The FIRST BACARDI LEGACY COCKTAIL COMPETITION in the PHILIPPINES

This year marks a milestone in Philippine Bartending.

This global cocktail competition challenges the best bartenders in the world to create their own cocktail legacy that will stand the test of time and that can go shoulder to shoulder with great classics like the daiquiri and mojito.

What makes this event so special? The BACARDÍ Legacy Cocktail Competition is a serious competition for talented Mixologists and it has quickly established itself as one of the most important cocktail competitions in the world. It is judged by an unrivaled panel of industry experts, renowned for their distinguished palates and years of bartending experience.

However, BACARDÍ believes that it takes time for a drink to become a true classic. That's why the deliberations process takes months; to ensure it has the potential to join our unique heritage as a BACARDÍ Legacy Cocktail. If it is successful, it will have the honor of being recorded in our company archives for generations to come.

This year there will be 1 winner each from Singapore, Thailand & the Philippines - to represent South East Asia in San Francisco for the Global Competition.

Out of 50 entries coming from different Bars in the metro it was trimmed down to the TOP 15 which were the following:

 Joey Cerdinia- The Exit

 Bianca Condes – The Curator
 Rodrigo Tomoling – Simply Thai
 Marnel Masallo – Skye
 Jason Hussein Ali – Niner Ichi Nana

 Mark Alvin Tolentino- Niner Inchi Nana

 Jerry Miranda – Niner Ichi Nana

 Philip John Seralde – Team Insider Sports Bar

 Guillermo Natividad – Eclipse Solaire

 Clayton Munar – Buddha Bar

 Aliuss Burnhard Abrazado – Buddha Bar 

Cedric Cello- Smith
Mark Jerrold Bernandino – B Hotel 
Richie Cruz - Team Insider Sports Bar
Kenneth Lloyd Misagal - ABV —  

The semi finals was held at the Distillery in BGC. It was a private event attended by the contestants, Bacardi Philippines and our select panel of judges.

The judges were a combination of industry experts that included:

Bobby Campos of Bacardi Philippines

Ito Zamora of Bacardi Philippines

David Denis - bar consultant from Miami

Danee Macatulad of Savoroso Philippines

Chef Philip Golding

It was a nerve wracking completion but everybody enjoyed the night until the results. The top 5 of the Philippines were announced and they were:

The Philippines' 5 finalists for the BACARDI Legacy Cocktail Competition:

1) Richie Cruz - El Tindero
2) Joey Cerdinia - bequest
3) Mark Alvin Tolentino - Little Man
4) Marnel Masallo - Island Souvenir
5) Mark Jerrold Bernardino - Kalikasan

What people do not know about this first batch is they are pretty solid and united. The next 4 months is going to be tough as they market their respective cocktails.But as they say, this is still a competition and may the best Bartender represent the Philippines.

Please support our homegrown bartenders if you happen to pass by their bars. Goodluck to all our Filipino Bartenders!!!!!

My trip down UP Shopping Center

Last Saturday, I needed to UP Diliman to do an errand. It gazed upon me that I needed to blog about where am going for as a UP student, the place am going to is a security blanket to each and every student that studies here. I am actually referring to UP Shopping Center which is located along the UP Ikot route, right across the Infirmary which is across the UP Chapel.

This place is a one stop shop indeed. If you run out of cash there is a Philippine National Bank where right beside it is the University Cashier. By the entrance there is a newspaper stand, a mango vendor and a fishball vendor and an ice cream vendor. Inside , you can see the following stalls:

Drugstore

Lab Equipment

Fish Pet shop

Western Union

Internet Café

Jewelry and Optical Shop

Souvenir Shop

Barber Shop

Photo ID Studio

Photocopy, Ringbind, book binding needs

Coffeeshop

Rodic’s

Korean and Japanese food

Banana Cue and Turon

Fruit stand

Beauty Parlor

Tailor

Printing

Bookstore and office supplies (D Holy Book)

Public Toilet

See? I think I got everything covered. If I did miss out on a few stalls well I leave that upto you.

UP will not be Up with out the UP Shopping Center.So if you happen to pass by UP and need something, maybe you can find it here (Click link for pictures) UP SHOPPING CENTER

What happened to CHOCOLATE KISS?

One of the many reasons why University of the Philippines Diliman is probably one if not the best campus in the metro is that have everything under one roof: a church, infirmary, library, shopping center, isawan, fishball and a whole lot of food stalls, soccer field, a place to jog and bike, lots of tambayans to chill and pass away the time and of course lots of places to eat and drink (although drinking is via C.P. Garcia and Katipunan avenue).

 I remember one of the more “sosyal” or should I say “conyotic” places to go to is the Chocolate Kiss café which is located at the second floor of the Bahay ng Alumni. If one is on a tight budget but wants to impress a girl this is the best bet. The ambience is romantic, semi dim lighting, a piano set up, staff were well dressed, aircon and ventilation were tip top and the food, for a college student was actually pretty decent. My last recollection of this was probably in early 2007.

Last Sunday I decided to check out the place again since I was looking for a place to have lunch since we missed the turn in U.P. Town Center and if I go back the traffic was massive.

I went to the usual parking at the back and entered the back entrance and proceeded to the second floor. As me and my family approached the place where Chocolate Kiss was, the hallway was dark so I looked around and saw a person wearing a kitchen uniform and asked him where Chocolate Kiss was and he pointed at a unit across the art shop was. So it relocated from second floor to ground floor and that is where we headed. As I approached the café, I felt something very different. The vibe is instead of a classy restaurant, it’s like I was in it’s counterpart, Casaa (condolence).

But I still went in since it was airconditioned and we were really starving. To my surprise, ventilation was below expectation, the staff just wore tshirt with print and I drew the conclusion that this might not be the same Chocolate Kiss.

We ordered Brewed Iced tea with honey although the honey was watered down, we ordered an oatmeal cake and a chocolate cake for starters while waiting for our main course which was a chicken pesto, salad, chicken kiev and a piece of cake and if I am not mistaken plus 3 glasses of water. The cake we got was not really that good but it didn’t matter much. The pesto I ate was a bit dry, the salad, and the kiev was a bit oily. To top it off, we didn’t get the water we asked.

 

  

Lots of changes happened here in this campus, car stickers, i.d, Casaa is no more and there has been rumors of a Starbucks uprising, new building infront of the building where the NatSci subjects are done, etc.. Some people find it hard to accept change. For my part, I will always miss the “old” Chocolate Kiss since this new one changed for the worse. I hope the next time I go back it will change again but on the positive side.

But over all, that’s the University of the Philippines, U.P. naming mahal!