The RubeTube

The contents of my Fukuda "gift pack", a.k.a. definitive proof that God exists:


I thought it only contained "24 cartons each of Fukuda Potato Stixz (sour cream and onion flavor) and Fukuda Twister Pea Chips (creamy onion and garlic)" (quoted from my last entry)". Boy, I was wrong. But I was never so glad to be so wrong:

• 30 boxes of Fukuda Chipz - 5 flavors: Original, Wasabi Lobster, Sour Cream and Onion, Barbecue, Cheese. 2 sizes: one big, one small. 3 boxes per size per flavor. 5 x 2 x 3 = 30.
• 18 boxes of Fukuda Twister Pea Chips - 3 flavors: Original, Wasabi Lobster, Creamy Onion and Garlic. 2 sizes: one big, one small. 3 boxes per size per flavor. 3 x 2 x 3 = 18.
• 15 boxes of Fukuda Potato Stixz - 5 flavors: Original, Wasabi Lobster, Sour Cream and Onion, Barbecue, Cheese. Only 1 size. 3 boxes per size per flavor. 5 x 1 x 3 = 15.
• Grand total: 63 boxes of Fukuda snacks. There goes my diet!
  

I was left in shock and awe after opening both boxes. I simply could not believe my good fortune. Their contents exceeded all expectations, and then some. If this story of mine does not inspire you to go out there and blog about whatever it is you are passionate about, then I do not know what will.

...or at the very least, you should at least think that my whole Fukuda experience was pretty darn cool! Here is one happy kid:


And this is me with Mr. Fukuda, Fukuda-san, or whatever the mascot's name is:


And even better: defying all logic, I actually lost 2 pounds this past week (from excitement?), despite my new hoard of snaxz. Fukuda product reviews to come in the next few posts.

(For more pictures, please visit this album on Multiply. I highly recommend reading the captions, starting from the first photo. Many thanks to Andreé and my brother to )

Labels: :D, food, Fukuda, junk food, photos

My Fukuda gift pack has arrived! It took a few weeks, but I was pleasantly surprised when a truck actually arrived to deliver it at our doorstep! I was stunned!


Holy lords of junk food! The "gift pack" turned out to be two whole boxes of snacks. That's 24 cartons each of Fukuda Potato Stixz (sour cream and onion flavor) and Fukuda Twister Pea Chips (creamy onion and garlic). It's not a lifetime supply of Fukuda Chipz as I had secretly hoped, but at the very least I'll have a lot of ammunition for "merienda treat" at the office.


My thoughts of these products will come some time later, when I've actually given them the taste test. The entire review process will be well documented, of course.

Thanks for pulling through, Gilbert!

Labels: :D, food, Fukuda, junk food

Back in September 2006, I wrote about Fukuda Potato Crisps (now being sold in stores as Fukuda Chipz) the one-of-a-kind, no-frills Pringles clone with a wonderful wasabi flavor and a price that won't hurt your pocket. Although I have managed to convince some of my friends to try it out (and most of them liked it as well), I didn't think that my aforementioned blog entry in particular caught the attention of a lot of people.

I was pleasantly surprised to receive a Friendster message (of all places) yesterday from Gilbert, VP of Sales and Marketing of Richburg Corporation, the local importer and distributor of the Fukuda chips. Here is the meat of the message:

Hi Mark,

I chanced upon reading The Rube Tube, and found out you have tried our products Fukuda Potato Crisp.

We appreciate the comments you have made about the product not because its all positive but its simply the way you constructively explain what you liked about it.

In appreciation of your support to our products, we would like to send you a simple gift pack and samples of our other products.

You may comment on it, good or bad, because we believe that consumers like you are the ones who let us strive harder to make sure that what we put in the market are to the satisfactory of the majority.

You know what, that really, really, really, really, really made my day. How many times do you get a message like that in your inbox? I appreciate their effort to reach out to a single consumer like me, despite the fact that I don't review products for a living and I'm not even pretending to be one. The gesture made me feel important and it also made me feel empowered as a consumer.

Thanks, Gilbert! I'm looking forward to receiving the gift pack soon.

(If you do a search for "fukuda potato crisps", you will find that The RubeTube is first on the list. In fact, if you search with the quotes, then The RubeTube is the only source on the list. Am I the first person to have ever written about Fukuda?)

Labels: :), consumer, food, junk food

Newsflash: Robot thinks people taste like bacon.

The article's over a month old, but interesting nonetheless. It is definitely no coincidence that bacon just so happens to be my all-time favorite food. Does that mean I have good taste?

Soylent green, anyone?

P.S. That has got to be the most delicious, most mouth-watering photo of bacon that I have ever seen. Click on the image to behold bacon in all its glory.

Labels: bacon, food, WTF

(The following is not a paid advertisement.)

I passed by SM Makati on my way home yesterday when I decided to stop by the snacks section in the middle of the 2nd floor. I was craving for a potato crisps snack. My first choice was Pringles (I had P&G-related training earlier, and Pringles is a P&G product) but I found the 80-peso price tag to be a bit too much. Similar offerings (Lay's Stax and Jack 'n Jill Spuds) proved to have similarly steep prices.

But I really wanted some crispy potato goodness so I looked around and found boxes on a shelf no one seemed to be touching: Fukuda Potato Crisps. I was initially intrigued by the flavor of the first box I saw: "Wasabi Lobster". I'm a fan of wasabi-flavored products in general, but what convinced me to buy was the incredibly low price of 39.75 pesos. I also thought it was interesting for potato crisps to come in a box instead of a tube.

I don't even know where to begin with my praises for Fukuda Potato Crisps. The wasabi flavor was delightfully tangy (i.e., not too strong) and the saltyness of the lobster flavor complemented the spiciness perfectly. The crisps themselves are of the right thickness and are indeed crispy. Unlike its more expensive counterparts, Fukuda Potato Crisps don't get stuck between your teeth (hindi nakakatinga!). The crisps are packed tightly together which means that there are very few broken-off pieces. And the best part is that with such great value, you don't have to pay as much as the other more "premium" brands!

For its great taste, sizeable volume, and affordable price, Fukuda Potato Crisps is the latest product to earn the Punzki "Sulet!" Seal of Approval. Grab a box today!

Epilogue. Today, I went out with Andreé and bought two new flavors of Fukuda to try out: Seaweed and Sour Cream and Onion. They're both as great as the Wasabi Lobster flavor! Bought Andreé an extra box of seaweed-flavored to take home. Two more flavors to try: Barbecue and Original.

P.S. Can't find any links or pictures about Fukuda online so I'll just upload some photos later. Also, if you see Fukuda for sale at any store, let me know where you found it. I haven't seen Fukuda outside of the SM Makati snacks section.

P.P.S. I know too much junk food is bad for my health, but if I'm going to buy food that'll kill me, it might as well come cheap.

Labels: :D, bargains, food, Fukuda, junk food

"Manong" is our friendly neighborhood food vendor that sells deliciously cheap styrofoam-packed lunches at our office building. He camps out everyday at the 7.5th and 14.5th floor (that's halfway up the stairwell from the HP floors) right around noon. These famously affordable lunches sell for 45 pesos each and come with a viand (3-4 choices daily!), vegetables on the side, a fruit or chocolate for dessert, and loads of rice.

At lunch time, people rush to buy food from Manong before his stock runs out. You simply cannot beat that value! I computed that if I stick to Manong's lunches every weekday and stick to the cheapest transportation, I'll only be spending 112 pesos a day, 560 pesos a week, and 2240 pesos a month. Wow! (Of course, you must remember I don't chip in for the household expenses yet.)

Maraming salamat, Manong. (I really must remember to ask what his real name is.)

(Pictures to be posted in the future.)

Labels: bargains, finances, food