Carmen’s Best milk now available at 7-Eleven
CARMEN’S BEST, the Filipino brand celebrated for its 100% fresh milk gourmet ice cream, is moving beyond the pint and is making premium, fresh milk more accessible through an exclusive partnership with 7-Eleven. Since the brand’s milk is 100% fresh with no additives or preservatives, it is best consumed immediately. Currently, the single-serve 300 ml line is available in select 7-Eleven stores, including key locations like Metro Manila and Rizal. The product will soon be available in Pampanga and Batangas, as well as cities in Visayas and Mindanao, particularly Cebu, Davao, and Cagayan de Oro, with future plans to roll out in more areas nationwide in the coming months. “Our goal has always been to elevate the Filipino dairy experience. This journey began with a commitment to 100% real milk, but our mission has grown to ensure that fresh, local dairy is accessible to every Filipino,” Toby Gatchalian, Chief Commercial Officer of Metro Pacific Agro Ventures and Carmen’s Best, said in a statement. “To make this possible, we’ve aggressively expanded our operations, growing our herd to 400 cows across farms in Luzon and Vismin, while increasing our yield from 11 liters to an impressive 28 liters per cow, per day. By partnering with 7-Eleven, we are completing that farm-to-table circle, ensuring that pure, locally produced milk is finally within reach for everyone.” The Carmen’s Best Milk 300 ml range offers a variety of options: Whole Milk (P60), Low-Fat Milk (P60), Low-Fat Chocolate Milk (P65), and Salted Caramel Milk (P70). In addition to the new Salted Caramel milk flavor, the brand is also introducing more products: the Milk Bar (now available in carmensbest.com and major supermarkets in Luzon, and soon to be available nationwide), Barista Fresh Milk (with a standardized fat content that produces a long-lasting, more defined foam), Ube Halaya and Tiramisu Ice Cream flavors (created in collaboration with HOPE, and every pint purchased helps build classrooms), and Kesong Puti. Carmen’s Best is also heading south, opening its first scooping stations outside Luzon, in Cebu, at The Mall at Nustar and SM City J Mall.
GH Mall offers multi-restaurant lunch promo
THE Power Lunch promo returns with weekday lunch deals at GH Mall from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. until March 31. The participating restaurants are: Alba, Banh Mi Kitchen, CIBO, Chinese Beef Noodles House, Ebi10, Genki Sushi, Iroha, Kettle, Lucky Boba Milk Tea, Mango Tree, Pizza Planet, Sen-ryo, Sibyullee, Stoned Steaks, Supreme Beef Hotpot, Three Dots, and Tittos.
Lunar New Year celebration continues at Solaire
WHILE the main celebrations for the Lunar New Year have passed, they continue at some of Solaire Resort Entertainment City’s restaurants. Red Lantern offers a special Lunar New Year set menu until March 3 which journeys through the symbols and stories of the season and includes the Prosperity “Yu Sheng” with fresh salmon. Dim sum lovers are treated to an “Eat-All-You-Can” experience. For those seeking variety and abundance, Fresh offers a festive buffet until March 3. Guests can explore dedicated Chinese roasted and dim sum sections. Indulge in the treasure pot, roasted duck, Shanghai-style deep-fried fish fillet in soya sauce, deep-fried blue swimmer crabs salted egg yolk, deep fried tikoy, and more. The celebration is complemented by free-flowing beverages. Meanwhile, Oasis Garden Café offers an elegant afternoon tea experience with a Lunar New Year twist until Feb. 28. Guests can enjoy a selection of dainty tea sandwiches, including Chun bing, Peking duck with hoisin, Szechuan pork baguette, and Rou jia mou with pulled beef and shaoxing wine. These savory items are complemented by pastries such as Chinese Five spice chocolate tart, red bean eclairs, egg custard tart, black sesame macaron, Jasmine tea crème brûlée, and more.
Tanduay shines at PR%F Awards
AT THE recent PR%F Awards 2025, Tanduay Overproof earned a Gold Medal with a score of 93 at the Tasting Competition and a Double Gold at the Design Competition. Tanduay Reserve Rum 10 Years, meanwhile, was awarded a Silver Medal with a score of 89 at the Tasting Competition and a Gold at the Design Competition. The Tasting Competition is a double blind-tasting process where spirits, wines, and beverages are judged in 100-point rating system. In the Design Competition, judges inspect the bottles or cans of the product, read its story and ingredients, and evaluate its packaging and overall look and feel. The PR%F Awards’ judging panel is comprised of top-tier buyers and decision-makers from hotel groups, airlines, restaurants, nightclubs, dispensaries, and liquor stores from the United States and Canada. Tanduay Overproof has an interplay of fruity nuances and woody spice notes from bourbon oak barrels. It is a blend of pot and column still dark rums and has 40% alcohol by volume. This elegantly packaged premium rum comes in 700 ml and 750 ml bottles and is available in select international wines and spirits stores. Tanduay Reserve Rum 10 Years, meanwhile, is a smooth rounded rum perfect for sipping neat or in cocktails. Bottled at 40% alcohol by volume, it comes in a deep amber color. Tanduay Reserve Rum 10 Years is aged for at least 10 years in former bourbon barrels. It comes in a 750 ml bottle and can also be purchased in select international wines and spirits stores.
Jollibee has glowed up the Yumburger
THE Yumburger now has a bigger beef patty and more dressing while still priced at P45. The new-ish burger was launched in transport hubs and shopping centers across the Philippines. Jollibee gave away 2,000 free Yumburgers at One Ayala in Makati, The Infinity in Pampanga, Paseo de Santa Rosa in Laguna, Parkmall in Cebu, and Rizal Park in Davao as, plus 4,000 vouchers to try an exclusive combo in stores. For updates visit www.jollibee.com.ph, to order go to https://order.jollibee.com.
11,000 chain resto locations serve cage-free eggs
CAGE-FREE eggs are fast becoming the new standard for the Philippines’ restaurant industry, with some of the country’s biggest chains now committed to phasing out caged eggs, according to the 2025 Philippines Restaurant Industry Cage-Free Egg Scorecard, released by Lever Foundation. Of 67 leading restaurant brands evaluated, 47 chains operating 11,277 locations have pledged to fully transition to cage-free eggs. This represents 78% of all chain restaurant locations nationwide — the highest concentration in Asia. This includes brands that have already completed their transition, such as Nanyang and Peri-Peri, along with many of the industry’s biggest names, which have set timelines to implement 100% cage-free sourcing in the years ahead. Three major restaurant groups set cage-free egg policies for a combined 2,140 locations: 333 Foods (operating BreadTalk, Nanyang, and Banana Leaf), Max’s Group (operating Pancake House and Yellow Cab), and Century Pacific Food, Inc. (operating Shakey’s, Potato Corner, and Peri-Peri). Filipino favorites, including Jollibee, Chowking, Mang Inasal, Red Ribbon, and Greenwich have made pledges, alongside international giants such as KFC, Dunkin’, Pizza Hut, Subway, and Burger King. “With 70% of major restaurant brands — representing 78% of chain restaurant locations across the country — already committed to cage-free egg sourcing, we’re witnessing the sector’s recognition that animal welfare, food safety, and sustainability are essential business priorities,” said Robyn Del Rosario, sustainability program lead at Lever Foundation, in a statement. Lever Foundation is an international NGO that collaborated with all of the domestic restaurant groups and a number of international groups in developing their policies. Cage-free systems allow hens to move freely and engage in natural behaviors such as nesting, perching, dust-bathing, and short flights in indoor barn environments — behaviors completely restricted in conventional battery cage systems. The Bureau of Agriculture and Fisheries Standards developed comprehensive animal welfare guidelines for cage-free eggs in 2020.
Pinoy finishes in Top 10 of international culinary tilt
THE Philippines’ sole delegate to the 12th International Young Chef Olympiad (YCO) landed among the Top 10 finalists in the world’s largest culinary competition for student-chefs, held in various cities in India. Jomari Bernardo, a recent graduate with a Culinary Arts Management degree from the De La Salle-College of Saint Benilde (DLS-CSB) School of Hotel, Restaurant, and Institution Management (SHRIM), brought home two special awards: Best Hygiene and Kitchen Practice and Tourism Ambassador. During the grand finals in Kolkata, Mr. Bernardo competed alongside Enri Cuedari of Albania, Dominic Grundy of England, and Vidanagamage Rumira Reshan Piyasiri of Sri Lanka, who eventually won the gold, silver, and bronze medals respectively. After his performance in YCO and the completion of his degree from Benilde, Mr. Bernardo plans to further polish his craft in other countries and gain more culinary experience.
