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My Experience With Delicious ITealicious' Filling in the Milk Tea Demand in Cebu City

It's been some time since I did a food review, right? Back then, I remembered how my first love with Taiwanese milk tea was Chatime. Though. when I went to Chatime--I usually ordered fruit tea since I was trying to lose weight. I ended up trying Tiger Sugar which ordering something without sugar doesn't make sense. So, another milk tea I decided to try (via delivery, haven't gone to the branches yet since the pandemic) is ITealicious. ITealicious is founded by Taiwan-born Yuwen Chiu (who's also a Chinese teacher in Cebu Eastern College). It was founded in 2018--the time when I was so devoted to weight loss that I didn't try it until I lost some pounds. In trying to renew my driver's license--I discovered I went from 85 pounds to 79 pounds since I've been doing a lot of cardiovascular exercises during the pandemic.

I decided to give ITealicious a shot after I had tasted the food at Jolly Bubble. Jolly Bubble is pretty much the ideal place to get a delicious meal and milk tea. However, while I still had the fear of going out even after receiving my two doses (the third dose is not yet applicable as of this time), I decided to order via Foodpanda. I've been using Grab and Foodpanda even before the lockdown. I decided to try their signature milk tea with the least sugar level. Then I decided to try their Okinawa Milk Tea with full sugar (which is brown sugar) to get a full blast. As said, I prefer to avoid sugar in my tea due to them using refined sugar. However, I'm pretty fine with the taste of brown sugar at full level. 

ITealicious has been open in several places. One may find a branch in Jones near 711, in IT Park near Harrison Hotel and across Zerenity Hotel, across JCentre Mall in AS Fortuna, in Emilio Osmena, in Subangdaku in Mandaue City, Cardinal Rosales Avenue, Katipunan St. near Ho Ngohiong, and Highway Bulacao near Prince Warehouse.

I could remember ordering their plum refresher after eating some grilled pork belly. It was totally not a good idea not to prepare tea, right? I did get their plum refresher at 25% sugar though I think I could've added more. Plum refresher becomes a quick way to get rid of the greasy feel from the mouth. Though, I tend to avoid fruit milk tea which is rather weird since I order mango lassi almost every time I eat at Little India Healthy Cuisine. 

Now, my favorite item on their menu is their Okinawa milk tea


Try watching this short video to understand the Okinawa brown sugar. When it comes to sugar--I first think of Bacolod in Negros Occidental or West Negros. Bacolod is where the famous Bongbong's Piaya came from. So, maybe one can think of Okinawa as the Japanese equivalent of Bacolod. Just reading this information made me think of why their Okinawa tea is one of their most popular items:

Kokuto, Okinawa Brown Sugar in Japanese 
Can you guess the origin of this Brown Sugar? Yes of course it is from Okinawa! It is from sugarcane that is grown in Okinawa. Okinawa is famous for their beautiful place, beach, and their longevity. It is well-known that Okinawa’s climate is perfect for sugar cane. With strong southern-island sunlight and minerals delivered by the ocean spray, make Okinawa perfect for growing healthy sugar cane!

Production begins with a healthy sugarcane crop then continues to a slow cooking technique to process the sugar cane juice (this method is referred to as kokuto). This method makes them healthier than the usual brown sugar. Okinawa becomes a premier location for this sugar production in Japan not just because of the technique but because of the specific environmental condition.

What Make It So Special?
Besides the place where it grows, Okinawa Brown Sugar is high in calcium, potassium, and iron. It prevents tooth decay, improves resistance to stress, and it even lowers cholesterol. It shows many good benefits and used as part of a remedy for anemia. In China, drink melted brown sugar is used to recover after giving birth. 

Okinawa people are popular with their longevity! Okinawan people really know how to make food for their longevity and always being happy! The fields of sugarcane are the original scenery of the island, even it is sung in popular songs. it is Okinawa specialties to make this Brown Sugar and make it healthy. 

Cleaning up and repairs after Odette has been easy. The dry season is on. I would admit that drinking a cup of Okinawa milk tea at full sugar of Okinawa brown sugar is a wonder-worker. I would have some coconut jelly mixed with coffee jelly if I'm not in the mood for pearl milk tea. I think one of the best features of brown sugar isn't just the taste--it doesn't give a sudden boost in energy which quickly runs out. Also, I feel like it can help with sugar cravings better since the energy level lasts longer than refined sugar. It's like how I could still enjoy some sans rival (watch for calories though) though I think this milk tea can both quench my thirst and sugar cravings at the same time. 

References

"Do You Know Okinawa Brown Sugar?" by Fenny Haliman (May 22, 2021)

"ITEALICIOUS: A TASTE OF TAIWAN’S BEST MILK TEA AND COFFEE IN CEBU" by Marel Baluyos (December 12, 2020)

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