Madrid Madness

Chocolateria San Gines, an uber popular chocolate cafe in Madrid - has opened its first branch in Podium.

They're bringing in their famous chocolate and churros, a combination that's been around in MNL for quite sometime.

And as expected, the lines are cray!

They're not the first big churros brand in MNL. Just a few years ago, La Lola Churrria was a popular hang out spot, but they lost their steam a few years after. They're now trying to make a comeback through The Bistro Group. 

There's also the OG - Dulcinea. Now, this is the churros that we grew up with.

Honestly, I'm curious to see if the taste is the same as the original one in Madrid (but it's been almost 2 decades since my last trip there). But I'll wait for the crazy lines to subside before trying it.

Fresh Pomelo

So, it's true.

Pomelo is now in MNL!

This popular Thai fast fashion brand opened its first branch in Glorietta, and it's a spacious store with a lot of good stuff.

Will drop by and pick some stuff from this brand soon.

I See's you!

This sight at The Podium made my heart skip a beat.

A full-sized See's Candies store!

And it's just a stone's throw away from the office.

This I gotta see!

Kaya pala!

It's official.

Ya Kun Kaya toast is now open in Gateway 2!

Now, it's going to be even easier and more convenient to satisfy my Kaya Toast cravings.

Top notch!

Finally! Top Ten is in the Philippines, and it's in our neighbourhood.

Now, I'll be shuttling between this store and Uniqlo to get my minimalist, fast-fashion fix.

Can someone bring SPAO here, too? Please.

Bonito es abierto

Had to see it for myself to believe it!

Woohoo! Love, Bonito is finally open. It's just below the escalators at Greenbelt 3, same row as the Power Mac Center and across Urban Revivo.

Didn't have time to go in and check it out. But I'm definitely going to go back soon.

Bonito Begins

After much anticipation, the first Love Bonito store finally opens in the Philippines this weekend!

To go, or not to go. That is the question.

Que Bonito!

After Editor's Market, here's another one of my go-to brands that's opening a store in the Philippines!

Love, Bonito is a fun, feminine fast fashion brand (so many Fs!) that's also very affordable. They have a good mix of classics and fashion forward items.

Maybe it's time for In Good Company to open its stores in the country again.

Rita's Return

It saddened me when Rita's Italian Ice closed its doors in 2022. 

Their Greenhills branch was our go-to stopover after our Unilab meetings. Their UP Town Center branch was where we'd have dessert after a long day of malling.

Looks like I'll be able to enjoy this cool treat once again.

Yes, they're back! And they'll have a branch at The Podium, apparently.

Can't wait for the return of Rita's!

You better Works!

After much anticipation and a long time waiting, we finally have an official Bath and Body Works store in the Philippines!

Yes! Their first mall store in SM Megamall is finally open!

Work, Bath and Body Works, Work!

Forty-Four

Yes, it's true. I miss my routine visits to H&M.

This store is a huge part of my affair with fast fashion. From my first discovery of the brand in Europe, to the time they opened a few minutes away from my flat in HKG, to their eventual opening in Manila in 2017.

Gosh! My last visit to a physical H&M store was January this year. That's 9 months ago!

And today, there's this article that came out that they've opened their 40th store in the country!

Judging by these photos from SM Aura, H&M is occupying the space that used to be the 2-storey mega-store of Forever 21. Looks like they swapped one fast fashion brand for another.

But if you count 'em, 40 stores in 4 years is quite a feat for H&M! That's fast fashion growing fast!

Congratulations on your 40th store, H&M! I'll see you soon!

For a good Cos

You can just imagine my thrill when I saw this article online.

COS is finally here in Manila!

Looks like the H&M group is making its presence felt in the Philippines. First, it was H&M. Then, it was Monki. And now, COS!

It's a COS for a celebration!

Hey, hey, we’re the Monkis!

The good news: Monki has finally opened its first Philippine store in SM Megamall! 

Before, I had to fly to HKG to get my Monki fix. But now, it's just a stone's throw away from where I live, and much closer to where I work.

The not-so-good news: we're still not going to the malls.

Well, at least I know that Monki will just be there when we need it.

Mall this time

Just when you thought we had more than enough malls in Metro Manila, they open another one!

After a frantic, last-minute push, they've finally opened the new Podium Mall. It's going to be the high end mall of the SM group, and seeing the interiors, it looks like they're serious about the imaging.

Everything's so clean, streamlined and pristine. And the lines are unlike the usual boxes that SM is known for. This mall is more curvilinear and softer. It actually reminds me of Pacific Place in HKG.

At least we have a new mall to hangout in now.

Hello there, My neighbor.

So it's confirmed. H&M's next branch is right here in Cubao!

They've finally put their billboards all over the boarded-up part of Gateway Mall. While there were already talks that they were taking over that area, we still had to wait for confirmation. And this is it!

This is so cool! Dangerous in terms of shopping, but still so cool!

And Makati makes three

The people behind H&M Philippines have been very busy.

They've been here for less than 2 months, and they're already opening their 3rd store. They have a faster rate of opening than HKG did back in 2007.

Christmas shopping is sure to be a lot more fun this year.

It's On!

Here's concrete proof that Cotton On is indeed opening in Manila. I can almost hear my former Journalism students shriek in delight. After all, during our Investigative Journalism trip to HKG, I think we spent the most time in Cotton On. 

Judging by the small space they're given - and the off the radar location in the mall - it's clear that the franchise isn't owned by SM. So, the reports that it's owned by Bench might be true.

We're really on our way to becoming a fast fashion hub in Asia!

Holy & Moley

Here's the reason why fashionable Hong Kong is in a tizzy these days. In 2 weeks, the anticipated opening of Sweden's foremost fast fashion feast is finally pushing through. Yes, Hennes & Mauritz is finally opening its doors.

H&M is one of my favorite cheap thrills. I remember when I was still in Amsterdam, there were about 3 H&M branches near where we lived. So, whenever there was free time (which was every hour, every day), I'd often find myself going through the racks and trying to find something nice - and under 20 Euro - to take home. Unfortunately, Roland never shared my passion for H&M. He complained that their clothes aren't well made, the materials weren't nice, and overall, he felt that H&M was cheap. I'd often reply: "What's the problem? They are cheap."

Despite his constant discouragement, I'd still go there and buy a shirt for myself and the occasional tie and polo for him. But it's been 2 years since my last trip to Europe, so that means it's been 2 years since I last stepped in an H&M store.

But all that's going to change starting March 10. The signs are all there, and I couldn't agree with them all.




To launch the brand in Hong Kong, they're debuting Madonna's "M" collection as their centerpiece. All over the MTR stations, you can find posters of Madonna donning her collection, using H&M's signature layout of having the low-price festooned prominently on the material. Judging by the giddy responses of the women who stopped and stared at the posters, it looks like there's going to be a riot when they open. Thank goodness i'm not a huge fan of her, nor the clothes she designed.




Too bad the capsule collection of Viktor & Rolf didn't make it here on time. Now it that were on sale here, then I'd be uber interested. One good thing about that designing duo is that they design for Men and Women, so there's enough fashion to go around. It's unfortunate that a lot of the nice capsule collections are only for women: Proenza Schouler for Target, Roland Mouret for Gap, and Kate Moss for Topshop. I did hear that Derek Lam and Philip Lim will be designing for Uniqlo, and hopefully their capsule collection will reach HK's fashion-hungry shores.

In the meantime, I'll wait two weeks to see if the H&M here is as good as those in Europe in terms of choices. (Hopefully, they'll have H&M Logg and Divided here.) And if it is, then Zara has found a worthy competitor in my book.