Taiwan's One Zo banks on freshly made pearls to shine in crowded milk tea market

MANILA -- Milk tea is here to stay with one shop opening one after the other.

While it seems that if you’ve seen one, you’ve seen them all, some concepts just have something different that separates them from the rest. One such shop is One Zo Tapioca, which has been getting rave reviews for its fresh flavored pearls.

One Zo got its name from its parent brand from Tainan, Taiwan.

“If you read the two Chinese characters, it’s basically pronounced 'one zuo.' So, it means the use of hands to create drinks and fresh pearls,” explained One Zo Tapioca's general manager Christopher Chua.

According to Chua, they first found out about One Zo on Insider, which had a story on the Vancouver branch. Shortly after, Chua and Unibev, the company that holds the One Zo Philippine franchise, met up with the owners in Taiwan that resulted in a partnership and the opening of their first branch.

The fresh pearls are the draw of OneZo. The pearls start out as a big batch of dough that is made in-store. Each store has its own machine for making and forming the popular sinkers.

When cooked, the pearls have a distinct mochi-like texture that are soft and chewy. This ability to make their own pearls gives the local operation the flexibility to make many flavors, some which are exclusively available in the Philippines.

Aside from the usual brown sugar pearls, One Zo shops have mango, strawberry, coffee, taro and matcha. The taro and matcha pearls are only available here in the Philippines. These pearls can be combined with One Zo’s fruit or milk teas.

Chua mentioned that other countries have exclusive flavors of their own like chrysanthemum and sesame pearls. There are plans for One Zo to offer these for a limited time to test if these unique flavors will appeal to the local milk tea drinkers.

One Zo Tapioca’s newest branch at 779-A Banawe Street in Quezon City opens on Saturday, November 30. For its opening promo, guests who buy any drink get one free medium milk tea.

One Zo has another store at Promenade in Greenhills. Other branches in Estancia and Araneta Center are set to open before the year ends.

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Are pearls the next big jewelry statement?

In a myriad of diamond jewels and crystal accessories, there is something undoubtedly elegant about pearls. Simple, pristine and rarely obscene in excess, pearls are a timeless piece of jewelry that carries a myth of its own.

Once upon a time, they were the ultimate treasure from exotic lands in the Oriental trade, and worn only by the aristocratic ladies of the court.

These days, pearls have sort of been eclipsed by the dominance of gems in the jewel trade; but perhaps, a comeback is in the near future, as diamond sellers woe the slumping sales from younger markets.

No longer dubbed as an old-school costume piece, pearls are back in fashion, and could be the next jewelry statement across all markets. If you feel like taking a sampler of different pearls across continents, here’s our quick list of pearl offerings:

1. Mikimoto

Hailed as the pioneer for cultured pearls, Mikimoto is a luxury powerhouse for some of the most decadent, and even perfect set of pearls. 

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Lupita Nyong'o's Oscar gown returned by thief via TMZ

LOS ANGELES - The $150,000 Oscar gown worn by actress Lupita Nyong'o that was stolen two days ago was returned on Friday by the thief, who tipped off celebrity news site TMZ.com after finding out that the pearls on the dress were fake.

TMZ said the thief took the Calvin Klein dress from Nyong'o's hotel room on Wednesday after finding the door ajar. The Kenyan actress had worn the dress adorned with 6,000 pearls to Sunday's Academy Awards in one of the most commented looks of the night.



The thief and others removed two pearls from the dress and took them to the Garment District in downtown Los Angeles where they were told they were not real, according to TMZ.

The thief then took the dress back to the London West Hollywood hotel and told TMZ it was in a garment bag inside a trash bag in a bathroom.

TMZ then tipped off the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department in West Hollywood, which was investigating the theft. The website shows grainy footage of an unidentified person opening the bag and finding a white dress.

Sheriff's Department spokeswoman Guillermina Saldana said they were "in the process of confirming" the story.

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com