Thursday, April 26, 2007

dare to innovate

Red Ribbon’s Chocolate Mousse and Ube Cake are THE BEST of their kind.


 


It’s a bold claim, I know. But I dare to say it, ‘cause I’ve never tasted any other Chocolate Mousse or Ube Cake that has topped it.


 


And even I myself am shocked at my statement, for isn’t it odd that the best cake out there is not produced by some obscure, hard-to-find, non-mainstream bakeshop?


 


Hindi ba kadalasan ang mga pinakamasasarap na pagkain ay mahirap abutin—mahal, o mahirap puntahan—dahil produkto sila ng isang tao na mahilig lang magluto; na hindi entrepreneur, at hindi kailanman inasam na yumaman sa kanyang kadalubhasan dahil isa lamang itong matinding pagkahilig sa pagluluto, at wala ng iba pa?


 


So that led me to wonder how I can admit to saying that Red Ribbon, a fast-food, massive, industrialized bakeshop, can come up with the best cakes out there. How is it possible?


 


It’s by Red Ribbon having come from humble beginnings, as an obscure bakeshop with (apparently) great taste, that opened our eyes to such wonderful cake flavors. And therein lies the differentiating factor: Apart from having the knack to come up with great-tasting products, you also have to be the first to offer them in the market.


 


I grew up eating two of these great cakes from Red Ribbon. They were the first of their kind that I tasted, and set my personal benchmark for what Chocolate Mousse and Ube Cake should taste like.


 


Similar progressions have resulted from the following, among others:




  • our Lola’s home cookings (ever feel like no other adobo or caldereta is better than her recipes?);


  • the Magnolia Ice Cream Pinipig Crunch (original version, please!);


  • the slim, salty, and perfectly-fried French Fries at McDonald’s;


  • the cheese and bacon baked potato at Wendy’s;


  • the Frapuccino at Starbucks (which has become our common term for blended ice drinks across all coffee chains).

 So to food service businesses out there: Try. Experiment. Innovate. Be the first.


 


Who knows? If it’s good enough--even if it’s not the most authentic recipe--it might land on our taste buds just perfectly. And you’ll be the best in our books.

Saturday, April 21, 2007

tomoko praise/envy


i never really had ONE climbing idol. but seeing tomoko ogawa become a nike endorser puts her in a goddess level in my ranks.



i first saw tomoko maybe in 2002 when i attended my 2nd asian x games
in malaysia. she won first place then, but way when she was newer (and
slimmer) than she is now. from that time on, she just kept getting
stronger, bagging an asian x games medal every time.

tomoko and me, x games asia 2006, kuala lumpur



anyway. back to her nike endorsement. i'm soooo envious. me and miel
first noticed when we were at the nike women store in gateway.
pagtingin namin sa wall, there was her HUGE poster/wallpaper in a
triangle pose! astigggg!!!



so i surf some more and find more posters of her endorsing nike. then i
find this one which officially places her in my list of
climbers-whose-psyches-i-respect:


mountains can't tell men from women.
I am Tomoko Ogawa. I am a rock climber. Rock climbing is all about,
well, climbing-and in very tough conditions. I wear my pink top and my
pink chalk pouch, train hard, compete hard, win. Some people can’t
handle being beat by a woman – too bad for them. Mountains always give
you a fair shot.