The Best Coffee in the Philippines

Nope. I am not exaggerating. It really is the best of the best! Every time I go to Baguio, i usually pass by Garcia’s Coffee at the market. It’s the coffee I grew up with in the Philippines because my dad or my mom would always ask the driver to drive up to Baguio and get our stash of coffee for the whole month or if ever we go up Baguio, then that’s the time we hoard. We also make our friend’s buy coffee for us every time they visit Baguio. I’m starting to think that maybe, the practice of buying coffee in Baguio started with Garcia’s Coffee – and it’s not unlikely that this is true.

Garcia’s Coffee started in 1961 by the family of Mr. Tony Garcia. Imagine – 5 decades of providing excellent coffee – how can you not be an expert right? That’s Mr. Garcia below.

He’s a really nice guy. I spoke to him for about 30 minutes during my visit to his shop. He also educated me about the different kinds of coffee and even showed me a live coffee plant! According to Mr. Garcia, Barako coffee is still the best coffee he has ever tasted. I dunno if he was speaking like a proud “Batangeno” (a local of Batangas) or maybe it really had something to do with the flavor. I personally prefer their Arabica & Benguet Blend. I’m serious. Once you’ve tried that, you’d know what good coffee is. Also, according to the store manager who has been there for the longest time, the best way to prepare coffee is to boil hot water and when it is really boiling, that’s when you put the coffee and boil it for another 15-20 minutes. No filters needed since it’s going to sink anyways. I have to try this!

Here's the store manager showing me the different kinds of coffee beans. As soon as I entered their shop, I didn't want to leave. The smell of the coffee was -- addicting? I didn't want to leave!

So I ordered several flavors: Italian Espresso, Benguet & Arabica blend, Mocha, Hazelnut, and Irish Cream. That time, I started imagining and salivating on the different kinds of coffee I would be having when I get back to Manila. Plus, I started imagining the smell of the coffee filling my house, the 7th heaven feeling every time I would be taking a sip of coffee from my cup, the flavors running on my tongue and me trying to figure out exactly how the flavor works – the bitterness, the sweetness, the creaminess… Just enough to put me in a good mood for the rest of the day!

My coffee - freshly ground and packed for Manila's trip! Some of the coffee beans in Garcia's Coffee

Some of the coffee beans in Garcia's Coffee

Alas! My coffee’s packed. If i’m not mistaken, i probably bought about 6 kilos total of coffee. Should last me for about 2 months. Of course I’m giving some to my family. It’s an automatic thing and some for my friends too! It would be selfish of me not to share something this good to people I care for.

My conclusion? What makes coffee good aside from flavor is the experience. That’s Starbuck’s selling point right? Coffee is coffee is coffee but what makes star buck’s different is they care for their farmers.

I’m sure Mr. Garcia cares for his farmers as well but I think– what will make me enjoy their coffee more this time is I understood or learned about their ways of keeping the excellent quality of their coffee and how they made me feel special and part of their coffee family during my visit to their shop.

———————————————————————————————————

Garcia’s Coffee can be found at: No. 9-10 Hanger Market, Baguio City . For orders, you may get in touch with Mr. Tony Garcia at +63917-5071365. They also ship to Manila thru Victory Liner so it wouldn’t be a problem at all if you’re too lazy to go to Baguio. 🙂 

Stormy Stormy Day

Signal No. 2! And the wind is blowing strong but rain is not that bad. Fog’s heavy too. What am I going to do in Baguio on a rainy weather? I decided to entertain myself by the bar. The bar tender is really friendly and knows how to make real good martinis. It’s hard to find a good martini in Manila and the only place I know that serves good martinis is the Mandarin Oriental in Manila.

That’s my spot over there. See how comfy it is? Wish i could work from there all the time. A bar, smoking allowed, cool temperature, what more could I ask for?

After staying at the bar, I kinda noticed birds taking shelter from the rain. So i grabbed some bread  and started feeding them. It reminded me of all the pigeons in central park. Only this time, they were Mayas. Birds are actually delicate creatures. They fly when you go near, when they hear noise, in fact, if they don’t chirp, you wouldn’t notice their presence which made my experience even better. They approached me as if I was their friend.

And speaking of friends, I really miss one of my best friends. She’s been gone for almost 6 months now, actually coming home in 13 days and I can’t wait. Feels like we grew up together. She could actually start a sentence and I could finish it for her.

As I was walking down the corridor with my colleague, we bumped into this painting and she said that it reminded her of my best friend. When I looked at the painting – I smiled and laughed. Hahaha! Yes — in fact it did remind me of my best friend as well! The hair, the eyes, I actually started to wonder if the artist knew my friend. Of course, my friend is so much prettier in real life. She’s also still available but not for long I guess. We always talk about her marriage happening any time soon. I can’t wait. 🙂

Here’s the painting of my friend. I probably would have bought it to remind me of my friend and hang it on my wall or give it to her only it wasn’t for sale. 🙂

Off to the Market!

I decided to hit the market sunday morning just before breakfast. Baguio’s known for it’s freshest vegetables and fruits supply. “Manilenos” are crazy for this. They usually take home vegetables to their homes – why not? They’re cheap, fresh, and delicious. In fact, the best Sinigang i’ve ever tasted had Baguio vegetables as part of it’s ingredients.

First stop was the vegetable section. Having so much going on around me – I couldn’t decide which store to visit first! Then my imagination started running.. What if I had a rest house in Baguio and then I stay there for the whole summer? The only thing I would be doing would be working from my laptop, going to the market on mornings, the deli after, preparing nice meals for me, my family and friends. Haha Then reality struck me. I’d probably miss the pollution back in Manila and the noise. I could probably do this when I’m in my 40’s or 50’s. For now, it would just be visits. 🙂

And then something caught my eye. I’ve never seen those kinds of tomatoes in Manila! They’re so plump! And huge! I mean, the only tomatoes like these ones in Manila are the ones you can buy at the premium section of Rustan’s or at Santi’s. Also, those tomatoes would be 5 times the price of these ones.

Look at these tomatoes! So red and so sweet and juicy. They're also very fresh. Actually, it looks like they were just picked from the ground because some of them haven't been wiped or washed yet. I could actually imagine this in my salad.

It was also the first time I saw Philippine Cherries. Maybe they were always there but I never noticed. So I decided to take a look at them. They were cheap. 1 kilo for P100. I tried them when I got back to the hotel and uhm.. I guess it’s not my thing.

Philippine Cherries - hhmmm.. I have always liked cherries but i don't think I will be a fan of this one. It's sweet an has an apple like texture but it just felt weird eating it. Although some people I know love it. Maybe it's an acquired taste.

And purple cabbages! Now this is getting exciting. Seeing all these vegetables make me want to prepare salads. I was never really into vegetables tho growing up. I guess eating vegetables and actually liking them only means something – I’m old. Haha!

Purple Cabbage - perfect for salads. I would personally use this , add some onions, parmesan, grapes, over a balsamic vinegar and olive oil dressing.

Now how can I go to the market and not buy strawberries especially now that I am in Baguio? I just had to find the ones that I really liked and here they are.

those strawberries were a treat. They were really sweet wit a hint of sour flavor and were crisp on the outside but really juicy on the inside. hehe

Strawberries in Baguio are always available the whole year. It is probably because of the cold weather. Heck, it’s 16 degrees celsius today. Kinda foggy too.

Off to the meat and fish section. Guess what I saw – Smoked Tawilis. Ghies. That is like the perfect breakfast with fried rice, eggs, with vinegar and salt. yum! 

I also saw Pinoy Longanisas. They are a favorite breakfast dish as well in the Philippines. Especially if they’re cooked until it’s crunchy. Some longanisas are sweet, some are salty, some are garlicky so there are a lot of choices one could choose from.

To cook longanisa, you have to let it simmer in boiling water first but just enough to cover the bottom part of the longanisa. Then you prick it with a fork to let the juices flow out, then cook it in it's own oil. I personally put a splash of oil to make it crunchy.

And then i decided to finally leave the market. All those produce were making me hungry and I figured – time to have brunch. I hope it doesn’t disappoint me…..and to my delight!

The Smoked Tinapa was really good together with the java rice. It was soft, flavorful, you can really taste the smokiness, and it tasted fresh!

L’art à Baguio

After breakfast, I decided to give a little tour of the handicraft shops here in Baguio since this is what they are famous for. Sometimes, it could be  the wood carving of a man’s genitals and a really pointed carving of a woman’s breasts but of course – i’m into the more wholesome, fine taste, homey  type of stuff.

My first visit was Sabado’s handicrafts. It is located just at the back of the Mansion. This is the place to go to if you are into heavy wooden furniture and native stuff that really shows you what the culture of the Igorots are.

Sabado's Handicrafts

My next stop was Narda’s. They’re famous for their hand woven products. A bit pricey though but hey – whoever said fine things were cheap? I personally got their place mats back home and it’s been with me for 7 years already and the quality is really good.

Narda's Hand Weaving MachineNarda's Hand Made Products are a must have in one's home.

Next stop is PNKY. Oh yes. This is the place that I really enjoyed spending time at. You could eat there, shop there and sleep there too! In short- a boutique, but a really nice boutique.

PNKY

I love the way they incorporated Filipino art into their designs. I would love to own a lamp that they made. I just still haven’t decided which!

PNKY Paintings - yes - those are for sale!PNKY Collection. Wouldn't you want to have one of those?

After shopping, my friend and I decided to try their food. We had the Apple of My Pie. Applie Pie the PNKY way. It was good! I liked the crust – wasn’t too hard, wasn’t too soft plus the vanilla ice cream made it lovelier to eat at this cold weather.

The colorful collage of different lomo photos which aren't edited and yes those are real photos! Don't you just love the way they designed the place? It's filled with wonderful memories of travel, people, and art!

My friend reading the menu

The really cool menu of PNKY. It's very --- artsy. Love the photography inside. You'd actually see actual photos, postcards, plane and train tickets inside!

Look at those desserts!

You are the Apple of My Eye. You make me happy when skies are grey. You’ll never know dear how much I love you. Please don’t take the apple pie away.

The Apple of My Pie

Oooppsss. *burp* Okay you can take it away now. 🙂

Gone is the Apple of My Eye

I wonder what’s in store for me this afternoon despite the weather. Hehe. It’s starting to storm now but not that much. Or maybe, i’m just being optimistic and PAGASA is right this time. 🙂

Ciao!

An Old Fashioned Breakfast at the Manor

It’s a stormy day today in Baguio City. The morning news reported that there was a typhoon passing by the northern part of the Philippines which was said to bring strong winds and heavy rain. Of course who are we kidding – every time the PAGASA says it’s going to be wild – only little rain happens and sometimes it even gets sunny. When they don’t give any warnings at all, that’s when everything starts getting disastrous such as Ondoy.

Gloomy Baguio Morning

I decided to visit the breakfast buffet at Le Chef. Some people said that I must try the mueslix. They also said that I should try the raisin bread at the Manor. Some prefer their raisin bread over the country club’s.

So I drag my sleepy self to the resto. Voila! An omelette counter! And it smelled really good. Also, when i got my serving of ham and cheese omelette – it was cooked to perfection. The egg wasn’t dry and the cheese was perfectly melted. I wouldn’t mind having that again tomorrow.

Omelette Corner

Next was the pastry section. I had to try their danish pastries and the raisin bread some of my friends were raving about.  Here’s the mueslix.

Manor Mueslix

There was nothing special about the mueslix. My friend tried it and found it weird because it had yogurt or something. Well, i still think it’s better compared to the others i’ve tried.  The Danish pastries were good since the jam was not that sweet. As a better of fact, the amount of jam placed on top was just right. I personally would not recommend the croissant. It didn’t feel like one inside my mouth. Last I remember, croissants are supposed to melt in your mouth. This one tasted more like bread that you had to chew.

Manor Pastries

And for the win — their raisin bread! It was really good. Same quality as the country club’s but i dunno. There was something about this bread that made me enjoy it so much. Probably because these ones were freshly baked.

Manor's Raisin Bread

And to top of this morning’s breakfast – I guess I could use a little salt in my system – a salad. After all, Baguio’s known for it’s fresh produce. The Manor – one of Baguio’s finest hotels surely has access to these and it is a must that I partake!

A mix of 2 different salads – Garden Salad and the Mediterranean with Tuna.

Manor's very fresh salad.

Well I guess that ends my breakfast! 🙂 Off to see the city now.

Diner Dinners

Diners – first thing that comes to mind: Childhood. I dunno why childhood but maybe because there are a lot of diners in the US because it is a place to get cheap comfort food and seeing them in the Philippines gives me a certain feeling of joy.

Even in movies – people usually go to diners for breakfast or lunch. They also pass by diners after going to bars and they’re feeling really wasted and a cup of starbucks coffee costs too much – besides, the menu of Starbucks is not enticing to drunk people – pancakes, breaded chickens, burgers and fries are.

During my first day in Baguio, i ate my breakfast in a diner here in John Hay. There’s also one near my place back in the urban jungle. It’s Mile Hi Diner. I think they’ve been in Camp John Hay for a pretty long while now.

Mile Hi Diner

For dinner, i did not expect that I would end up in a diner as well! This is 50’s diner. It actually looks like Johnny Rockets with the uniform and everything.

50's Diner at Brent Road

I ordered the Gangsta Gangsta – Chicken, Pork Chop, Eggs, Spring Rolls and Vegetables all in one plate. The price wasn’t bad at all! It was P135 (about 3 dollars). The chicken and pork chop was good but I think the spring rolls and vegetables cooked that way was an overkill.

Gangsta Gangsta

I’m starting to wonder if it’s going to be the diners again tomorrow. I think not. Heck – i’m in Baguio, might as well get adventurous 🙂