Salt in SG

While Donki in Vivo City might be closing, it didn't stop me from going there and finding this:

Salt and Litchi!

Yup, my favorite drink from Tokyo is also here.

To paraphrase Miranda Priestly:

That's salt.

Pop goes Zagu

One of the secrets to Zagu's longevity is the fact that they always introduce something new and interesting.

While their pearl shakes are more than 20 years old now, they keep themselves from being stagnant by having seasonal flavours that will pique people's interest.

Heck, my interest was piqued after seeing this:

Popcorn in a pearl shake? Interesting.

And yes, it's good!

Hello Milo!

Just when you thought you couldn't have any more Milo options in your life.

Now, 7-11 has Milo in their range of Gulp drinks!

Right now, this is the cheapest among all the Milo options I've tried. It's P59 for a large cup like this. And while it's not as rich and creamy tasting as the others in my rotation, (places like PickUp and Cocopan put milk and syrup in their Milo drinks) this one still hits the spot.

Looks like I'll be in 7-11 more often these days.

Picking up my fave

I've been trying Milo drinks from different coffee and tea places lately.

Since Milo is Milo, and I"m a Milo boy, I'm all good with the different iterations of the drink. Basically, they taste the same, and the variations lie in the price and the add ons.

The easiest to reach - mainly because they have SO many stores in Manila - is Pick Up Coffee.

There are actually 2 branches near my office, so whenever the Milo craving attacks, I'm glad that I can pick up something to satisfy my cravings.

Come to my Ade

Because our office building is surrounded by Korean stores, I've discovered the joys of their packed drinks.

These drinks are fixtures in convenience stores in Seoul. You buy them, you buy a glass of ice, you pour it and enjoy.

Looks like 7-11 got wind of this because they're now selling ice cups.

So, Korean store + 7-11 =

These drinks - while in tetra packs - taste very natural! This one really tastes like squeezed grapefruit. And this is just one of the many, many, many flavours available.

One down, more to go.

Jiggle it. Just a little bit.

No, this isn't a misspelling of the classic 2-in-a-Room ditty.

Ugh! The song is now playing in my mind. Must make this an FMM sometime soon.

So, what's jiggling? It's this!

Jiggels Jelly Juice drink is a recent supermarket run discovery. And as a fan of jelly drinks, this was a must try.

It's so goo! 

I like this a lot! And not just a little bit.

Tea-rrific!

Presenting my latest discovery near the office.

There's a store that sells Vita Lemon Tea at The 30th at Ayala!

Now, there's no need to go far away to get my VLT fix. That's terrific news indeed!

When life gives you lemons...

Or more accurately:

“When your neighbor sells really cheap lemons...”

Well, you all know what happens next:

I’m actually a lemonade fan and usually buy fresh lemonade from malls. But of course, there’s a different sense of accomplishment if you make lemonade on your own.

Freshly squeezed lemonade, anyone?

This must be...

 

These bottles of Soda Pop from The Pop Shoppe look so old-School-Cool.

Not surprising if you consider that they’ve been around since the 60s!

Bonus: the 2 flavors are both ultra-faves! Hello Root Beer and Black Cherry!

Oh the joys of new discoveries that pop!

I won! I won!

This is the feeling after trying Chai Li Won!

This used to be something my colleagues in HKG would drink and offer to me quite often. But back then, my preference was Vita Lemon Tea, so this brand didn't get as much attention.

But after trying it again now, I'm liking it a lot! The taste is very floral-fruity, and it's very light and refreshing.

There's a new tea drink that won my heart!

Ly-cheers!

There’s truly a plethora of awesome memories I have of Tokyo and Japan. That has been well-documented on this blog.

But one of the daily, quiet memories that I cherish are those ordinary and daily trips that Mark and I would take on either the JR line or the Marunochi Subway line. This was often from IH2 to GRIPS.

During those daily rides, while waiting for the train to arrive, Mark would usually sit down and i’d Be scouting the nearby vendo machines for something to buy.

One of those things that I often get is this Salt and Lychee drink from Kirin.

I’m a huge fan of Lychees that’s why this drink is always on top of my list. Along with Fanta grape. 

Not only do I buy this at the Eli, but whenever Mark and I would go to Lawson, Mini-Stop, 7-i, Aeon Supermarket and other obscure konbinis, i’d buy this drink whenever it was available.

So, imagine my thrill and surprise when I went to the Japanese store near the house and found this:

It's my Kirin Salt and Lychee drink!!! Mark would understand why I'm so psyched about this. Harhar.

Cheers to finding this and getting to enjoy it again. 

Taking a Bite

Presenting the Netflix Series that is fuelling my craving for all those Mexican goodies that I enjoyed in the early 2000s when I lived in Mexico.

"La Divina Gula" is currently showing on Netflix and I've been binge-watching it since last Friday. Translated, the title means "Heavenly Bites," which is exactly what I've been seeing each episode. Heavenly food and drinks that are part of my Mexican experience.

Aside from Chilaquiles, the series made me miss Tortas, Tacos, Pan Dulce and Micheladas! This is on top of the usual Dona Torta Gorditas, Pinguinos, Choco Lala, Raspas and Helados.

Oh Mexico! I can't wait to go back and take a bite of these goodies again!

Loving Locally

It's been almost 6 years since my discovery of the local juice brand "Locally."

Back then, it was just being introduced in 7-11 in Ortigas, and several factors drew me to it. These include the unique flavours, the eye-catching label, plus the pun-ny names. Eventually, after trying it out, the product turned out to be as good inside as it was outside.

As years progressed, they expanded their formats. After launching with the bottle, they eventually ventured out into smaller cans. Then, they had bigger packs for families who enjoy sharing refreshing juice drinks with unabashedly local fruit flavours.

Our family is one of those families, of course.

Yup, our fridge never runs out of Locally! Especially the Tamarind which is an all-time fave!

They say we should love local, that's why we're also loving Locally!

Malted Gold!

Back when I was a kid, there was a popular malt candy called Horlicks.

These yummy tablets were available in 2 variants: Blue for the plain Malt candies, and Red for the Chocolate Malt candies. Back then, it was considered a "healthy" candy because it was made of malt and wasn't too sweet.

Eventually, the brand disappeared in the Philippines, but it was still pretty much present in other countries in the SEA region. 

One of the countries where you can still find Horlicks Malt is SG. They sell iced Horlicks in hawker centres and I'd make it a point to buy a few glasses every trip there.

It's been more than a year since I've been to SG, and admittedly, I'm missing the malty-choco taste of the brand.

Good thing they have a ready-to-mix version which can easily be transported from SG to MNL.

So, while I can't go to SG yet, I'm keeping my fingers crossed that it'll be Horlicks who'll be coming to MNL soon.

 

Vita-lity!

Today, more than ever, I realised that you can find anything online.

My awesome find for today is this:

Vita. Lemon. Tea.

VITA LEMON TEA!!!

Yes! My all-time favourite drink in HKG is now being sold in MNL! And it's been 2 years since I last had a sip of this elixir!

Of course, I HAD to buy a box! Actually, I bought 2 boxes and sent the other to Mamu, my co-Vita Lemon Tea fan.

Yes, my week is made!

Packed to a Tea

A post about this bottled milk tea in Paranaque keeps on popping up my feed.

I must say, this tea is beautifully packed! The bottle looks very high-end, and the flavours look very promising. Especially the Toffee Milk Tea and the Hojicha Milk Tea.

If this tea pops-up in my feed again, I just might end up ordering it soon!

Milo-and-behold!

If you can’t come to the Milo Dinosaur, let the Milo Dinosaur come to you!

First step, get the biggest pack of Milo you can find at the supermarket.

Now, all I need are big blocks of ice, and we’ll be in business!

Konnichiwa my old Tomodachis part 2!

After the onigiri, can Van Houten Cocoa be far behind?

Of course not!

Two days into my trip, and I've drank 3 cartons of this sublime chocolate drink.

And there's 1 more day to drink more.

Here's the Tea

This drink was a discovery a few months ago, and it's been a regular ever since.

It's called Essoil's Calamansi Iced Tea. Off hand, the name is a bit weird since it sounds like something you'd put in an oil burner. But weird name notwithstanding, this drink is really, really good. It has the right blend of sweetness, the flavor of calamansi and lemongrass, and the kick of tea. If I could drink this everyday, I would.

The thing is, it's only available in 7-11, and not all branches have it. That's why whenever I come across one, I drop everything and buy it.

This goes up there with Vita Lemon Tea as my favorite bottled tea drink.

Mello touch

Mello Yello was one of my favorite drinks as a kid. Too bad that they discontinued it in the Philippines.

Gladly, it's still very much available in the U.S.!

Time to Mello out.

P.S. I can still remember their jingle up to now:

 Mello Yello makes you feel so good, so fast
From your head down to your toe.
Mello Yello makes you feel so good, so fast
You can't just drink it slow!