Opening gates of development

GOOD news to travelers! The Tarlac-Pangasinan-La Union Toll Expressway (TPLEX), an 88.5 kilometer, two-lane expressway road construction from Tarlac City to Rosario, La Union is now in full swing. When completed, travel time from Manila to La Union in this new expressway extension in the north, would be reduced by as much as two hours.
TPLEX road network would cover four provinces and 15 cities and municipalities. It would start from Tarlac City, Tarlac and ends in Rosario, La Union. The North Expressway Extension traverses Tarlac City and the municipalities of La Paz, Gerona, Victoria, Pura, Anao and Ramos in the Province of Tarlac; Nampicuan and Cuyapo in the Province of Nueva Ecija; Rosales, Villasis, Urdaneta City, Binalonan, Pozzurubio and Sison in Pangasinan Province and Rosario in the Province of La Union.
Supervised by the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH), the project cost about P 12.47 Billion (US $290 million). The massive North Road Expressway Extension of TPLEX Project involves the design, financing, construction, operation and maintenance by Private Infra Development Corporation (PIDC) as the Project Proponent.
TPLEX is divided into three phases or sections. The first phase starts from the terminus of SCTEX (Subic-Clark-Tarlac Expressway) and ends in Rosario, La Union. Section 2 starts from Rosales and ends in Urdaneta City in Pangasinan which includes the Agno River Viaduct. It has total road length of 13.72 kilometers. Section 3, with a length of 25.48 kilometers stretches from Urdaneta City in Pangasinan to Rosario in La Union, which shall be the end of the TPLEX Project.
People from the North who often travel to Metro Manila, know that NLEX (North Luzon Expressway) and SCTEX have made traveling faster and more convenient. TPLEX would surely be a welcome news and development, people in the North would most look forward to. Once completed, this project would surely improve the transportation traffic in the North and Central Luzon provinces it would traverse. Likewise, it would boost and develop trade in the cities, towns and peripheral areas along the new expressway.
And this would also promote tourism because of faster travel time to major tourist spots and destinations in the North. This aside from the fact that local government units, property owners and of course, real estate developers and investors will be the direct beneficiaries which shall open the floodgates of development in the region which had long been expected.

A steak house venture amid a land of seafood

URDANETA CITY—In Pangasinan, a province famous for its seafood and fresh vegetables, a couple dared to be different and established this city’s first steak house.
Odie and Kate Hernandez entered the restaurant business despite doing well in construction, through their GRHH construction company. Odie is an engineer while Kate is an architect.
“But I love cooking and experimenting with new recipes, and going to the market,” Odie says.
“As a family, food is our passion and eating is our bonding time,” says Kate.
Thus it seemed only natural that the couple put up a restaurant called 10ders Steak House and Sushi Bar which opened in December at the second floor of Pentagon Building in this eastern Pangasinan city.
The “10” in the restaurant’s name was the original number of partners, but even before it opened, the nine backed out one by one, leaving only the Hernandezes who decided to maintain the business name.
The chance for the couple to run a restaurant came late last year when Larry’s Steak House in the area closed after only a month of operation, and the owner offered the place to them.
“At first we were hesitant as we did not have experience in running a restaurant. But we decided to plunge into the business. We originally wanted to get a franchise from Slice n’ Dice (a fast food chain offering steaks) but we thought to have our own brand of steaks,” Kate says.
She called her friend, Portia Sagalongos, a chef at the Marina Bay Sands in Singapore, to help her plan the menu and come up with original recipes. Sagalongos was soon at their doorstep and together they planned the menu.
The 10ders Steak House and Sushi Bar opened just in time for the Christmas season.
“Business is going up,” says the couple’s daughter, Gayle, who manages the restaurant.
“We really cater to the A and B market although our prices are much lower compared to the prices in Metro Manila restaurants, as our customers who frequent steak houses [there] can attest. We do not compromise with ingredients and we buy the best we can find,” she says.
The restaurant offers 10ders strip sirloin steak and 10ders rib-eye steak (P675 each), pan-seared rib eye (P445), sirloin steak (P455), porterhouse (P325) and lamb chops (P325). Their prime meat cuts are imported from Australia.
Gayle says their Australian T-bone is affordable at P149 per serving.
The menu has different kinds of sushi (a plate costs below P200), pasta and other favorites like crispy shrimp, gambas, salad, club sandwich and burger. The bar is loaded with a selection of wine and beer from different countries.
Gayle, who grew up and studied in Metro Manila, says there was a sort of “culture shock” when she managed 10ders.
“In Manila, restaurants are usually full during weekends. But here, we have plenty of customers on weekdays but less on weekends,” she says.
To encourage customers to return, the restaurant offers a loyalty card that entitles them to freebies, discounts and rebates.
Putting up a steak house in a city where visitors and locals are used to eating seafood and fresh vegetables may be going against the tide, but the Hernandezes say they are confident to find a niche market.
“The risk was well worth it,” Kate says.

http://business.inquirer.net/111459/a-steak-house-venture-amid-a-land-of-seafood

Killers riding-in-tandem strike anew

URDANETA CITY—Despite the ongoing gun ban and extensive checkpoints, armed men riding in tandem struck again, killing a businessman at Zone 3 in Barangay Nancamaliran East here on the night of February 14
The fatality was identified as Resty Abenojar Camia, 35, of Barangay Calepaan, Asingan, who just left the residence of one Mr. Rubio in Nancamaliran East when he decided to visit his brothers in the same village.

Aries Abenojar Camia, brother of the victim, said Resty had just arrived at their residence on board a motorcycle when suddenly an unidentified man came out from hiding and shot him several times.
Aries came to the rescue of his brother and the gunman fired at him but missed.

The suspect fled with his cohort riding on an unidentified motorcycle that sped towards the west direction.
The victim, who sustained gunshot wounds in the head, back, shoulders and abdomen, was rushed to the Urdaneta City District Hospital where he was declared dead on arrival.

A team from the Scene of the Crime Operatives (SOCO) recovered eight spent shells and one deformed slug for caliber 9mm from the crime scene.
Motive of the shooting incident is still uncertain.

Source: Sunday Punch