Kia Theatre: An entertainment landmark

Another world-class entertainment venue has recently opened its doors to the public, another contribution to the thriving theater scene in the country.

Remember the old New Frontier Theater at the Araneta Center in Cubao? This iconic landmark, built by the Araneta Group, is now called the Kia Theatre, following a multi-year naming rights deal with leading car manufacturer Kia Motors Philippines.

Kia Theatre retains the shell of the old New Frontier Theater but now sports elegant interiors, as well as Kia Motors’ logo and a 305.96-sq.-m. Kia showroom. There is a plush drop-off point that leads to a grand lobby, where guests and stars can climb a staircase leading to a theatre lounge at the mezzanine. The theater will also soon be surrounded by cafes, restaurants and retail shops.

The agreement was signed by top executives of the Araneta Group and Columbian Autocar Corp. (CAC), the assembler and exclusive distributor of Kia Motors vehicles in the Philippines, in a gathering at Gloria Maris at Gateway Mall in Araneta Center.

Present at the signing ceremony were Araneta Group of Companies chairman and CEO Jorge L. Araneta, SVP for business development John Castelo, SVP for comptrollership Ken Mondero and SVP for operations Antonio Mardo,  CAC’s honorary chairman and Palawan Gov. Jose Chaves Alvarez, president Ginia Domingo, VP for sales and marketing Dodie Ganiac and marketing manager Nenuka Guba.

Domingo said, “Kia is pleased to forge this new partnership with the Araneta Group, which is highly respected in the business community and is also recognized as one of the most prolific entities in the country.”

Araneta said, “We are very excited to open Kia Theatre with the support of CAC, and we hope to draw whoever wants entertainment. It’s very accessible, it comes with the best-in-class features, and we have great shows coming up.”

Kia Theatre has a 2,385-seating capacity and is equipped with the latest audio, visual and lighting technologies. This performing arts venue has a wonderful line-up of performances that started with the ongoing Disney Live! Mickey’s Music Festival, a touring show featuring Mickey and other Disney characters in Aladdin, The Little Mermaid and Toy Story.

The perfect margarita

Who wouldn’t love to have a perfect margarita on parties or just on a chill hangout with friends?

Quintessential brands Casa Noble and Cointreau recently came together at The Balcony at Todd English Food Hall in SM Aura to present the “perfect margarita” — which consisted of Casa Noble Tequila, Cointreau Orange Liquer and fresh lime juice.

We were treated to a scrumptious selection of canapés and finger food, specially made for the event hosted by Issa Litton.

Present at the event were Casa Noble’s Edwin Ong and Cointreau’s Joey Pineda, who took the floor to explain the partnership between the brands.

Mixologist Lee Watson showed guests a couple of his favorite margarita recipes, which included the Perfect 10 Margarita — a margarita with Casa Noble, Cointreau, whiskey and seven more ingredients.

A D-I-Y margarita bar was set up for guests to make their own concoction. Lee and Issa played judges and taste tested all the “Your Perfect Margarita” entries. Prizes were given away during the event.

(For more information, visit Facebook.com/yourperfectmargarita or follow @YourPerfectMargarita on Instagram.)

Learning to ‘eat sexy’

For 11 years, Sexy Chef, founded by sisters Rachel Alejandro and chef Barni Alejandro-Rennebeck, has provided nutritious meals and easy weight management solutions to professionals and the country’s top celebrities.

To add another mark in their successful venture as the local health food industry pioneers, Rachel and chef Barni launched their second cookbook — Eat Clean Love — at Robinsons Magnolia in Quezon City recently.

The Alejandro sisters celebrated their latest accomplishment with friends and family including some of Rachel’s co-actors from the movie Ang Larawan, like OPM icon Celeste Legaspi and West End star Joanna Ampil.

Eat Clean Love brings together 60 new, original and easy-to-follow recipes that don’t just produce delicious results, but are also ideal for food lovers looking to stay in tip-top shape.

The cookbook features recipes of healthy breakfast options with nutritious takes on Filipino favorites and low-carb meals. Also in the cookbook are recipes for vegetarian dishes, refreshing smoothies and scrumptious yet guilt-free treats.

(Eat Clean Love is now available in bookstores, newsstands, convenience stores and supermarkets nationwide. For more information, visit

www.thesexychef.ph or

call 0917-7992433.)

Smart & practical choices

Olx Philippines, the country’s leading online classifieds platform, steps another notch in improving its services.

The company gathered members of the media to discuss its plans after its rebranding.

Olx Philippines co-founder and managing director RJ David said, “We want to provide win-win exchanges for consumers by giving them equal buying and selling opportunities. We also want them to become more madiskarte in buying and selling second-hand items online.”

David added that Olx Philippines has expanded to Cebu and merged with another online classified ads platform. The online platform now features faster-loading pages, simplified sell form and an improved report button to keep spam and scam ads at bay. To provide a fair selling venue and to promote high-quality ads, the company has removed the feedback system and minimized the number of free ad slots.

The company has also taken a big step by releasing and managing its own content platform called Olx Yaman (yaman.olx.ph). The company’s content marketing manager Jean Magboo said, “We’re now more than just a buy-and-sell platform. Olx is a service that provides an opportunity for Filipinos to make smart and practical choices that can lead to an improved life.”

(Follow me on Instagram @pepperteehankee.)