The Ultimate List: Last Minute Food Gifts To Buy In A Pinch

Christmas is almost here and you’re not done with your shopping yet! No need to worry. There are always beautiful gifts to source around the city—and no need to order ahead as long as stocks don’t run out.

 

Olive Oil Grand Crus Collection by Oliviers & Co

 

This collection includes some of the most exceptional olive oils in the world carefully sourced from Italy, Spain, Croatia, Greece, Portugal and France. With the olives handpicked and cold pressed within 24 hours, these olive oils are bottled in the Oliviers & Co workshop in France. They boast a range of taste profiles—fruity, nutty, herby, floral—and are perfect as a bread dip or to drizzle over fresh pasta and salad.

Branches in Central Square BGC and Greenbelt 5 Makati

 

The Cracking Monkey Pili Nuts

These are pili nuts from Bicol like you’ve never had before! They’re completely natural, have not been roasted, nor have they undergone any kind of chemical processing. To harness their maximum health benefits, these nuts are best consumed after pre-sprouting and eaten straight out of the shell. It’s fun to use the included patented notch and lever system to crack the shell yourself. The nuts come in 300-gram, 500-gram, 1-kilo, 3-kilo, and 5-kilo pouches. (Photo: Jar Concengco)

Available at SM Kultura branches, www.thecrackingmonkey.com

 

Memz Premium Pork Chicharon

Some of the Philippines’ most respected food authorities heartily recommend this truly addictive chicharon, including Chef Margarita Fores herself. Unlike other chicharon purveyors, Memz does not boil or dehydrate their pork. Rather, to preserve its natural flavors, they render it in the pork fat itself. Bite-sized, crunchy, and utterly delicious, with nary a trace of oiliness or lansa, it’s also beautifully packaged in FDA-grade aluminum foil to protect the chicharon from air and moisture. (Photo: Jar Concengco)

Visit memzchicharon.com for a list of retail outlets

 

Mendiants from Bizu Patisserie

Pick up a cylinder or two of these traditional French delicacies made with Belgian chocolates and assorted dried fruits and nuts, available in sugar-free, milk, dark, white and cocoa nibs variants. Or there are always Bizu’s signature macarons de Paris, with a fresh batch of assorted flavors always on hand.

Branches in Greenbelt 2, Greenhills Promenade, St. Luke’s Global City, Eastwood Mall, Robinsons Magnolia, Alabang Town Center, www.bizuchristmas.com

 

Handcrafted chocolate bars by Cibo

Popular Italian chain Cibo recently launched a new line of chocolate bars in four original flavors: Sale di Cervia (75% dark chocolate with sea salt), Rosmarino (65% dark chocolate with rosemary), Peperoncino (65% dark chocolate with chili pepper), and Latte E Miele (50% dark milk chocolate with honey coated cacao nibs). Cibo owner and Asia’s Best Female Chef Margarita Fores collaborated with chocolatier Tigre Y Oliva to create these Italian-inspired flavors that use only single-origin Philippine chocolate.

Visit www.cibo.ph for a list of branches

 

Mango Crunch by Park Avenue Desserts

You can’t go wrong with Chef Buddy Trinidad’s bestselling Mango Crunch cake filled with sweet cream and mangoes. And if that’s sold out, there’s still so much to choose from at this pastry shop extraordinaire (e.g. Brownie Bites, Lemon Bars, Ensaymada, to name a few) where everything is prepared using quality ingredients and with exquisite attention to detail. Our favorite cookie there is the Eureka, a chewy, crisp cookie with a caramel filling, enrobed in dark chocolate, and sprinkled with sea salt. (Photo: Paolo Valenzuela)

Maga Center, Paseo de Magallanes Commercial Center, Makati City, and G/F Rustan’s Supermarket Makati