Just a few weeks ago, I ran a “contest” asking readers to guess what I was up to for the next three months. The day I announced the results of the voting, the correct answer was (C) “Marketman and Crew will open a lechon restaurant.” However, most respondents voted for (B) “Marketman doing stints in related media like newspapers, magazines or television” — and all I can say is you guys must have some invisible powers I don’t know about. :) Starting today, I will be writing a friday “post” for the Philippine Star’s website, under the their “Un-blogged” section. So now, anyone who answered (B) or (C) is eligible for the prize… :)
It happened rather quickly. A friend of a friend asked if I would be interested in writing a post once a week for a trial period of 3 months. We had a meeting with folks from The Philippine Star to discuss details. They agreed to my ground rules, the most important being that I retain full copyright and ownership of anything I write, and I drafted a sample post and today I am up on their site! :) It’s a relatively new thing they’re doing, and frankly, I think I get far more page views on marketmanila.com than I would on the philstar.com site, but it’s definitely worth the experiment for a few months time. And the huge readership of the main Philippine Star website will now have a link somehow to marketmanila.com, in case they are interested in food. Do me a favor and visit my “maiden post” on the “Unblogged” section of the philstar.com site and leave me a comment there whenever you feel like it. Comments often add so much to the original post. Thank you!
Hmmm, now I am wondering what you guys have up for me to do next… :)
73 Responses
Wow! Another milestone for Marketman. Congratulations!!! Nice “pilot” post for Philstar. Now, if only the cookbook will push through, then I will be qualified for the raffle.. No need to aim for the modest $100 prize, just that kind of shirt you wore on the thumbnail photo. =)
WOW, Congratulations MM. Super Galing mo.
just read your article….congrats MM! by the way….nice avatar with the red cap! :)
yipee!! another feather on the cap…congratulations MM!!
I predict………….you’ll be one of the guest in “Iron Chef”….LOL! Wish you have a show like “Ating Alaman” but more into foodie side and the title would be the same as your site “MarketManila”, with trips to markets, farms and there’s also a cooking side to it. You’ll travel to every nook and cranny of the Philippines to explore and taste what the places have to offer…I can dream, can’t I?
Congratulations, Sir!
just checked Philstar.com–its not in the lifestyle and other sections-pray tell where is it?
Hey, feels like the readers clicked their rings and shouted “SHAZAM” and there you show up in Philstar! Well done!
I’ve always liked Fernando Zobel’s Maiden Beside Fruit Stand, even though the fruits themselves aren’t very distinct.
I also predict regular stints in the new cooking shows cropping up on TV…you have a passion for food–you’d be a natural!
I knew this would happen! Congratulations MM!
That is great but many of us are still waiting for the cookbook
Great post MM! Congrats!
That’s great news! I’ll visit the site and check it out. With regards to what I have up for you to do next…you already know! Cookbook with local ingredients glossary and seasonal calendar and lots of side notes on tips and techniques :) Universe hear me! Haha…kulit :)
Congrats MM! You deserve it. But I’m still looking forward to you cookbook. :)
Geez, now I know why there are so few comments on the philstar website, you have to register first before you can comment! Egads. I have never registered on a website to leave a comment… :(
Hey MM, perhaps you meant the bunch of nipa fruit in your tray that is inedible but fresh nipa fruit, once you have hacked your way through hard and thick husk are actually edible. At the right stage of maturity, the fruit looks like kaong though larger, translucent white and kind of chewy, very mild sweetness and flavor. Don’t forget, the marshes bordering Manila Bay from Bulacan to Bataan are lined with mangrove and nipa and the buds of nipa fruit are what they tap for the local tuba.
Nice maiden post, MM. We know what to expect each week! Edutainment, foodwise. =)
Congrats MM! One of these days (i.e. when I have enough money) I’m gonna visit my Cebuano friends and eat in your lechon restaurant :D
Hi Marketman,
Congratulations on this new achievement! Given all these successes in blogging and all the pageviews to boot, why don’t you monetize your blog? Isn’t it just right that you earn from your hard work? I think you deserve it.
I am a fan!
joel, I have always thought the blog builds its credibility from not going commercial. I have nothing against others monetizing their blogs, I would just prefer not to do it. k. ramos, give the restaurant a few months of operation first, there will be kinks in the early days, I am certain… footloose, again, you have taught me something. The vendor I bought it from said they were simply decorative and inedible. But after a week or so, the beautiful piece has fallen apart, yielding individual hard seed like segments led me to believe this was a totally weird purchase… I LOVE nipa vinegar, and it’s really hard to find these days. I figured the vinegar was from the sap… never realized the fruit was edible… so cool.
Congratulations!!!!
Checked out the blog. Congratulations!
wow Congrats MM =)
Sir,
Congratulations for the maiden post.
Perhaps it would be worthwhile to check out the “magic fruit” which abounds here at least in Davao City. The fruits grow as big as watermelons and are supposed to have healing properties. The purple pulp are scraped, cooked and strained. The juice tastes sweet and tangy (almost similar to red wine minus the alcohol) and supposedly rich with antioxidants. The leaves of this plant are also used for tea concoction.
Just a thought…
Congratulations MM! Nice post. Please post also summer fruits of yesteryears(scarce now) like Balimbing, Aratiles, Sineguelas etc. And you sure flaunt the new thin you! I wouldn’t dare make a pose like that as I will be showing my double/triple chin! :)
Another milestone for The Marketman. Congratulations MM!
What’s next? THE COOKBOOK !!!
“Hmmm, now I am wondering what you guys have up for me to do next… :)”
– Mr. MM, PLEASE open a Zubuchon branch here in Manila!!!!!
Congratulations, Mr. MM! Will definitely add Unblogged to my reading list. Have just read your maiden post, and as expected, it was an interesting read. I love your avatar… still hiding that visage, huh?
hey MM that’s unfair..that will lessen my chance to win the prize!since i voted C..heheheh..Congratulations and goodluck!il definitely be one of your followers.
When you say you LOVE nipa vinegar (caps and all), I have to totally agree; it’s certainly one of the most interesting vinegars I have come across (think Lapid’s chicharon, ahem). Yet despite the abundance of nipa in this country, one has to go out of one’s way to get this vinegar. Another untapped business opportunity?
Maybe MM you can use your fedora to be incognito instead of the red cover. Just a suggestion.
Congratulations MM! Great job for spreading the good news to a lot of readers, i’ll be always on the lookout every Friday for your article…
Good job MM! Been following your blog for a couple of years and I knew from the start that this is not far from happening. Totally agree that you should seriously think about putting together a cookbook – a mix of your articles and recipes!
I can’t believe you haven’t thought of writing a cookbook!!! Good luck on your stint with philstar! I’m off to read it.
Haha! I had asked my 7-yr old son to guess what you were doing this summer. He said “B”! and that’s what we voted. I have to tell him he was right ;^D CONGRATS MM!!!
Cookbook..yes i am fixated on cookbook.It may take a few years for book fruition..will wait :) Congratulations !! MM your Philstar “unBlOGGED” first posting is what gets me to your site !! local fruit, art like photographs.Well written topic..Very Classy. Love it^-^
Congratulations MM! count me in as one of your avid follower :)
Congratulations on this new venture, MM!
More on the nipa palm fruit – in its immature state, it is used in the ice kachangs in Singapore.
Btw, you surely meant to write “…in abundance…” instead of “…in abundant…”.
Congratulations, MM! (and I now qualify! Hee hee hee)…. Now I have more websites to read! :)
Just last week, I went to the Alabang Market and I got these stunning oranges and these small avocados in bright green. I simply put them in a big clear vase and in a deep ceramic jar and they were just so pretty on my centerpiece. I had guests a few days ago and they had nice comments. Need to replenish soon as my kids and I eat the fruits for breakfast everyday :)
WOW… Philstar and MarketMan… Philippine Star is my fave newspaper and when I moved here in UAE to work , I continue reading it thru Philstar.com. And now this my fave foodblogger in Philstar… such a happy day! Congrats MM
Congrats, MM! I agree, I see a cook book coming up! :)
Congratulations! But I like MarketManila.com better as it has a “cleaner” look.
Saw the ‘abundant’ typo too.
‘During the summer months of April, May and June, fruit is in abundant and at the peak of perfection.’
been busy so haven’t had time to read the site as often as id like, turns out i am missing a lot! great news mm and congrats will check it out.
Congratulations MM!!! I’ll check it out.
Congratulations, MM! Another ‘go-to’ for checking out your most interesting posts. I came across this phrase in a book I read recently – the author describing a friend ‘he has the mind of a Jesuit and the heart of a Franciscan’ and I think it describes you too!
Congratulations MM!
Another feather to your cap! I’m sure Unblogged readers will drop by your site too!
Yay, I’m qualified for your contest – I answered “C”!!! :)))
Congratulations! Regardless of the number of readers, writing for a broadsheet (albeit in their website) is a big achievement! :-) As a lurker in your blog for quite some time now, I can say that you definitely deserve it. :-)
Yey!!! I picked B!!!! Congratulations MM!! The MM Cookbook is next…
Wohoooo! Another medal of acheivement added to your belt MM (and a chance to join your raffle for me hehe! :)). Congratulations! But I bet there’s more in store for our Marketman and you can bet that we’re behind you all the way! Amazing first post BTW, found the Nipa fruit very interesting as I have never seen one of those before!
PS. Love the red Cap! :)
nice!!! congrats, MM!!!
CONGRATULATIONS, MM! We’re so PROUD of you! Another milestone, another achievement… a lot of pat on the back! Horray for you. I’ll check it out later after here.
Maybe the next one is the COOKBOOK that everyone is so rooting for. I’d say, you certainly can do it. I’d love to have one! Definitely!
Anyway, since some people are talking about the nipa fruit, I always think that the nipa fruit is what we call as kaong (palm fruit). Maybe I’m wrong but somebody told me that when I was in high school. Pardon my ignorance if I’m wrong.
KUDOS to you! Have a great weekend.
congratulations mm! another hat for you :))
just hoping that the cook book will be next in line
Wow! I always thought it will be great if you’d write for a broadsheet and Phil. Star’s is one of the sites I regularly read next to Market Manila. More power!
BTW, since you featured the Mango Pecan Cake sometime in March, I have noticed an abundance of mangoes all over and even on sidewalk carts. Mangoes used to be expensive, like 90.00 to 120.00 Pesos per kilo. Now it’s 40.00 to 60.00 per kilo. I always thought prices of ripe mangoes were high because of exports, or demands for the fruit abroad. Has our exports of mangoes been down this year?
I join the many readers waiting for your cookbook. I hope soon!
Oops na doble ang entry. Sorry. I didn’t notice that the first was already posted and don’t know how to remove it so I just erase the repeated comment while it was still in editing mode.
Cookbook or a cooking show should be next!
Congratulations MM! More power to you sir. I read Philippine Star almost everyday to check what’s going on in Pinas. And now it’s more exciting with you on there. May not comment since it requires a log-in. Anyway, it’s just superb!
Wheeeee!
Wow, now you are the David Karp of the Philippines. Look up his articles on mangosteen, Reine Claude green gage plums, meyer lemons, etc.
Congratulations!
CONGRATULATIONS! I JUST LEFT A MESSAGE FOR YOU IN PHILSTAR …..
I’VE FORGOTTEN WHAT THE PRIZE WAS ….. THOSE CHOICES WERE ACTUALLY WISHES. WISHES FOR YOU TO CREATE IN THE NEXT MONTHS/YEARS. NOW, I’M LOOKING AT ANOTHER RESTAURANT IN MANILA/QUEZON CITY … SERVING OF COURSE, YOUR ROSTER OF SPECIALTY. LIFE IS SO GOOD!
Wee~ Congrats MM, will go look for your article online ~ :)
so many woohoo moments! Congratulations, MM! Very timely & relevant topic because most foreigners say Pinoys don’t eat enough fruit, but I disagree. Wanted to leave a comment but registrationwas a pain. Now, for the next woohoo moment: cookbook! cookbook!
Congrats!!!!!!!!!MM , you are truly a STAR!
Congratulations MM! =) Now, we’ll be waiting for your tv show! =)
I like your profile pic in philstar.. so cute!!! (i mean the shirt) hahaha
i was about to leave a comment sana but needs to register pa and i’m so lazy to do that today..well, congratulations again MM!!!
Way to go MM! That’s news indeed! So happy and excited for you :)
Congrats MM! Does that mean I can look forward to a cookbook in the future
– near or otherwise?!?
Comment #488 – A, B, C hint hint :D
it’s great to know that you’ll now be writing for Phil. Star! Congrats, MM!
congratulations with the the phil star…you should go to davao during the kadayawan festival sometime aug this is when the durian, rambutan and marang are in season :) would love to read an article about that :)
yey !!!! my vote’s in ……….. syempre mas masaya, another thing to read & learn from … my day never goes by w/o stopping by :) congrats & morepower !!!
Santol, caimito, macopa, bayabas were the trees in my grandparents’ backyard where we would climb the trees to pick them by hand. Don’t know if they were ‘summer’ fruits though. But what I do remember in the 70s there were these huge, as in gigantic, beautiful brown butterflies/ moths which would flutter around as we sat on the grass eating the fruits.
congrats on the new stint, MM. Summer does give a lot of good childhood memories. But now-a-days most summer memories of kids are mostly of the beaches.
For those waiting for the cookbook, I think it will still be a long way to go for MM to publish one. He’s too busy with the new business and I think he wants it to be a near to perfection cookbook. hehe