An O-some and snack-tacular treat from Oishi

Ready, dive, grab, and go!

All eyes were on actor and TV personality Slater Young as he got strapped into a harness, was led to an elevated area, and dipped in a glass pool filled with 17,500 Oishi snacks.

Slater was on a mission: grab as many Oishi products as he could. Think arcade game UFO Catcher, with Slater as the UFO claw.

The crowd roared when he emerged from the pool victorious. The celebrity snack catcher managed to snatch a total of 120 assorted Oishi snacks — using his arms, legs and thighs — to the delight of his fellow Team O! members Elmo Magalona, Ramon Bautista, Kathryn Bernardo, Daniel Padilla and Oishi’s newest endorser (for Crispy Patata) Alex Gonzaga, who rallied behind him.

The Snack Catcher booth was one of the highlights of the second Oishi Snacktacular 2015 event, which was held from Aug. 7 to 9 at the Activity Center of TriNoma in QC.

For only P120 per ride, participants had a field day diving and grabbing snacks from the pool. One lucky guy grabbed a total of 180 snacks in one go. My son Karl got 163 packs!

“Oishi Snacktacular is our way of giving back to our loyal customers who’ve made Oishi a part of their childhood and afternoon snacks,” enthused Cherry Gaw, Oishi assistant marketing manager. “We also take this as an opportunity to create O, Wow! moments — with the various activities lined up for everyone — and to introduce new products.”

Transformed into an exhilarating and creative field of play, the Activity Area was divided into six O, Wow! activity booths: The Oishi Pack Pose, Oishi Slush C, Oishi O-Twirl, Snack Catcher, Snack Shack and Make Your Own Snack — for families and friends to enjoy.

For some, the first order of the day was to take a selfie with Team O’s Slater Young, Elmo Magalona, and Ramon Bautista inside the giant bag of Spicy Oishi Prawn Crackers. Others trooped to the Slush C+ booth to quench their thirst with a refreshing cup of Oishi Smart C+ slushie, while the kids lined up at the Oishi O-Twirl booth not only to satisfy their sweet tooth with a cup of soft-serve sundae (made from Oishi Choco Chug Chocolate Milk Drink) but also to have a photo with Elmo’s siblings Clara and Arkin Magalona, who were manning the booth. Their mom Pia, sisters Maxene and Saab Magalona also mingled with the crowd. For P20, one could have a cup of the Choco Chug Sundae with two toppings (sweet or savory). I had Sponge and Ridges. Also available were Wafu Leche Flan, Gourmet Picks Potato Chips, and Marty’s Baconette Strips.

“We’ve made flavorful twists in presenting/serving some of our products. It’s only during Snacktacular that you get to enjoy Oishi Smart C+ (Pomelo, Grapefruit and Lemon Squeeze) as slushie or Oishi Choco Chug Chocolate drink as soft-serve ice cream. We’ve also included Oishi savory snacks as toppings,” said Gaw.

Keeping up with the fun and games, guests at the Snack Shack ran around to fill up their limited-edition two-foot Oishi giant pack with all their favorite Oishi snacks and beverages in 60 seconds.

I was busy making my own snack — mixing cheese clubs and Oishi Ridges flavored with barbecue and nori — when Ramon Bautista called me on stage to receive my (raffle) prize: a giant bag of Oishi and P5,000 worth of gift certificates from Bench. What an O-some treat, indeed!

* * *

For inquiries, visit www.oishi.com.ph or follow Oishi on Facebook at www.facebook.com/oishi.ph.