188 restaurants offer Smart Bakuna Benefits
HERE’S another incentive to getting vaccinated: 188 restaurants in NCR Plus (Metro Manila, Bulacan, Cavite, Laguna, and Rizal) are offering free dishes, upsizes on drinks, discounts, or buy-one get-one promos, if customers can present an original COVID-19 vaccination card and valid ID. “We are excited to see our customers again as more Filipinos get vaccinated. Our offers are a way to welcome everyone back, thank them for being vaccinated and at the same time, speed up community protection through mass vaccination,” says Eric Teng, president of the Restaurant Owners of the Philippines (RestoPH). The program, dubbed as Smart Bakuna Benefits, is part of the vaccine education efforts under the “Ingat Angat Bakuna Lahat” campaign and is spearheaded by Taskforce T3 (Test, Trace, Treat), Smart Communications, and RestoPH. The exclusive offers aim to provide additional incentives for Filipinos to get themselves vaccinated. The offers are available during the operational hours of participating stores from June 1 to Aug. 31. Vaccinated customers only need to show their vaccination cards and a valid ID to avail of the promos. For the full list of restaurants in the Smart Bakuna Benefits promo, visit www.ingat-angat.com/benefits.
Accor Live Limitless triples bonus points
WITH the easing of dining restrictions across the Philippines, ALL (Accor Live Limitless) — is inviting its members to enjoy dining at participating restaurants and bars under Accor brands such as Sofitel, Novotel, Raffles, Fairmont, and Mövenpick. Members of Accor’s lifestyle loyalty program will now earn ALL rewards points when dining at hotels, which can then be redeemed for hotel stays or other selected experiences. Members who prefer to enjoy dining in the comfort of their home can also earn ALL points as well as an additional 10% discount for any takeaway or delivery order until Dec. 31. To celebrate the launch of #TasteTheRewards, ALL members will earn triple loyalty points for all dining and deliveries from June 18 until July 17. Accor Plus member will enjoy a 20% discount for takeaway or delivery order.
Raffles’ Mirèio dine-in reopens
RAFFLES Makati’s brasserie-style restaurant Mirèio has reopened to serve authentic Provençal and French-inspired cuisine using the freshest ingredients and traditional French cooking techniques. The restaurant offers both al fresco and indoor dining. Meanwhile, Mirèio à la Maison offers its signature creations in a delivery menu that includes dishes such as Lobster and asparagus penne pasta, Pan-seared beef tenderloin, and Confit pork Belly. Other highlights such as the Beef cheek burgundy and the Spinach & Parmesan pasta are suitable for reheating, providing a perfect option for those living further away from the hotel. Larger families can enjoy a selection of platters and larger dishes for sharing, such as the Spinach and Aged Parmesan lasagna or the USDA Prime Beef Roasted Rib eye with rosemary (for five to six people). Order online: https://mireioatraffles.com/food/.
Sofitel’s Spiral opens for dine-in
Sofitel Philippine Plaza Manila’s Spiral has reopened its doors for lunch, dinner, and Sunday brunch. Diners can now revisit its 21 interactive dining ateliers and take a culinary journey around the world. For those who want to experience an al fresco dining with picturesque view, the Food Truck by Sofitel is offering international favorites complemented with free-flowing beverages, in a lush bayside garden with a sunset view. For takeaway, there is Spiral at Home, a curated selection of Spiral’s signature dishes. These include the L’Epicerie Grazing Box, which includes eight types of cheese and six varieties of cold cuts with fresh baguettes, grapes, and dried fruit; the Omakase Set with yakisoba, Japanese fried rice, Salmon croquettes, Beef teriyaki, assorted yakitori, Pork tonkatsu and other treats. A selection of Spiral DIY kits have been developed so that those seeking inspiration have the ingredients to make their own cronuts, pizzas, pasta, or laksa. Corporate lunch boxes can also be arranged for those looking to provide some encouragement to their teams working at home. Order online at https://www.spiralathome.com/. For more at home dining, check out EasyPeasy, Sofitel Philippine Plaza Manila’s first cloud kitchen featuring a selection of popular dishes such as freshly made pizzas, handcrafted pasta, Japanese style Wanpaku sandwiches, and signature burgers. The collection of dishes offers great value with favorites such as the Spaghetti Bolognese and Chicken Noodle Soup available from ₱398. Order online at https://www.easypeasymanila.com/.
Al fresco dining, takeout at Novotel
NOVOTEL Manila Araneta City’s The 6th Manila is welcoming guests back with an al fresco dining experience featuring all-time favorite dishes such as Crispy pork belly lechon and the Novotel Classic Burger. Newly signed up ALL members can enjoy a complimentary welcome cocktail at The 6th Manila. Meanwhile, Take Me Out by Novotel Manila Araneta City offers up three styles of menu to choose from. The Ready-to-Eat menu includes freshly prepared dishes including salads from the hotel’s sustainable garden, flame-grilled burgers, rice bowls, gourmet pizzas, and baked goods. The Ready-to-Cook menu offers vacuum-packed frozen cuts of meat that are marinated in advance for cooking at home, such as Chicken Inasal (₱300) and Australian beef steak (₱800). Finally, the Ready-to-Reheat menu offers up vacuum-packed meals which just need to be defrosted at home, such as Sisig (₱400), Adobo (₱400), and Kaldereta (₱450). Pair these dishes with Sabor Bar De Vinos’ wine selection. Find out more at https://www.novotelmanilaaranetacity.com/offers/take-me-out-by-novotel-manila/.
Jollibee’s Chickenjoy Family Box and Sweet Chili Chicken
JOLLIBEE’S new four-piece Chickenjoy Family Box is available at a special intro price of P249 this month. One can choose to order two servings of Jolly Spaghetti or two large Jolly Crispy Fries to go with the chicken for a total price of P330. Meanwhile, things are heating up with the new Jollibee Sweet Chili Chicken — fried chicken coated with a delicious sweet chili glaze. The new Jollibee Sweet Chili Chicken is available for a limited time only, starting June 12 in Metro Manila stores, and July 2 in Provincial Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao stores. Get the one-piece Sweet Chili Chicken for P89, the four-piece box for P320, and the six-piece box for P475. All these chicken dishes can be delivered via the Jollibee Delivery App, JollibeeDelivery.com, #87000, GrabFood, and foodpanda. They are also available in drive-through and take out.
McDonald’s PHL launches strawless lids
MCDONALD’S Philippines started introducing strawless lids across several of its Metro Manila stores this month. This move is in line with the company’s goal of significantly reducing waste by minimizing the need of consumers for straws. The strawless lids will be replacing the flat lids used for iced beverages of McDonald’s which includes all its soft drinks and juices, iced tea and all variants of Iced Coffee. This will be available for take-out, drive-through and delivery. This shift in packaging follows the change in McDonald’s policy regarding the distribution of straws, which started as early as 2018 when restaurants nationwide limited the distribution of straws to select cold beverages only, namely the McFloat, Coffee Float, Milk Tea, and McFreeze.
NutriAsia’s green innovation
CONDIMENTS and sauce producer NutriAsia has launched a sustainability hub with multiple features that help Filipinos embrace a greener way of living. Located at the bus stop along 30th street beside Track 30th in Bonifacio Global city (BGC), the NutriAsia EcoStation is a convenient and more sustainable way of shopping and restocking NutriAsia kitchen staples. A simple online process through the website https://selectandcollect.ph/ allows customers to select and pay for their pantry favorites. Then, they can choose a preferred time to pick up their purchases at either the curbside of the JY Campos Center, the BYOB (Bring Your Own Bote) booth at the Mind Museum, or the Select and Collect lockers at the NutriAsia EcoStation. This system enables people to collect their purchases at their own time and use their own reusable shopping bags. It is a concept that keeps purchasing pantry essentials safe by minimizing contact and it also allows people to lessen their carbon footprint through reducing unnecessary packaging.
Metro Channel’s Potluck looking for Pinoy dishes
FILIPINO culture and heritage will take center stage in the second season of Metro Channel’s show Potluck, as home cooks get to show off their staple and beloved Pinoy recipes in the cooking show. Filipinos who are 20 years old and above and are currently residing in the Philippines can send in their home cooking video featuring a local dish — which can be anything from a unique take on a Pinoy classic like adobo or sinigang to a prized heirloom recipe — until Aug. 1. Recorded cooking videos must be in a landscape format with good audio and video quality and with no music and graphics. All videos submitted will be aired via Potluck on Metro Channel and the top three videos with the highest scores from the panel of judges composed of chefs Claude Tayag, Sandy Daza, and Margarita Forés will take home prizes. Submit the home cooking videos to http://bit.ly/PotluckSeason2 for a chance to win prizes and be featured on Potluck. For more details, like Metro Channel on Facebook www.facebook.com/metrochannelph and follow it on Instagram and Twitter (@metrochannelph).
