison in Pasay City. Located at the first floor of the mall, they put up 7 restaurants that serve beverages and regional dishes (for the goal of bringing in sought after world cuisines in a fast casual dining setting). I had to sample them all in a few hours so we got a few of their best sellers (although they've been in operations for a few days) and honestly, I thought I was going to have to pay a lot for it. But no, they're quite affordable.




Chef Josh was born in Bedford, England. He moved from Europe to Boracay in 2010. Together with the Bistro Group, they curated these 7 entities to give you great choices if you're up for a meal. 


WCKD serves Authentic Taiwanese Milk Tea made from black and green tea leaves.

Juicy is the number 1 fresh fruit juice brand in Korea

As the name suggests, Seoul Hotpot does Chuck Eye and Angus Beef Sirloin Hotpots


Golden Treasures has some good dimsum.


Tabemashou serves ramen, sushi and skewers

Roast'd serves Chinese style roasts. If you want chicken, duck or roast pork, this is the place you should go to

Roma celebrates anything pasta, so go here if you want something heavy and hearty

Chix has got some of the best wings, I had a dozen and a half so if that's not a measure, try it at least. It was my fave among all the things served there.


The roast chicken was reminiscent of HK roasts, a tad dry but had a crispy skin. I suggest you get the pork variety since most appreciate that.

I ordered the Truffle, it was filling and the pasta was fresh. If you're in a group I would suggest you get this in lieu of rice. Pretty heavy.

They also have three kinds of pasta, I like the Conchiglie more because it kinda gets the sauce stick so you get the flavor profile more.

For milktea lovers, they've got WCKD that serves really good black tea varieties. I ordered the Strawberries and Cream with pearls and it was not that sweet which is perfect for me who's trying to tone down in sugar.




This thing deserves a spot in a museum hence the number of photos I got here. I love the spicy miso ramen, the thick slice of pork is made of dreams, grilled to perfection. At 275, this just takes it out of the ballpark. Worth every penny.


The Hotpot was also nice, although there are not much broth choices, I guess they follow Taiwan standards where you just have it on boil. The meat is A+, graded and all. The veggies are also fresh but I suggest you cook it last so it doesn't go to soft. This would be good for groups of 3, but if you eat a lot like I do, nobody's stopping you!



I had two serving of wings, one is Chipotle and the other is Buffalo. I like spicy stuff and this was so hot for the others, I needed more heat so make sure you ask them to punch it up a notch if it's your jam.


The Conchiglie with pesto was good but I suggest you get this for sharing, it's a huge plate and was heavy. Love it for carbo loading, I think they also had anchovies so it was a bit salty. The sauce just sticks, and that's a good thing.

Juicy had really good smoothies and shakes, but I like this Banana and Peanut Butter combo. It's not too sweet, they also use premium peanut butter so you get the nutty taste locked in. Not the sugar, and if you fancy fruits, they have a lot of other things on the menu which you can try. It's not that expensive too.


Love the Buffalo Wings, wish they had sauces to go with these wonderful wings! I was dreaming of Bleu cheese LOL


The Hakaw and Siomai at Golden Treasures was prepared well. It was fresh, hot off the steamer, I wouldn't mind having seconds.


The Yakitori from Tabemashou was a hit, some like the Chicken Skin ran out even when I lined up early, I think you would love that as well.

To make it all better, go grab a Coke Zero because the moment you fill up, you need to burp and make space for more. I love how we all spent a fine afternoon in this place, now there is more reason to go to S Maison down south. This is definitely one stop you shouldn't miss!


Now make sure if you're in the Mall of Asia area to drop by My South Hall for good premium food at affordable prices. It's far from where I live but since I frequently go there for events, this will be a venue I wouldn't mind going back over and over again. Don't just read there, go troop down the new joint because this is good. This is also under the Bistro Group which has proven track record of good restaurants. 


I would love to have another bowl of ramen! Mmmmm! 

COW

Hell Come Home Premiere Night

Tuesday, October 29, 2019



Star Cinema is putting its chips on a horror movie this Halloween season. This movie is called Hell Come Home and talks about different things like haunted places, possession, cults and family. We saw the cast, their celebrity friends who all came out and supported them during the premiere night.








What's good is that Dennis Trillo,  Alyssa Mulach, Raymond Bagatsing and Beauty Gonzales are doing this film. A good thing for people who want a different combination on screen. This is also R13, probably for violence and some scenes that are for mature audiences (some foul mouths and gory stuff in between). Although it is not the gory type, you're going to see and feel lots of of shocking moments, run and chass scenes in the movie. I guess that part is fulfilling. It is a nice story intertwined by relationships in the past, how they bring forth keeping their home away from the crazy, the haunted, and ghosts made of their own fantasies.




If you wanna watch something scary, this might fit the bill. It shows tomorrow in theaters nationwide!

COW

SIBOL Prepares for Southeast Asian Games

Monday, October 28, 2019





SIBOL is making its debut in this year’s Southeast Asian Games to be held in Manila. For those who don’t know, they are our official ESports team who will be competing with other Southeast Asian countries as an official medal sport. They will need to champion Mobile Legends, Dota 2, StarCraft II, Hearthstone, Arena of Valor and Tekken 7. I’m a gamer myself and I know a LOT of pinoys do well in these titles especially MLBB and Tekken (which I have also played in arcades for years). Though this morning we got a nice preview of how we’ll fare in the tourney.


They presented the teams too composed of Dota 2 geniuses Carlo "Kuku" Palad, Timothy John "Tims" Randrup, Kim "Gabbi" Santos, Armel "Armel" Tabios, Nico "Eyyou" Barcelon, Djardel Jicko B. "DJ" Mampusti, Marc Polo Luis "Raven" Fausto, Abed Azel "Abed" Yusop, Michael "ninjaboogie" Ross Jr. and Ryan Jay "Bimbo" Qui. While on StarCraft II we have Caviar "Enderr" Acampado. In Arena of Valor we've got Kevin Kio "Gambit" Dizon, Jeremiah "1717" Camarillo, Jevan Lorenzo "Bents" Delos Santos, Lawrence Anthony "Rubixx" Gatmaitan, Miguel Klarenz "Miggie" Banaag. In Mobile Legends: Bang Bang we have Carlito "Ribo" Ribo, Erwin "Yakou" Magno, Jeniel "Haze" Bata-Anon, Marc Danielle "Dee" San Luis, Yuji "Yuji" Aizawa, Angelo Kyle "Pheww" Arcangel, Renz Carlo "Pein" Reyes, Lester "Tets" Santos, Ralph Mico "Coco" Sampang, Mark "Dysania" Cruz, Ephraim Jueinno "Ejhay" Sambrano, Gerardo "Eson" Mark Jayson, Jeff Franklin "Jeffqt4ever" Anaya, Allan Sancio "Lusty" Castromayor, Jason Rafael "Jay" Torculas, Ashleymarco "Killuash" Cruz and Kyle "Ryo" Berceño.


For Tekken 7 Andreij Hosea "Doujin" Albar, Alexandre Gabrielle "AK" Laverez and in Hearthstone we have Jacinta "Jia" Dee, Euneil "Staz" Javiñas playing the cards.




We got to talk to the lone femme gamer Jia Dee about how she became part of our official lineup, here she is to share her story:




The teams will also have the chance to win 2 Million pesos for every Gold Medal they win in the games. They are also supported heavily by Smart Communications and the MVP Group so if you’re here during the first week of December, might as well go support them during the Southeast Asian Games in Manila. Stay tuned for more of them soon!




COW

Seiko Show Your Style Seiko 5 Philippine Launch

Saturday, October 26, 2019




Had a wonderful time during the Seiko Show Your Style Seiko 5 launch last week. Albeit a long drive from QC, I was treated to entertainment, a fashion show and a few lovely timepieces from the iconic brand.


Yasuki Fujita Seiko's Senior Manager for Management Planning says “I am happy to be back in Manila and Seiko5 is a special brand for us. Kintaro Hattori founded this in 1881 and the first Seiko Sportmatic 5 was launched in 1998. The 5 means the attributes automatic, day date display, water resistance, recessed 4 oclock position, and 5 styles we dedicate to millennials. Sense, Suits, Specialist, Street and Sports. We are targeting them and we have a Seiko 5 logo, and new designs but same feel."


Then they showed their young hip and millennial ambassadors! 


Entertainment ensued!

Models came out on stage wearing the collection

Director, Actor and Producer Khalil Ramos

Actor Rodjun Cruz












Chu Calleja, a PH team rep for Wushu






Diane Medina joined in a little later


To top it all off, their last brand ambassador announced was the band Ben and Ben! Their music just sent chills down our spine!





The five new lines are Street, Sense, Suits, Sports and Specialist. We were toured around the booths that afternoon which matched the same concept of the watches. What makes each piece special is that it has automatic movement, day/date display, water resistance, their recessed crown, the bracelet and case that is built to last for years. During the event, they also gave 20% OFF on all Seiko5 Sports Watches via their promo codes. Tons of people lined up their stores and enjoyed their finely crafted timepieces home.

Got home quite happy about the experience, but I have yet to own my very own Seiko, it was just not in the months budget LOL!


COW