Food shorts: Holiday delivery restaurants, meat-free burgers, and more

MANILA -- Check out some of the latest news in the local food scene.

These are not endorsed by ABS-CBN News. 

FOODPANDA'S HOLIDAY DELIVERY RESTAURANTS

Foodpanda has listed some of its partner restaurants where users of the delivery app can order this holiday season. 

These include Hooked and Cooked (fish and taco meals), Jackson's Fried Chicken, Pasteria (savory party trays), Urbanica (coffee), Wantea (milk tea), and Puro (ice cream).

Other Foodpanda-exclusive brands include Noah’s Kitchen, K-Bite’s, Simot, Faasos, IHOP, and Applebees. Those who order food gifts this month can add a Christmas card for free for a personal touch. 

Meanwhile, Foodpanda also recently introduced "A Gift for Kuya," an initiative that enables customers to purchase food items and more for their rider when they order from Pandamart.

The choices are priced up to P55, with items such as white chocolate bars, chocolate chip cookies, and brownies. 

The campaign runs in all Pandamart branches in Metro Manila until December 31.

MANG INASAL'S HOLIDAY FEAST

Mang Inasal is offering its bestsellers and more this Christmas in family-sized pans good for 4-6 people.

Customers can get bigger servings of Chicken Inasal Large Paa (or Pecho), Palabok, Liempo, Pork BBQ, Sisig, and Chicken Empanada for takeout and delivery through the Mang Inasal website, as well as on GrabFood and Foodpanda. 

MERCATO OPENS IN ANTIPOLO

Robinsons Place Antipolo is the new home of Mercato east of Metro Manila. 

Known to be the premier destination lifestyle food market in the Philippines, Mercato brings in 30 food entrepreneurs for the Gourmet Food Fair, which will run until the end of 2022. 

After enjoying a meal at the Picnic Grounds, customers can learn a new hobby as bicycles and e-scooters are available for rental. RC race tracks are also installed so enthusiasts can enjoy playing at the mall's open grounds.

Robinsons Place Antipolo’s Gourmet Food Fair runs Thursdays to Sundays, 3 p.m. to 10 p.m., at the upper ground parking area.

TIM HORTONS PARTNERS WITH NESTLE FOR PLANT-BASED MENU

Tim Hortons Philippines has partnered with Nestlé Professional Philippines’ to launch menu offerings based on the latter's Harvest Gourmet plant-based products.

These include the meat-free Classic Barbecue Sensational Burger, and meat-free Grilled Quesadilla with Barbecue Sauce. The new items were launched in all 31 Tim Hortons Philippines stores last December 8.

Priced at P230, the meat-free Classic Barbecue Sensational Burger contains a Harvest Gourmet patty, barbecue dressing, fresh tomato, onion, lettuce, and cheese, sandwiched in a brioche bun.

The Grilled Quesadilla with Barbecue Sauce, on the other hand, uses Harvest Gourmet Schnitzel pieces, enveloped in soft grilled tortilla with barbecue dressing, onion, green peppers, and cheese, priced at P190.

Harvest Gourmet products are also available through Nestlé Professional Philippines and e-commerce partners Rare Food Shop, Lazada, Shopee, and Wholemart PH.

LIFEFOOD'S NATURAL SUPPLEMENTS

Natural supplements brand LifeFood promises to help cater to Filipinos' health needs such as maintaining cholesterol levels for a healthy heart.

The brand said its products have ingredients such as curcumin, primarily found in turmeric or luyang dilaw, which can be used for managing general inflammation to help address osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis.

Another is astaxanthin, which gives seafood like salmon and certain algae its red color. It is said to be one of nature’s most powerful antioxidants, which are substances that can help prevent or slow down cell damage. 

LifeFood also has a product with citrus peels, which are said to help in maintaining healthy cholesterol levels. 

A brand of Unilab's Synnovate Pharma Corporation, LifeFood is available in Mercury Drug stores nationwide.

MAMA SITA'S 'LUTONG BAHAY' SERIES

The fifth and final episode of the "Lutong Bahay ni Mama Sita" series features a special Octopus Sisig with Okra recipe, using food ingredients exported from the Philippines to Korea such as frozen whole octopus, fresh okra and okra chips, calamansi extract, coconut oil, and Mama Sita's Capampangan Sisig Mix.

The series is a collaborative project of the Philippine Embassy in Korea with the Philippine Agriculture Office in Seoul and Mama Sita Foundation. 

It was launched in August 2020 to actively promote the Philippines' food and ingredients exported to Korea.

Other previously featured recipes include Pork Barbecue with Papaya Atchara, Beef Caldereta with Saba Banana Turon, Shrimp Sinigang sa Sampalok with Okra, and Rellenong Bangus with Pickled Mangoes. 

The episodes are available on the Mama Sita's Recipes YouTube channel. 

MCDONALD'S KINDNESS KITCHEN PROGRAM

Through its Share the Light campaign this month, McDonald’s Kindness Kitchen is distributing over 7,000 meals to orphanages and its Ronald McDonald Bahay Bulilit (RMBB) beneficiaries nationwide.

The Kindness Kitchen is a project of RMHC, which aims to continue to provide food for medical health workers and other frontliners like the police, LGU volunteers, and government agencies; and extend help to the different marginalized sectors without access to food.

McDonald's encouraged the public to also donate meals through the RMHC website.

Meanwhile, the fast food chain also launched its Share-A-Meal program, which runs until December 25. With no purchase requirement, customers can visit a branch near them and fill out a Share-A-Meal card.

LA GERMANIA'S HOLIDAY CLEANING HACKS

La Germania is sharing kitchen cleaning secrets that could come in handy this holiday season. 

One of these is how to clean the brand's range oven without fancy equipment, but only with a simple spray made of 1/3 cup water, 1/3 cup white vinegar, and 1/2 cup baking soda. 

To bring back the original shine of the La Germania range oven, the brand suggested pouring some washing detergent into a bathtub or large basin, leaving the oven racks in the solution for at least four hours. After rinsing and wiping them dry with a cloth, the racks can be returned to the oven.

Meanwhile, La Germania said the range hood can be kept clean using hot water and baking soda. Those who intend to do this are advised to wear gloves as the filter will be hot during the process.