W EDNES DAY : OCTOBER 14 : 2015
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ISAH V. RED EDITOR isahred @ gmail.com
SHOWBITZ
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Weekend at kuya J With Jericho rosales in cebu ISAH V. RED Before September came to a close, a small group of journalists flew to Cebu, Sunday morning. On the plane with us was actor/singer Jericho Rosales who, by now everyone knows, is the face of one of the fastest growing restaurant chain in the Philippines – Kuya J. Just like us, Rosales was traveling to Cebu upon invitation by Kuya J’s owners, Winglip K. Chang and Lowell Yu, to entertain the loyal patrons of the restaurant where it all started – on Escario Street in Cebu. After a sumptuous lunch in one of Chang and Yu’s restaurants, Isla Sugbu Seafood City, one of the dining facilities at the Grand Convention Center of Cebu, Rosales proceeded to SM City Cebu where he serenaded his fans that have crowded the mall’s activity center. They were there since 2 p.m. to make sure they have a good vantage point of the actor. When he arrived from the adjacent Radisson Blu where he was billeted for the day, the crowd even grew bigger and the screams louder. At his opening remarks, Rosales said that he really enjoys singing for the Cebuanos because they are very warm and always welcome him with open arms when he is in town. Jericho performed several covers including one from the soundtracks of The Legal Wife, “Pusong Ligaw.” This is the song Jericho wrote even before the series. He said he felt overjoyed when it was included in the soundtrack of series in which he starred with Maja Salvador and Angel Locsin. It would have been only less than an hour of songs for the rabid fans of Rosales, but they didn’t want to let him go, asking for more after every song he said was his last, until he had sang four more songs that were not
originally included in his repertoire. Back at the Kuya J restaurant at SM City, a few blocks away from the activity center, sales of the actor’s CD was brisk. The fans learned that Rosales would be signing the CD after his gig at the activity center. Finally, when he bid the crowd goobye, most of them, especially those who bought copies of his CD, proceeded to Kuya J and queued for his autograph. At a short press conference, Rosales said he couldn’t say ‘no’ when he was offered to be the endorser of Kuya J Restaurant. “ I believe in the values they are trying to emulate and the fact that they are promoting Filipino dishes,” the actor said. He revealed that he also loves cooking and of course, eating, “Especially the signature dishes of Kuya J … crispy pata.” When it was time for dinner, he joined the waiters in serving the newly cooked crispy pata to the guests. Jericho said he is looking forward to the movie he is going to star in with Jennylyn Mercado. The movie is called Walang Forever and he plays the role originally intended for another actor. According to Jericho he doesn’t mind being a second choice for as long as he likes the role. “It’s a big break from the heavy drama I have been associated with,” the actor said in reference to the romantic comedy movie he’s be shooting soon. Kuya J Restaurant has branches at SM Megamall apart from SM City Cebu, SM City BF Parañaque, SM City Marikina, SM City Sta. Mesa, SM City Novaliches, SM City Fairview, SM Center Pasig, SM City Dasmariñas, SM City San Mateo, SM City Manila, SM San Lazaro, SM City Pampanga, SM City Clark, SM City San Fernando, SM City Consolacion in Cebu and SM City Bacolod. More branches are set to open before the year ends. ➜ continued on c7
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1 Jericho Rosales serving Crispy Pata to guests 2 At the SM City Cebu activity center, Rosales entertains his fans with songs 3 Back at the Kuya J Restaurant at SM City Cebu, Rosales with the restaurant owner Winglip Chang and another officer 4 Fans have their copies of Jericho Rosales CD autographed 5 Rosales trying to shake the hands of fans 6 Another fan gets lucky as Rosales gives her a buzz 7 The crowd at the activity center