Press Release: JIA CHA CAFÉ - FACING THE GIANTS

Taiwan has been acknowledged as the source of the very popular Milk Tea. It gained its popularity after it was featured in a Japanese show. Though less popular than coffee, the milk tea market has been a rising trend, with a promising future in the Philippines. New stores are coming up every now and then, leading to a more intense competition in the industry. In particular, within the city of Cagayan de Oro, new entrants face the challenge of gaining recognition behind big industry players and locally grown brands.

Challenging start

In July 2013, Jia Cha Café was born. Most people may think that making milk tea is easy because it requires less work in comparison with other business ventures. However, pioneers in the milk tea industry know that the road to opening a new milk tea shop isn’t easy. As unlike previous years, numerous milk tea shops have already been operating in the metro; with global brands also beginning its entry in Cagayan de Oro City. Thus, Jia Cha Café pioneers decided to face these challenges, start from scratch and work harder just to make the business work.

“We personally sourced for authentic quality ingredients, designed the interiors of the cafe and developed home made recipes to provide Jia Cha customers a pleasurable dining experience”

Jia Cha Café –Food Tea Fusion

To make Jia Cha Café a brand, it focused on the concept of- breaking down the “just tea” boundaries- providing a perfect balance of good food and good tea. “We continuously develop variants of delicious teas to complement with our hearty dishes, providing customers with the highest satisfaction”.

Jia Cha Café –Food Tea Fusion

To make Jia Cha Café a brand, it focused on the concept of- breaking down the “just tea” boundaries- providing a perfect balance of good food and good tea. “We continuously develop variants of delicious teas to complement with our hearty dishes, providing customers with the highest satisfaction”.

To date, Jia Cha Café continues to develop new products in an effort to expand their offerings to give consumers the best gastronomic experience.

Jia Cha Café is open Mondays-Saturdays from 11:00 AM to 7:00 PM and is located on the Ground Level of Divisoria Arcade, R.N. Abejuela St., Cagayan de Oro City

Get connected and updated from Jia Cha Café via:

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/JiaChaCafe

Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/JiaChaCafe

LoCo OvEr CHOCO?

In line with the theme Choco-Loco Summer, Cook and Bake is now spreading the CHOCOOoo-RIFIC experience.

You can start off by joining the photo contest!

Mechanics:
> Like our Cook&Bake page
www.facebook.com/Cook.Bake.Eat
> Take a picture of you & your favorite CHOCOLATE treat
> Email to info.cookandbake@gmail.com
with the subject: Photo Contest - <Name>

* Promo ends on April 12
Eligibility: Philippines only

Criteria:
Creativity (50%)
Photo-liciousness (50%)

To fully appreciate food, One must know how it is made

I may have grown up in a family of foodies, yet somehow no one knows how to cook or bake… I guess we were just content with the idea of eating good food. Throughout my younger years, we’ve grown used to eating out, a lot! - Continuously navigating through the city of Cagayan de Oro, in search of delectable bites.

With that as my childhood food experience, I’m proud to share that this year; I’ve decided to make a change!

Just 6 months ago, I’ve enjoyed my first baking experience, with the use of my very first gas oven. As interest in the kitchen heightened, along with a bit of courage and immense support from my sister, a random decision was made—to enroll in Heny Sison Culinary School. The aforementioned school offers a variety of courses, namely; “Lifestyle Programs” –diverse short term cooking/ baking courses that usually take 1 – 3 sessions, depending on its complexity; and “Professional Programs” – courses that usually take 22 sessions, as it covers a wider range of baking/ cooking topics (usually undergone by prospective chefs as foundation in pursuit of careers in the food industry). With intention of taking my interest in food seriously, though having zero knowledge on baking, I enrolled in the Professional Program under Essential Baking and Pastry Series. And mind you, the experience was an unforgettable one. I never thought baking sweet treats would actually bring me much joy…

In the past 22 Saturdays of taking baking courses… I realized that, I got more than what I expected, as not only was I able to learn the proper techniques on how to make breads, cakes, bars, cookies, and many more delightful pastries… but, I’ve also known great people whom I now call “friends”, together becoming part of the Heny Sison Culinary School family.

The experience itself may have brought forth feelings of insecurity and nervousness as I sometimes tend to make mistakes. However, practicing in a school with a warm and friendly environment, I’ve managed to enjoy the process of learning, with my fellow students and professional chefs.

The best part is—I am now able to do it at home, all by myself… driven with passion to continuously develop my skills in perfection of the craft.

July 14th marks the end of my course, my graduation.…

Here’s a glimpse of my 22 Saturdays:

And I will be off doing kitchen experiments and will soon be sharing them with you.

written by: Shobe