Versus the KFC Double Down

"Nice one KFC, Nice one."  As what the commercial says.  Well the KFC double down is not a new item on the menu (at least it is new in the Philippines, though.)  This particular "sandwich" has actually been launched  in the USA since April of this year.  It was first thought as an April Fools joke when it was announced that KFC would come out with what seems to be an unusual sandwich.

For those who are not familiar with this, here is the low down of what a double down is:
it's a sandwich of Cheese, Bacon and Mayo dressing (if that is not enough to raise your cholesterol level, wait it gets more interesting) these are actually sandwiched in between two original recipe fried chicken fillets.  Oh dear, I think KFC should start having people sign waivers before they eat it.  Well, since I am a food blogger I am very much up to any food challenges that come before me so I gave it a try.

I had my fix of the Double Down in KFC's Valero branch and when I first saw the meal I figured that I was cheated since it is smaller from how I see it on the television commercial. It's either that or the commercial models are really small people.  Or probably they used bigger breasts for the commercial.  (Don't they always?) That's chicken breasts I mean.

When I took my first bite my initial reaction is that it is a bit salty.  It's a good thing I ordered mashed potatoes  (bought it as a meal with fixin and drink) to balance it off and also to put some carbs into the meal.

Well, since the sandwich seems to be a bit salty, I always get this tingling sensation in my tongue.  And what do I do when this happens?  Eat ice cream of course!  And I was glad that I ordered a Holiday Krusher as well.  The Choco Peppermint Krusher is a good way to have a "balanced" meal (that's how I figured a balance meal is walang basagan ng trip.)  Next time I'll try the Black Forest Krusher as well.

Because of the size, I felt bitin after eating it.  Suggestion, get bigger chickens next time.

So here's a tip, when you get the double down order bread or macaroni salad or mashed potatoes or even rice if you like (ulam na to!)  You would need it to balance the saltiness of the double down and also to make you feel busog after the meal.  I will definitely try the double down again - if it is available that is.  I think I was one of those lucky to have ordered it.  The server had to check first if it is available when I ordered.  Word on the street is that others are not so lucky as it is always out of stock in some stores and it is on a limited release.

Here's my fantasy recipe for the Double Down.  Put in 3 strips of bacon, onion rings, mashed potatoes, cheese, cover it in Mayo, in between 2 Fried Chicken Fillet.  Add some gravy.  Wrap it in more bacon.  Dip it in a batter and fry it.  Smother with chocolate syrup and candy sprinkles.  And yeah, call it the Double Dead!

I wonder when the Fried Coke would reach the Philippines?  Anyways, I think Executive Lunch won that round with the Double Down.

Tried Recently in Singapore: Red House at the Quayside

On my recent trip to Singapore, we went to Red House at the Quayside for our corporate dinner and what a way to spend the last night in Singapore by trying one of their signature dishes which is the Chili Crab.

Red House has been in the business for the past 24 years and they are known to offer fresh seafood dishes. We went to their second location which is at the Quayside which is just a few steps away from our hotel.

The meal started with the drunken prawns.  So even for the appetizer there is already alcohol, hehe.  No wonder I was about 5% proof that day and the reason why I wasn't able to notice the wrong bill at Hooters http://execlunch.blogspot.com/2010/11/hooters-singapore-now-thats-what-im.html

My favorite is this dish which has a curry like taste and a bit spicy.  I believe this what they called the spicy seafood combination.  It was served with a mantao-like bread that you can use to scoop the wonderful sauce off your plate.

Spicy Seafood Combination, the best!

And the food just kept on coming, we were served sauteed fresh scallops with savory egg whites and broccoli followed by crispy duck scezhuan.  Funny thing is the waiter has to violently shred the duck when served and a "piece" flew to my side of the table.  Here is the scezhuan duck, at the background is the scallops with broccoli.

Excuse me if some people might find the next picture offensive.  Say hello to my little friend...

Donald? Is that you?

And finally, here is the signature dish of Red House the Chili Crab.  I am not a crab eater myself having had seafood allergy as a child and secondly we had some difficulty eating it.  We tried every trick to try and eat the crab. It was only after the meal where we noticed that the crab utensil is at the side.  (Way to go Idaho.)  One thing though, the sauce is good and SPICY!  The trick is to put the sauce in the rice.

You would need a fire extinguisher for this!

A grand Singapore dinner such as this is not complete without drowning the old liver with Tiger Beer.

And here is the perfect fire extinguisher.

And of course for the perfect ending, here's a staple Chinese dessert with a twist. - Chilled Fresh Mango Pomelo with Sago. Tangy!

It was a good dining experience all in all.  And after eating you can enjoy the river scenery and walk off the excess calories.  I actually walked from Red House to Clarke Quay and back to Riverview Hotel...in leather shoes.

I'll try to see if some restaurants here in the Philippines could emulate the authentic Singapore taste.  If not, it would be one good reason to go back to Singapore soon.

Hooters Singapore - Now that's what I'm talking about!

Guys guys, settle down.  I know what comes to mind if the word Hooters is mentioned but this post is more about the great customer service that I've experienced with Hooters Singapore lately.  So it's more like marrying a Playboy Playmate because of her great personality ;-)


This story started when my friend and I decided to have a few beers at Hooters Singapore at Clarke Quay.  They have a 2+1 Happy Hour Promo starting 10pm so we've decided to order two Hoegaarden Beers and we got a third one free.  (It's a Belgian Beer, sweet tasting.  I recommend this one.)  


We were able to consume one and a half bottles each and so when I started to pay (through my credit card which turned out to be a good thing, will explain later on) I didn't quite notice very well how much I was paying.  (I blame it on the multiple rounds of Tiger Draft Beer that I have drank before going to Hooters.)  The server giving me extra service by folding the bill made me forget about giving the bill a second look. (Frankly, I could have preferred a different extra service... like a back massage perhaps? Ano pa ba...) 


I was already here in the Philippines when I looked at the bill again and saw that we were not charged with two beers but instead tequila and chicken wings!  Sad part is I overpaid as the beers would only amount to SGD27.10 and not the SGD35.20 that I signed.  I quickly wrote an email to Hooters to see if they can rectify the problem.  See my email below:  

From: Ronaldo N
Sent: Monday, November 15, 2010 2:07 AM
To: mktg@hooters.com.sg
Subject: bill error

Dear Sir,

I was a recent visitor of Singapore and your restaurant at Clarke Quay.  It appears that there seems to be some error in the bill that I have paid on November 12, 2010.  We ordered two Hoegaarden Beers and availed of your 2+1 promo.  I have paid invoice no. 550226 using my credit card with an amount of SGD 35.20.  However, now that I am checking my transaction the bill couldn't have reached that amount since a Hoegaarden only cost SGD 11.5 per bottle.  When I looked back at the invoice that was presented me (I noticed that the server quickly folded it when it was given to me) the items in the said invoice is tequila and chicken wings. Can you do something about this?  By the way I've already returned to the Philippines yesterday.

Thank you and Best Regards,

Ronald N

A few hours later this email greeted me with a welcome surprise:

From: Joey Leong 
Date: Mon, Nov 15, 2010 at 2:21 PM
Subject: RE: bill error
To: Ronaldo N
Cc: cs_chua, sam, operations, Hooters - Admin 

Dear Ronald,

Greetings from Hooters Singapore!

Yes!  We have since found out that we presented the wrong bill to you.  You were with another guest and had consumed a set of Hoegaarden Happy Hour deal (Buy 2 and get the 3rd free).  The amount should work out to be: $11.50 x 2 bottles = $23.00++. 

Folding the receipt was meant to be an extra service so that you can keep it in the wallet easily.  Our staff are trained to remind our customers to double check the items in the receipt as well, before we close the transaction.  We must apologise for this shortfall and we will definitely brief our girls again to be more careful. 

We will be writing to the bank to reverse the charges to S$27.10, or a refund of S$8.10. You should be seeing this in your next credit card bill statement.  Please find attached actual receipt for your reference.

We sincerely apologise for any inconveniences caused.  Should you require any further assistance, feel free to contact us again.  We look forward to see you in Hooters Singapore soon.

Warmest Regards,

(Ms) Joey Leong
Marketing & Business Development
Manager
Hooters Singapore

And just like that the SGD 8.10 was returned to me today.  Imagine if I've paid in cash?  The only thing I could probably do was be like Homer Simpson and say "d'oh!"


I have promised Joey to tell you guys about this great customer service experience.  And I can attest to you that there are more things to hoot for in Hooters other than the Hooter Girls ;-)  They serve good food and have good customer service too.  Do visit them at Clarke Quay when you are in Singapore or visit their website at http://www.hooters.com.sg/.  And try the Hoegaarden Beer too.

In Singapore - In Search of the Authentic Hainanese Chicken Rice

I arrived yesterday here at Singapore for a business meeting.  While here blogger me would be searching (again) for the Hainanese Chicken Rice.  I have first tasted this wonderful dish during my first visit 7 years ago.  At first, I figured what's the big fuss about this dish? It's steamed/boiled chicken with rice cooked in it's own broth. But when I tasted it I have become an instant fan.  There are restaurants that offer this dish in Manila but then again nothing compares to the traditional (and patient) way of cooking this dish.

During my flight coming here, Singapore Airlines got chicken in it's menu.  I was hoping it was chicken rice but it comes with pasta so I ordered the fried fish instead.  After arriving and checking late in the hotel, it was already too late and tiring to survey the area plus the fact that I already ate dinner during the flight so I settled to have a beer and some beef pie for midnight snack instead.

On my second day, I had lunch at the Fusionopolis in One-North.  I immediately asked my colleague if there is Chicken Rice being served at the food court and true to being unofficially being Singapore's national dish, there it was being sold with not just the steamed variety but with fried chicken too.  I am more traditional so I ordered the steamed set which cost SGD 4.50.

The set includes soup and petchay with garlic.  Of course for the dipping it would have to be chili sauce.  This version of the chicken rice didn't disappoint me but how I  wished that they have used a fattier chicken.  The rice has a different taste from the one I ate few years back but the local told me that it is because we are in fastfood so the meals are prepared in large batches.  The non set cost only SGD 3.00 but the chicken portion is smaller so the additonal cost was quite worth it.  Dinner with the group came later and if it included Chicken Rice I wouldn't mind eating it again.

Mission: Search for Hainanese Chicken Rice - COMPLETED!

 
Up next on Executive Lunch: Red House Seafood Restaurant at the Quayside.  Abangan!  This would be one yummy post.

Tried Recently - ABE Restaurant and Yes there was a Dingdong & Marian Sighting too.

Last Friday I had dinner with some foreign guests and we have decided to treat them to some local cuisine.  And of course we could never go wrong with one of the LJC chain of restaurants to showcase Filipino food.  I initially thought of Fely J which I have sampled a few months ago when one of my college friend came home to the Philippine for a visit. And since it is just a few steps away from the office.  Fely J had some memorable dishes such as their Sinigang sa Bayabas which has a very thick and yummy broth.  But since we opted for a change in scenery we have decided to go to the Fort this time.  And the restaurant that we tried was - Abe Restaurant.

If Fely J was dedicated to Larry J Cruz's mom, this time around Abe is dedicated to his dad.  It's menu are mostly Capampangan dishes.  And of course we have to order one of the most famous of Pampanga's cusine - the Sisig.  I was explaining to my foreign guests that this dish of diced pork and liver is best eaten with beer.  I don't think they liked the idea so much and only gave it a taste.  My mistake is that I ate the siling labuyo in the sisig which made me drink half of my beer in record time.  Of course I didn't made it so obvious, sinabayan ko na lang ng subo ng Bamboo Rice.  Now this rice which is cooked inside a bamboo was very tasty.  I also seem to notice that they have a ritual that the server would rhythmically beat on the bamboo before serving it while the other waiters would answer the beat with a clap.  And when it is served the rice is so sticky that you can get a portion using tongs.

Note: When I typed the last word I accidentally typed in "thong" which gave me a funny visualization of rice being served using a thong :) and I think you are having one now too, hehe.

We also ordered the Crispy Tadyang which to me, even if it has been an original dish of Bistro Remedios, the one that we sampled that day is not really that exceptional.  And I guess the guests also find it the same way too.  The other dish is that we tried is the Binukadkad na Pla Pla.  This fish is fried and butterflied which I don't think the foreigners found appealing (I believe they found the presentation cruel) this too was not a hit to them.  Surprisingly, the one that they said was very tasty (and they compared to oxtail soup) is the Pochero.  I find this Pochero more like a Bulalo soup though as it is not cooked with tomato sauce.

But the real hit came with the desserts as I have asked one of my guests to try the Mango Jubilee and boy did his face light up with this one.  I tried the Mango Crepe and this was one of the better crepes I have tasted too.  Their Maja Blanca was also very good as there is pinipig sprinkled all over it.  A gastronomic delight being a dessert fan myself.   Good thing that they also have decaffeinated coffee which blended well with my dessert.

The next time I bring foreign guests here I would let them try the Chicharong Bulaklak because just like the Jeepney no matter how much foreigners are advised that they dangerous you have to try it at least once in your lifetime.  Peace!

P.S.  And yeah, before I forget Dingdong Dantes and Marian Rivera were also present in the restaurant and they were about a foot away from our table for quite some time as they waited for a table to be available.  No reservations for them on a Friday night, huh?  Good thing we didn't commit that same mistake and also one of us was early to arrive in the place and ordered in advance so the food was already there exactly when we are settled at our table.  I think kaya hindi nakakain ng madami ang foreigners.  Baka na starstruck :)

And again sorry for the lack of pictures, I was in GM mode again during this visit.  But do see their website at http://ljcrestaurants.com.ph/abe/

Handling a Customer Complaint

Some restaurants do a good job of handling customer complaint.  Case in point, last Saturday we were back in Italianni's to use the 250 pesos mobile coupon we got for registering in their mailing list Please see (Must Try: Bistro Group Promos!) On this visit, we ordered their Lasagna and a Quatrro Formaggio Pizza.  At first the server told us that she would check if the Lasagna is available, it's a good thing that there still is as we were a bit fickle in the our choice that night.  The Lasagna was served first, and admittedly it was one good Lasagna.  With about a quarter of the Lasagna left the waitress (a different one) asked me if she can move the Lasagna.  I figured she was probably making way for the Pizza so I agreed.  She took the plate and so I thought she would just transfer it to a smaller plate.  The Pizza came and when I asked about the Lasagna, that is where we realized that there was an error in communication.  The waitress thought we were done with the Lasagna.  The waitress who moved it quickly apologized.  I just smiled but said that there was still about one fourth of that Lasagna which we intended to eat (to my mind I was already formulating my blog entry.)  I think they saw through my reaction that I am not happy about what happened so the manager on duty (Mr Adrianne) quickly remedied the situation by offering to replace the Lasagna with a new one.  I said that we may not finish it anyway so he volunteered to just have it to go.  Good Job Mr Adrianne and the rest of Italianni's Glorietta.  I left feeling good and treated well.

Yummy Lasagna!

Some restaurants do a bad job of handling customer complaint.  Case in point, when we celebrated my wife's birthday last June.  We planned to have a quick lunch in the Greenbelt area since I just stepped out of the office for a while to meet her and the little girl.  And that plan was ruined by a restaurant that I used to love so much before but sad to say I now truly despise.  Itago na lang natin ang restaurant na ito sa pangalang Chili's (-:  To think I even eat at this restaurant when I go abroad.  Anyway, the start of horror lunch came when the waitress took the plates from the other table.  Unfortunately, a plate fell... on me... and I am wearing a white polo shirt!  The waitress apologized and I just said "never mind it was an accident."  It was my wife's birthday and I was on a celebratory mood.  Apparently the waitress (the same one) most probably thought that if I didn't mind it the first time I wouldn't mind it again.  So the next time she took the plates again, still from the same table, plates (yes not just one) fell again... on me... right smack on my white shirt.  And my reaction was "Now that would really make a stain on my shirt now wouldn't it?"  No yelling, no drama.  What did the poor waitress do?  Apologized and got some wet tissues.  WET TISSUES!  For crying out loud, all she can think of was to get wet tissues to take off the stain.

Sad part of it is that the Manager on duty (whose name I have already erased from my memory) didn't even come to us when it happened and we had to ask for her from the server.  By the way, this same manager approached us before the incident to check if somebody already took our order.  And what did this manager offered to us?  At first, she asked if they can bring my shirt to the laundry so that they can have it cleaned.  I refused, what do they think I would wear while waiting for it to be cleaned?  And I told them I needed to go back to the office.  The next thing they offered was to buy me a new shirt, I agreed as that seems to be the best they could offer at that point (actually kahit Chili's polo shirt tatangapin ko na sana eh. Madaling madali na talaga akong bumalik sa office.)  But even that part they didn't understand as we waited for an hour before they can buy the shirt from Landmark.  And what kind of shirt did they buy?  Over-sized (see for yourself), smells like a stock room and the folds from being kept on stock very long was very evident.  And I had to pay that freaking food bill in full.  Wrong move Chili's Greenbelt.  I will make sure that our paths would never ever cross again.

I turn my back on you Chili's