Seven things to expect when dining at Red Kimono

I've been constantly telling myself that my body is no longer in shape, especially my tummy; thus the need for more regular workouts and lesser food intake. But what can I do? Eating is just so much fun! I'm sure you'd agree.

Red Kimono, The Fort Strip branch

Last Thursday night, I headed straight to The Fort Strip, Bonifacio Global City after work to try out Red Kimono. I heard that they offer buffet via order style dining, so I wanted to try it since I'm a Japanese food lover.

After about two hours of eating and paying Php595 (plus 10% service charge), I was able to think of 7 things a foodie should expect when dining at this Japanese restaurant. Alongside the tips that I'll be enumerating below, I'll also be posting pictures of the dishes I had.

Neatly prepared table inside Red Kimono

Expectation #1: The ambiance is great. The lights were just enough - not too dark and not too bright. It's great for meetings.

Chicken Teriyaki - Grilled chicken in Teriyaki sauce served with a potato hay garnish

Expectation #2: The food service is fast (around 15 minutes), but the waiters are kinda restless when you want to request something else. The service can be improved.

Beef Kamameshi

Expectation #3: You may order as much as you like as long as you order a minimum of one order of fried rice or gohan per person OR one kettle of Kamameshi rice per one to two diners. 

I suggest to just order the fried rice or gohan per person, since a kettle of Kamameshi rice has a lot of rice in it. Although, I liked the Kamameshi rice. It was tasty.

Prawn Tempura - 5 pieces per order

Expectation #4: If you're after the raw food a Japanese restaurant normally offers, you won't find any of those included in the buffet. Sake Sashmi or Tuna Sashimi is not part of the menu. However, you can get a taste of salmon when you order the Salmon and Cream Cheese Maki.

Pork Tonkatsu - Deep fried breaded pork cutlets served with garlic butter mashed potatoes

Expectation #5: In all honesty, the food didn't taste fresh. Although it was an by-order type of buffet, the Prawn Tempura in particular seemed to have been fried in old, used oil. It could have tasted better if fresh oil was used.

The taste of my other orders were just okay, nothing to rave about.

Green Tea Ice Cream

Expectation #6: Leave some space for desserts. I don't know about you, but I always want to eat something sweet after taking in a lot of food. It sorts of balances out the taste buds and it makes me feel a bit lighter. 

Note that the Buko Pandan Special might be too sweet for some, but I like it. On the other hand, the Green Tea Ice Cream has a strong green tea taste, so I'm not suggesting it if you don't like green tea at all.

Buko Pandan Special - a refreshing combination of vanilla ice cream, pandan jelly and fresh coconut strips

Expectation #7: Just like with any other buffet, there should be no leftover or each person on the table will be penalized with twice the price of the buffet.

After trying all these, it will definitely take a lot of months or years before I eat at Red Kimono again. I didn't have the best experience I was expecting to have that night. I'm not sure if it's because I set my expectations quite high. Nevertheless, I don't regret to have tried Red Kimono - at least I've gotten my impressions first hand.

Red Kimono
Unit 1A GF, Fort Strip, Fort Bonifacio,
Taguig City, Metro Manila
(02)8166642

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New MacBook Air becomes available on July 29, 2011

Apple is at it again! The sexy MacBook Air has just gotten an upgrade and will be available this Friday, July 29, 2011 at all Power Mac Center branches.

Apple MacBook Air (image from Apple.com)

We all know that this incredibly thin and light notebook computer works as powerful and capable as one twice its size. However, with its major upgrade, techies can enjoy its new features such as faster and battery-efficient Intel Core i5 processor, high-resolution display in both 11-inch and 13-inch sizes, high-speed Thunderbolt I/O port, bright backlit keyboard, an all-flash storage capacity from 64GB to 256GB and more. A more powerful configuration of the new MacBook Air running under the more advanced Intel Core i7 processor is also available to customers on a custom-order basis.

Itching to get that brand new MacBook Air? Head on to to any Power Mac Center branch. They're available in Greenbelt 3, TriNoma, The Annex at SM City North EDSA, SM Megamall, SM Marikina, Power Plant Mall, SM Mall of Asia, Festival Supermall, and SM City Pampanga.

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The Negative Side of SMS

Time really flies so fast. It has been over a decade since Short Message Service (SMS) or simply texting was introduced in the country. Through the years, this communication medium has gotten into us Filipinos and in fact marked the Philippines as the “texting capital of the world.”

Remember when sending texts were free back then? This is actually why most of the early users preferred to use it more than calling, which they get charged for. Since it bridges communication faster and easier as compared to beepers, users started abusing and exploiting the SMS service. As a result, network providers started charging.

With the advent of cheaper SIM cards and lots of unlimited promos today, texting has really urged people to use mobile phones day in and day out. Looking at the habit, SMS has actually brought several negative things.

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Mobile Phone Charging via T-Shirt

Dressed up to party like a rock star, you made sure your wallet, house key, and car key are ready for the night. You’re up to meet your friend somewhere at the event venue so you can get your concert ticket, but there’s just one problem. Your mobile phone’s battery died on you and there are just too many people to be able to find your friend without luck. What will you do?

Thanks to technology, we can now charge our mobile phones with the use of our t-shirt and the sounds we hear in public.

Over at the United Kingdom, mobile phone giant Orange has been doing research and development of unique merchandise that takes the power of sound and converts it into energy to power mobile phones.

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[Contest Alert] GUPO launches in Manila with a bang!

Even with myriads of group buying sites already existing in the market today, there's no stopping the technopreneurs of GUPO to start their business and find their market online.

GUPO, an abbreviated and catchy word from the Filipino word "grupo" is an online business that is all about finding good deals in our city with the benefits of being a group. Managed by a bunch of entrepreneurs who have been in the web, telecommunications and trading business for almost a decade, gupo.com.ph provides a fantastic deal everyday to its members.

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Convert your iPod Touch into an iPhone

Even with myriads of smart phones available today, a lot of people still wants an iPhone. I don't know what Steve Jobs did, but when we hear "Apple" or "Mac," it quickly equates to the I-wanna-have-that-gadget mentality. Well, of course there are still exceptions and that includes me.

Just recently, I visited the gadget haven in Manila. Oh boy did my boss saw the tech lust in my eyes. It was an orgasm brought by gadgets!

In this blog entry, I'll show some of the things that caught my attention. Are you ready? Read on...

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Purchasing Gadgets in Three Words

No one can stop manufacturers and tech giants from launching one gadget to another in a span of weeks or months. As consumers, we become tempted and eventually long to have that ultimate new gadget in town. But wait! When buying a new gadget, there are three words for you – scout, haggle, and wait.

SCOUT. You have to look at all possible places you can reach in order to know the going rate of the item you want. However, it does not mean that the price of majority of sellers is the price you need to pay. There’s always gonna be that one store that will be exceptional.

Don’t stop scouting within the local market. Try the gray market. If not, go for international sellers. More often than not, they have cheaper rates. Some countries are tax-free and closer from the manufacturing country; thus, lesser cost for shipments.

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Hed Kandi Discotheque Headphones

DJ turn the music up, up, up!

As soon as I got home from a long weekend work at the mall, I quickly opened the package that welcomed me on my desk. I was surprised to see a headphone by the popular UK-based record label Hed Kandi, which looked classy and sturdy at the same time.

So apparently, Hed Kandi has ventured into the earphone and headphone business (or the audio market to put it simply), since these products are very much related to music and parties anyway. What an excellent way to up the value and awareness of their brand, isn't it?

What came in the package is a black (a la DJ headphone) called the Hed Kandi Discotheque. Other colors were more leaned towards girls, unless guys can properly wear/carry the other colors Purple, White, and Baby Blue.

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Dream come true

Ever since I was in elementary, my mom would always tell us stories about her friends' children or our relatives who were being sent abroad for short term work assignments. She would tell my sister and I that these people excel in their day-to-day tasks, which is why their companies have the confidence to send them off.

It then got stuck into my mind that when I grow up, I want to be like them. I want my company or the institution that I belong in to send me elsewhere to do whatever they want me to do. Why? Mainly because if I do get sent, I believe that the company believes in my skills and competencies. Is it always the case? I don't know. Nevertheless, that's when one of my dreams was born.

Back when I was in college, I gave up a sponsored trip to Germany with fellow DLSU blockmates without giving much thoughts about the decision. There was actually a personal reason behind it. Part of me regretted it, but a part of me also says I did the right thing.

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Listerine Total Care Challenge Week 6: My Results and Verdict

The past 6 weeks since I started the Listerine Total Care Blogger's Challenge has been one great journey for me. Not only did it give me new learning about oral care, but also ushered me into doing a routine that I've never really consistently followed.

When I entered the challenge, I actually had some hesitations about the whole thing, but eventually joined the dare just the same. I knew that this could be a start of something great for my oral care. I guess I made a great decision after all.

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Technology in the eyes of college students, and living it

Waking up to a brand new day, rushing to finish breakfast, picking up your bag and lunch box, ringing bells here and there, and the singing of the Philippine National Anthem – where are we at? Hello, dear University, we meet again!

Now that it’s back to school season, I wanted to know how technology plays in the lives of college students and how they keep themselves abreast with technological advancements.

In a short survey I gave out to them, I asked the following major questions: (1) what is their best buddy in terms of gadget; (2) which electronic device they want to have that will greatly help them in school; and, (3) what technology-related problems are there in their university that they want to be fixed.

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Maximize Your iPod for School

Sunny days are over and rainy season is here. What does that symbolize for all students out there? It’s back to school once again. Have you gotten your new notebooks, bags, pens, and gadgets to show off to your classmates?

Perhaps some of them have gotten an iPad, while you only have your good old laptop and an iPod. So what? Things need not be new, as long as you find some use to it. In fact, your iPod is not just a music or video player; there’s more to it than that.

Read up and share to your friends as we list down some great ways you can use your iPod for school. These features are just actually sitting on your gadget, but may not have been given importance due to the focus on just music and videos.

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Because of your fresh breath story, you won Listerine gift packs...

Congratulations to Sabrina Dar Santos and Charles Angel Lacson for winning this edition of Share It, still part of the Glich's Life Share It, Guess It, Win It giveaway. Your stories were very simple, genuine, and witty.

As I've mentioned from my previous post, I'll draw a winner with the best entry and another one via Random.org. Here's my personal favorite courtesy of Sabrina, who earned a friend with her fresh breath:

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