Sooo Pinoy Ultimate Food Blogger - The Contest and Journey

Wanting to be the Sooo Pinoy Ultimate Food Blogger winner for the contest to win a journey around the Philippines is one thing that I dream of. It keeps me motivated and makes me look forward to something new. The journey includes dining in over 100 different restaurants, and I like that, and who would not?

Sooo Pinoy Ultimate Food Blogger: My Personal Journey

If it was not for the Sooo Pinoy Ultimate Food Blogger contest, I would not have started this blog. That in itself is an accomplishment for I live and work in a virtual world. An example of my typical day is to wake up, turn on the computer, go wash my face, and write a few articles for work while cooking at lunch at the same time. Multi-tasking? Yup. I am a great example of a work at home mom.

Sooo Pinoy Ultimate Food Blogger

Making it to the Top 20

It was quite a wait to know the result of the first round and now am off to the next round with this blog entry.  It must have come to the point where my kids would say "Mom, be cool." Well, I never really did join contests before this one. And when I did, the contest bug bite me hard.

It bit me so hard, I started joining other online contests. RT to Win, Share and Win, Write a Tweet to Win, and practically anything. My kids tell me that maybe it's not the prize, it's the enjoyment of winning.

And it made a lot of my friends on Facebook start reading my post and joining contests too!

As a web writer, my life is mostly online. These kinds of contest provide me with a break, and one that has hope. So, forget about playing games that are a waste of time, and get join the fun by being part of a raffle or contest online.

Sooo Pinoy Ultimate Foood Blogger - More than Just a Contest

Being in the Top 20 is an honor indeed. I hope to make it to the next round. I hope to win. And, by God's Grace and Mercy, if He should make me win. I hope that this group decides that I am the best and most qualified blogger to hold our country's flag up high to promote the cause of great Filipino cuisine.

The One: Sooo Pinoy Ultimate Food Blogger Contestant’s Choice

If you were given a choice to pick one restaurant that may symbolize your country's food, what would it be?

The Search: Sooo Pinoy 
Ultimate Food Blogger Contestant’s Choice

When Filipinos stay in the US for a time, they long for something that is not available. (Walang ganyan sa States)

The Heart: Green Mango (Manggang Hilaw)

The center of every feast and occasion is...

The Soul: Roasted Pig (Lechon)

A meal is not complete without these.

The Life: Sauteed Vegetables

The Comfort: Beef Stock Soup (Bulalo)

The dessert was delightful with a unique dip which tasted like condensed milk..

The Sweetness: Crispy Wrapped Deep Fried Bananas (Turon)

The Spirit: Establishment Boom 

After one month of operation on May 2010, Chic-Boy sold its first franchise. Now, it has 79 dine-in stores and 47 under construction. If you will recall the trend of Shawarma stalls, Siopao kiosks, and Noodles with Chili-Garlic sauce, these all started sprouting like mushrooms to get established into our food lifestyle. Chic-Boy is top of the roasted chicken (inasal) trend right now.

At first, I thought that Chic-Boy meant a guy who likes girls (chicks) then I found out that it meant chicken-baboy as their 2 key dishes are the Cebu Lechon Manok and Cebu Lechon Liempo.

Sooo Pinoy: The Service

Ordering is done in the counter and the food is delivered to the table, piping hot. The fork and spoon are wrapped in tissue paper. The food is placed in the center for you to get your own plate. 

The service? Exactly what you will expect from a typical Philippine restaurant - you want service, call the waiter or bus boy, and if he is busy, go to the counter.

Chic-Boy: The Difference

To get value for your money. Chic-Boy is it. The serving portions is double of what other restaurants serve with unlimited rice and soup.

The Cebu Lechon Liempo had crispy skin, was tender, and delicious. The Cebu Lechon Manok was cooked perfectly and very tasty.

Sooo Pinoy: Breaking Down Barriers

Chic-Boy, Molito, Alabang is the only place that I know where wealthy Alabang boys will sit down to dine with people that are taxi drivers and sale representatives.

It is, I believe, a restaurant that breaks down the barriers set by money by serving food that is affordable to all. The food is so good, no one cares about anything else. People are treated equally with the same amount of food and service.

If you want to eat great food, go to Chic-Boy. More than saving money and getting full, it truly breathes the life and soul of Sooo Pinoy food.  

A Food Blogger's Ultimate Dream Journey

A Filipino food lover's dream trip of is now possible with the Why Should You Be the Ultimate Sooo Pinoy Blogger contest. Why am I writing this blog post as an entry so I have a chance to win, travel around the Philippines, and dine in over 100 various restaurants?

Because it's surely going to be an awesome experience.

Filipino food is unique. Each region has their own distinct taste, flavoring preferences, and local ingredients. As one travels around our country, it is easy to be overwhelmed by the beautiful scenery, to do various activities, and savor the various scrumptious dishes.

What identifies Filipino food is the cooking style and the main ingredient. I have only a general idea of where Sooo Pinoy will take me if I win, but I imagine the trip will have a rather similar schedule to that of my waking dream.

"You have won and are now the Ultimate Sooo Pinoy Blogger! Go and..."

Order Sinigang na Baboy (Pork cooked in Sampaloc fruit broth) in a seaside restaurant by the famous Manila Bay after going to Intramuros and walking around Luneta.

Have a large hot steaming bowl of Bulalo in Tagaytay, while looking at the view of Taal Volcano which is the smallest volcano in the world.

Enjoy Putong Puti (white rice cakes) with a cup of Batangas Coffee while tanning in a beach in Nasugbu or diving in Anilao.

Swim with the whales in Sorsogon, view the perfect cone of Mayon Volcano, and eat Bicol Express (pork cooked in coconut milk with long green chiles) to spice up my life.

In the Visayan speaking regions, my major decision would be the choice of how fresh seafood would be prepared. Would it be Sugba (grilled) or Kilawin (cooked in vinegar with spices)?

The preparation of the Filipino food varies according to what is plentiful in the region. For example, in Ilocos, a lot of dishes are flavored with atchuete, while in Bicol and the Visayas, most dishes and even desserts are cooked in coconut milk.

A good Filipino cook would create seasonal dishes like the Ipon (goby frys) of Ilocos Sur, as these fish can only get caught during the colder months of the year.

The packaged food that is sold by vendors in the different tourist spots is made from their primary crops. A few of these are Strawberry Jam from Baguio, Pili Nut Candy form Bicol, Turrones de Casuy from Bulacan, and Dried Philippine Mango from Cebu.

The reason why these food products are in demand, aside from our foreigners visitors coming here to taste these delicacies, is that it is Filipino tradition to give Pasalubong (homecoming gifts) to their family and friends.

If I win, I would have to bring extra money for pasulubong shopping.

What can one do if they are in Metro Manila and it is not possible to travel all the time to enjoy regional cuisine?

Find an authentic regional restaurant. One that is owned by those from the area so the true goodness of cuisine may be enjoyed. There are some that are outrageously expensive but there are a few excellent ones that you can try - and you would be surprised on how reasonable the prices are.

One such regional restaurant is iBagnet, located in Metrowalk, Ortigas Avenue.

It serves authentic Ilocano food such as Bagnet (deep fried pork).

iBagnet Restaurant emade a unique variation of a spicy vegetable dish Gising-Gising (which means Wake up - Wake up)that had me travelling all the way from Las Pinas the very next day I found out just to eat it! It was fantastic!

And the Vigan Longganisa is shuttled in from Vigan, Ilocos Sur - as only the best of authentic Ilocano food is served at iBagnet, where good food and good people meet.

Here's me hanging out with my friends at iBagnet.

For authentic Ilocano food with the option for an al fresco dining experience, go to iBagnet.

'Wag maging dayuhan sa sariling bansa. Mamasyal at kumain sa iba't ibang lugar. Masarap at mura ang pagkain natin, maganda ang tanawin, kaya tayo dinadayo...

Make a video - it's fun, easy and free!
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Note: After spending a lot of time creating this post, making sure that it is informative, interesting, and there is a call to action, integrating the keywords, choosing the images, making the video, and editing, a sense of fulfillment happened to me just before publishing.

I know that there are a lot of good Pinoy bloggers and this will be a tough competition. The title of Ultimate Sooo Pinoy Blogger may be an achievable goal, and in trying to get my dream journey, there is something that I realized. If I don't win, I would have shared a part of my dream, some insights, and a few wonderful moments.

Yet, if I become the Ultimate Sooo Pinoy Blogger, it is the culmination and a beginning.

To travel the Philippines is gastronomic feast as famous Food TV Travelers Andrew Zimmern and Anthony Bourdain discovered went they went to the Philippines to eat Balut and feature the various restaurants.

Yet, what these two TV Hosts had shown is only the tip of the iceberg of what I may feature with this opportunity in my Ultimate Pinoy Food blog, on a YouTube channel, and promote with the cooperation of the Sprout Initiative and the TNT Pilipinas Unscene Series, the two sub-culture groups that I help as a consultant.

We have been planning to create a travel documentary show that will feature board sports and food in the Philippines, and this may be it.

"Go for it!" one said as I asked permission to use the photos. I would love to hear the woot-woots coming from the underground music Pinoy rockistas and the board sports fanatics as they will see me bring our dream a step closer! A few of them will ask me if they can come along to get video footage, and I have no worries as they have the budget to travel the Philippines, as they do it for fun anyway! I don't know if I can bring them along though...

If by God's Grace and Mercy, I win the "Why Should You Be the Ultimate Sooo Pinoy Blogger" contest, my fervent wish is that I be allowed to bring one of my daughters with me, and am willing to pay for their expenses, if that is not too much to ask. If there is a way to break down the trip, each of the 4 would have a turn! That's because these kind of experiences are best when shared with someone that you love.