Marketmanila.com Turns Four!

Marketmanila.com turns four years old sometime this week… I don’t remember the exact date of my first post (I did some earlier posts that were pre-dated) but the real birth date of the blog was about now. In blogging terms that makes me roughly 70-80 years old, I think, and I will need serious medication if I am to make it to 100 in blogyears! :) I continue to be pleasantly shocked by the statistics… in the first three years of this blog, it attracted a total of 5.0 million page views, and in the last year alone, another 4.3 million page views were registered for a total of 9.3 million page views. There are 1,902 posts in the archives or an average of 1.3 posts every single day for the past 1,460 days. There are just under 50,000 comments from readers from all over the world. And in a post earlier this year asking where you now call home, a record 451 of you responded in what sounded like the ultimate Mr./Ms. Universe introduction segment, see link to that post here. I continue to be amazed by all of you, and I thank you for your continued and frequent visits to the site.

So it seems like a perfect time to have an eyeball, and a lechon/insasal eyeball at that, to celebrate the blog’s 4th birthday. In less than two days some 50 or so guests will get together in an empty lot in the middle of Cebu and I look forward to seeing old friends and meeting new ones. Some of you will fly in from Davao, Bacolod, or Manila, or take a ferry from Ormoc or Tacloban in addiition to coming from all parts of Metro Cebu. A number of the guests at this Saturday’s eyeball were ALSO present at the first ever marketmanila eyeball here and here, and at the second eyeball contemplated and finally held at Gourdo’s here and here. The funniest part of these somewhat modern age get-togethers are the expectations readers have of how other commenters or Marketman might look physically… short, fat and old were the most common theme/expectation early on in the blog… but only those who attend eyeballs will really know for sure… :)

So forgive me if I appear distracted over the next couple of days, I will probably be totally crazed. More calories than I have ever prepared for one meal will be laid out on buffet tables for the guests and my crew. If you are coming on Saturday I sure hope you have an appetite. If you can’t make it, know that I wish you all could, no matter where in the world you are currently be based. Thanks again for being a part of the marketmanila.com family!!!

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Marketman

Marketman is a well-traveled management consultant who loves buying, cooking and eating good food. Read more »

133 Responses

  1. i sure wish there would be an eyeball here in metromanila again that i could join. hope everything goes great in cebu MM. am drooling at the thought of the lechon…..

  3. Congratulations MM!

    and congratulations to all us loyal readers too! =)

    marketmanila is a part of my life now what with visiting this site first thing in the morning on a daily basis.

  4. HAPPY FOURTH YEAR! It’s always been a welcome treat to read your blog, Marketman!
    There’s never a dull moment, lots of inspiration and sometimes indignation, and always full of surprises! And a real treat for those who are lucky enough to be in Cebu for the Lechon Eyeball! CONGRATULATIONS!

    Thanks to the vigilant and committed commenters too who have contributed to spicing up this fantastic blog!

  5. Congratulations Mr. MM…

    I felt really sad that I just learn about your blog just recenty…. I hope I could come in the next EB parties..

    Enjoy tomorrow’s event everyone….

  6. nothing like lechon to celebrate a major milestone, and nothing like four lechons to celebrate four deliciously amazing years! more than the congratulations, you deserve a big THANK YOU, MM!

    Mrs. MM and The Teen and The Crew deserve special mention for putting up with all the hours you’ve spent sitting in front of the computer, the many times you’ve kept them from digging into the food until you’ve taken photos, and for agreeing to be part of your many wacky experiments (most famous of which is the accuchon) and food discovery tours.

    Here’s to more years and more eyeballs ahead!

  8. Happy Birthday, Marketman as blogger! I can’t believe I’ve been reading this blog for more than two years now. Hoping for great weather for the great lechon eyeball and safe travels everyone! Lee, don’t forget the purple pants!

  9. Happy 4th anniversary MM and thank you for 4yrs of keeping us informed, entertained and salivating for more :) keep on posting, rest assured that we’re always here ….you’re really an inspiration…and to the rest of the marketmanila family, happy anniversary to us as well! :)
    ….Thanks again MM for sharing and making us a part of your life :)

  10. Congratulations, MM! It’s been a joy to be reading you everyday as somehow your avid readers can relate to you. Thanks for sharing your recipes, your experiments, your time and even spreading the joy of giving!

  11. To make me feel better that I couldn’t make it to the EB, I had lechon 5 ways at Bale Dutung, and we gossiped about Anthony Bourdain too :) Happy anniversary from a long-time reader!

    ps. Waiting to buy your feeding program Xmas ornaments….

  14. happy 4th yr anniversary! You’re one of
    the few good, worthy local blogs around.
    More blogging power to you!

  16. congratulations mm. i just ate lechon for dinner coz i attended a party. am imagining how oily i’ll feel come sunday he he he.
    mm do you want any dessert from here?

  17. Hi MM. Congratulations and happy anniversary. I am a loyal lurker, wherever and whenever there is internet access I make it a point to visit your site to unwind from the hustle and bustle of my work. Hope you keep it going.

  18. wow 4 years!
    I’m glad to be one of your regular commentatorationists and I’m looking forward to a memorable weekend of meeting new friends. I might not even eat the lechon and still have fun. Really. Ok, a few square inches of skin, ribs, cheeks..

  19. i’m just one of the loyal multitudes who read this blog daily and not even comment. happy 4th anniversary! more power and keep it coming.

  20. Congratulations for the very fruitful, enjoyable & educational 4 years of blogging, MM!! and congrats too to all my fellow avid readers!

  21. Congratulations MM on your 4th anniversary!

    You don’t know how MarketManila.com has become part of my retirement life as your page greets me every morning. It sets my day, drawing inspiration from your seemingly inexhaustible interests: food, places of interest, money issues, exotic market finds, social consciousness, even rants, etc. Your joie de vivre so clearly reflected in your blogs is infectious. It goes without saying that your unique writing style touched with humor at times is such a delight to read. Your wide readership has already earned you the best blogger in the universe!!!! INCREDIBLE!!!

  22. Congrats MM! Happy 4th Blog Birthday! We’ll be here until…whenever! :) We’ll never get tired of your lovely blog. I always look forward to reading your blog, because I learn so many things from it. Too numerous to enumerate and count. Keep up the good work. :)

  27. Congratulations on your 4th year! Here’s looking forward to many more posts to come! More power.

  28. I remember starting to read your blog just after the first EB and really wanting to go to the second but my schedule could just not permit it. I’m normally in Cebu almost every other month but the EB just didn’t match my sked. :( But your blog has been a great read all the time and I look forward to reading more and hopefully get to meet the man behind the pages :) Congratulations on another year and wishing you healthy but calorie-laden years ahead ;)

  29. Happy 4th year. Ive learned about this blog at inquirer website and im so happy that i was able to follow it up to now, even if there are times im busy at work. Keep up the good work and Congratulations to you and your family! God bless

  36. The countless hours and dedication you pour in to this blog is truly commendable and deserves a Michelin star. Your labor of love shows in every post with fiery passion on whatever you delve into.

    A toast to many more years and posts to come!

  37. Thank you for four years of Marketmanila! I love your blog and I’ve been away from the Philippines for almost 5 years and your blog shows me a lot of what I’ve been missing and also what I should eat when I visit. :-) Your site is my homepage! :-)

  39. Congratulations! In Aztec calendar it is quite a significant number. You inspired a lot of people, the enthusiasm my peers contribute in, the momentum is always here. Look who you brought in into your kingdom recently two of the legendary persons in the dining industry – Anthony Bourdain and Bobby Chinn. Their footprints are forever present in your place. That is quite an accomplishment where everything conceived behind the typing keyboard and camera and the mighty power of fiber optic and the rest is history.

  40. I was still in the Philippines when I stumbled in your blog. Now that I’m already out of the country I still follow your blog with enthusiasm knowing that there’s always something new that I would learn from your post. You’ve ‘fed’ so many hearts and minds. Happy 4th year, MM!

  41. HAPPY BIRTHDAY MARKETMANILA.been three years now that i stumbled on the blog,it`s been a part of my life now.

  42. Happy 4th Birthday to my favourite blogger!

    Your wisdom,enthusiasm,wit,kind heart,persistence and diligence to detail are traits many of us admire and find these points extremely inspirational.

    More power to you,MM!

  43. HAPPY FOURTH ANNIVERSARY!!!!!!! Great blog!! Will pray for travelling mercies for your EB in Cebu!!! Inggit.
    Connie C said everything I wanted to say.

  44. Congratulations and happy 4th yr anniversary. How I wish I could join a MartketManila EB. Is there a possibility for us here in CONUS to have a MarketManila eyeball. Maybe BettyQ will help organize one.

    Keep the wonderful blog coming, MM and may the Lord bless you and your love one each day of your blogging life.

  45. Congratulations MM!
    Wow, I’ve been reading your blog for 4 years but I haven’t attended a single eyeball. Hope to attend into one soon.

  46. Congratulations, MM and thank you! Marketmanila has been part of my morning routine and have really learned a lot from your blogs and from the readers’ interactions. :D

  47. MM, HAPPY ANNIVERSARY!!!!!! thanks for the enjoyment of sharing! and for all going to the EB—have an extremely good time, and take lots of pictures.. post in your flicker so we all “be ther”, too—advanced thanks na ha…..

  48. Congratulations MM! Love, love, love this blog. Thanks for the 4 years of joy you have brought us!

  49. congratulations mm! i still remember the first post i read from your blog: https://www.marketmanila.com/archives/gelatos-florence. that was in july 2006. since then i was hooked but never commented except on my whimsical guess on the pritchon (which turned out to be the closest to the correct answer). reading your blog has been very entertaining, informative, and therapeutic(!). :P thank you! i am not sucking up but this is the only phil-based blog i follow daily. woot woot!

  50. happy 4th anniversary, marketmanila! :) saying that your blog is a must read is an understatement!

  54. Congratulations and Happy 4th Anniversary to marketmanila.com! I’m hoping that you never run out of ideas and articles to post ever :)
    Meg

  55. Hey! 4 years of posting interesting topics…and they’re always as crisp as can be! Congrats as always, MM!

  56. Happy 4th anniversary marketmanila.com! Keep the posts flowing MM. With the recent exposures of this blog I’m sure you will not run out of posts, well, not in the near future anyway. :) Congratulations and God Bless.

  58. Congratulations for all those informative and funny posts! I usually open your blog whenever I open the pc.

    Keep up the good work.

  59. Congratulations, MM!

    Only 96 years more to go for your centennial, 46 more for your golden, 21 more for your silver! Hehehehe!!!!!

    Here’s to hoping more readers will discover your blog so that your readership stats will continue to exponentially grow.

    Here’s to more wonderful food info, recipes, photos, rants, raves, web awards, travels, cholesterol laden food, and genuine friends who can call your website home!

    Thank you (also to Mrs. MM, The Teen and your crew) for touching our hearts, and stomachs!

  60. Congratulations MM! And a big “Thank You” to you and your family & crew for generously giving time & resources to share your cooking experiments, recipes & general experiences with us. Where I live, a lot of things are limited & costly. Through your blog & your experiences I feel I learn and live life with gusto, albeit vicariously. I hope you will never tire of sharing!

  61. HAPPY 4TH,MM! I ALWAYS ENJOY YOUR POST. YOU’RE JUST LIKE A FRIEND TO EVERYONE WHO VISIT YOUR BLOG…

  64. happy anniversary! hope you have 400 (well, you get the drift) more years of giving joy to your readers

  65. Happy anniversary. Keep on blogging MM. Reading your blogs always result to a nice sequence of events….. read. learn. get inggit occasionally. get inspired and try the suggestions. experiment. taste. experiment some more. And finally, the enjoyment and a sense of achievement. Plus i dont buy flower arrangements anymore, i make them myself. So, thank you too, MM.

  66. Congratulations MM and to the entire marketmanila.com family!
    Hope to see around Salcedo market when I visit Manila next week. Can I say “Hi” if I recognize you?

  67. Happy 4th blog-birthday, MM! Did you ever imagine when you started this blog that you’ll end up hosting–a mere 4 years later–two world-class chef/hosts? That is definitely something to be proud of! Congrats and I hope to be reading your blog well into my old age, when I become an old “silly lola”! ;-)

  71. Kudos to you, Mr. MM. May i ask everyone to put their fingers on their “mices” and click (since we dont have wine and glasses). Kampai…Would be looking forward to the travels more food and sensible investing advice.Keep it up MM sensei.:)

  75. Happy 4th year MM! Congratulations and Thank you for tirelessly sharing your food adventures, mis-adventures with us!

  80. Happy Anniversary marketmanila.com! And congratulations to you MM. Here’s wishing you more blogging years to come!

  81. Looking forward to more, MM! I read your blog daily – I dont know what I’ll do when your blog just goes off all of a sudden — Thank you for all the fun reads and recipes :)

  82. congrats! your blog is very bad for my diet but I still every now and then try your recipes here. I love, love, love your blog!

  83. Happy 4th Birthday Marketmanila.com, and many thanks to MM, the missus and the kid/teen (let’s not forget the Dog), plus the team in Manila and Cebu that keep MM on the straight and narrow path (hehehe).

  84. congrats, marketman. you have no idea how helpful your site is for me. everytime my husband likes to try some new food, he keeps saying “i-search kay marketman” or ” unsang sulti ni marketman?”. so there, you truly have an impact in our home ;) cheers to your site & many more years of blogging…

  88. Congratulations and happy 4th to Marketmanila.com!! :) So happy to be a part of marketmanila.com!!! Hope i can get to go to one of your EB soon! ;)

  89. Glückwünsche zu Ihnen, MM! Btw, I tried out the chocolate crinkles recipe you posted more than a month ago and my family loved it! I just made a few changes to the recipe because I didn’t have baking chocolate to melt.

  90. congratulations marketman! happy anniversary and thank you so much for your awesome blog Ü

  91. Congratulations MM! Your post on the silvanas last year was one of the factors that led me and my husband to further our silvanas experiment until we came upon the perfect recipe. Unknowingly, you became a part of our success. We would always wonder, “ano kaya comment ni MM sa taste nito?” because we really felt your comments matter A LOT even if you don’t know us from Adam. Tomorrow we’re finally meeting you, thank God I can personally thank you… More power to Market Manila!

  92. happy 4th anniversary!

    my friend and i’ve been visiting your site almost everyday (except on crazy days – holidays, thesis mode,and such) for the last 3.5 years (i started reading around june 2005). that time i was still an MS student… now, i’m starting to work for my PhD!

    a frequent reader, a rare commenter… and an avid recipe tester!

    thanks for all the gustatory adventures you’ve shared with us all these years. more power and congratulations!

  95. Congratulations MM! or should i say happy anniversary to “all of us” loyal readers of marketmanila. thank you MM. my day is not complete without reading you blog everyday.

  96. felicitations, mm!!! Here’s to more blog posts, and a whole lot more EB’s to come!!! Chin chin!

  98. Thank you for everything. It was so wonderful reading and being a part of your site. I was not able to read and say something for about 1 year because of moving to a new place and being hospitalized. I started going back to your site about 5 months ago but only for sporadic times, too, and in those times I went back to all that I have missed and I was so happy when I read that you finally did the PINAKBET. You did it the way my lola used to do, that I was so proud that I contributed to it in a small way together with all those who wrote you and said very similar ways were done by their relatives. I showed my sisters my post to you and the resulting success that you had done. I wish I could be part of you EB’s because I personally want to meet you, your wife and the KID and also all the other people who have become my friends in writing. God bless you all and THANK YOU…

  100. Just like everybody here, Market Manila has become a daily routine for me. First thing in the morning here at work, as I turned on my PC, I opened your site. Congratulations for 4 years of successful blogging and sharing. And because I cannot attend the EB, I will celebrate it with you guys in spirit. This weekend I am going to a small cafeteria who sells Cebu lechon by the pounds. I am going to buy 5 lbs (just for me) and eat it till I get bloated.

    Its my last day on this contract job. I am planning to take a 2-week off before getting another job assignment. And what am I going to do while I am at home? Ummmm?? I am going to try to cook the recent kakanin recipes. Puto (I just bought a bamboo steamer), suman, kutchinta, maja.. etc, etc.

    Enjoy everybody.

  101. Here’s to 4 YEARS of GIVING US PURE WONDERFUL GUSTATORY DELIGHTS AND ENTERTAINMENT, TOO, MM and making us part of your family!!!!…..Now, go for the 10TH!!!!

    Hey EbbaMyra…don’t know what to do for the next 2 weeks? Send me an e-mail or I will buy a phone card and we can yap, yap, yap….let me know!!!

  102. Congratulations MM for this milestone. I remember very well how I discovered your blog. I was searching for “bohol” and Google gave me one of your blog entries on the province and that started my “love affair” or my “addiction” with your blog. Your site has been a part of my surfing day and I hope to read more interesting and fascinating posts from you. Thank you very much for sharing with us your experiences, menus and all that stuff. You really can’t imagine how much you have touched your readers’ lives. God bless you and your family.

  103. Conratulations, MM and happy blog anniversary! I hope that you will continue to share your food thoughts, new recipes, discoveries through marketmanila.com. I also hope I could join a marketmanila EB in the future! God bless always :)

  104. My first ever visit to your site was back in May or June 2006 when i was looking for an ensaimada recipe, and has been a lurker until around Nov 2006 whe you had a post about “Persimmons”. This is the only blog that I read and follow ever since. Hope to meet you on an EB someday. Congratulations, and never ever shut down this site pleassseee, cause im blogdicted to this, and don’t think there’s a blogger Anonymous support group yet ;-)

  107. Congratulations MM…thanks for being part of my life from bachelorettehood (if there is such a word), marriage, pregnancy and a 7 month old baby! I have been a frequent visitor and an occasional commenter for the past three years. I would have not survived a 4 month bed rest without your blog and I hope my baby turns out to be as brilliant as you — the only thing that kept me from naming him Marketmanila is the possibility that his dad would disown me :P.

  108. SENSEI LEE….I want a PICTURE as you are biting into that first square inch of that crunchy lechon skin!!!!….Hay, nakakainggit!!!!!

  109. Congratulations to the 4 years of successful blogging! Marketmanila has certainly come a long way. Many more years to come. Today is also the EB, right? Don’t forget to post the pictures as soon as you have time. :)

  112. right now, the gang of 50 are starting to congregate—i can smell the lechon….i hope they’re taking lots of pictures…bettyq, me too…i think i’ll go buy some chicharon..

  114. Congratulations!

    May your adventures with slow food, markets, flora and everything related to gracious living give us readers more to learn from and appreciate!

  115. Congratulations on the milestone of food, rants, markets and all. It’s been a pleasure to be part of this community that loves food. Thank you so much!

  117. Well Deserved recognition for all your hardwork. You have done so much for our food and culture MM. Thank God for Market Manila. Congratulations!!! Here’s to more 100 blog years!!!

  119. The first time I visited this blog, I was so impressed with MM. I recall looking for a great place to eat out which was at Serendra and I came across this site. Added to that, I really appreciated the way MM views and comments on almost any topic he could post.
    Congrats MM for four years of great blogging!

  121. More power to MM and this blog. Thank you for Market Manila, it surely makes life more interesting! :)

  122. Congratulations, MM. Four years have passed and still going strong. I learned a lot from your blog and thank you for sharing! More Power…!!! Go go go!!!

  123. Congratulations, MM, your family & crew! I always turn to your blog whenever I have a kitchen dilemma or when I need a break in our crazy office. Your articles are interesting and always with substance and I come away feeling enriched or inspired :). Thank you!

  125. Thanks for the pix edik… i envy u people….

    nice place and really nice foods… looking forward for the next EB soooooon!

  128. Congratulations, MarketMan! Thank you for the wonderful posts. Bless your generous soul..

    Wishing all of us more “blog togetherness” for years!

    P.S.
    And am wondering.. maybe on the 10th anniversary, we’ll celebrate with an EB and book signing of your much awaited cookbook? :)

  129. Am a bit late — haven’t had much chance to go online till now. Congratulations, Marketman! Few would disagree that you have achieved far more than anyone would expect from a food blog — from informing people about food, to inspiring them to cook, to sparking political debates, to donating to charitable causes, and even starting new friendships. Thank you for all that, and all the luck for the coming blogging years!

  130. Congratulations, Marketman! I’ll add on my hopes for an eyeball somewhere near Manila in the near future … I’m hoping you’d be swayed by all the requests :-)

  131. Happy 4 years of blogging MarketMan!. Your site haave been very very helpful to all foodies! Thank you so much! Hope to attend an eyeball.

    Toodles!

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