Food makes us happy! :)
The old town of Ipoh is known as one of Malaysia’s best coffee producers. The “Old Town” coffee brand is a popular present for visitors coming from Malaysia. It is one of my favorite instant coffee due to its sharp strong yet rich flavor. Recently, I found myself back in Ipoh for a fam tour. While strolling through one of the famed concubine lanes in Ipoh, we chanced upon Panglima Dua Lima. A charming little cafe housed in an old shophouse serving freshly prepare Ipoh white coffee.
Amidst the small town of Anao, Tarlac, is Kape Agape, a small community cafe inspired by the highest form of love “agape” – the love of God for man and of man for God. Located at the heart of town abundant with ylang-ylang trees, the cafe not only serves nourishing food for the tummy but also for the soul.
Happyfoodies has been on the road recently and traveling through towns we normally pass through on the way to Bontoc and Sagada brought some surprises to us. One of these is finding a place to have good coffee in Abatan, some 80 or so kilometers away from Baguio. Billeted at Garden Breeze in Bangad, we wanted to find out what else is out there, attractions- and food-wise, so we walked along the town center. After a hearty lunch of beef broccoli and soup at Kadan-Tom, we decided to find out if there’s a place where we can grab a cup of coffee and some dessert. Maybe it was a stroke of serendipity that we found Cafe Lounge 85 at the fringe of the town center where the coffee along with the view gave us a pleasant surprise.
Living up to the town’s reputation, Art Capital Cafe, is a cozy little cafe right beside a Caltex station in Angono. It serves up more than the usual brews but also showcases inspiring art pieces from up and coming artist. Art Capital Cafe was the last stop in our tour of Angono sites and eats. May we have saved the best for last?
I have a friend who’s known as the “Sound Check Guy”. He’s musically inclined and decided to live in La Union for good, finding he felt more at home there. He worked as a barista for a small coffee shop for a while and that’s where I first heard about El Union Coffee. This small cafe ran by Kiddo and Sly sources locally grown coffee beans from around La Union. Their signature blend became a hit among the locals and tourists alike. The cafe quickly outgrew its original site and had to move to a new location along the MacArthur National Highway.
Summer is beginning to make itself felt. Pretty soon, people would be reaching for something cool and comforting to beat the heat. If you’re passing by either the Burgos Circle in BGC or SM’s The Block, why not check out Casa Italia? Don’t be intimidated by the fancy interiors of this gleaming Singapore-based Italian coffee and gelato cafe chain. The friendly staff greets you a warm “Ciao” the moment you step inside. Then, the array of vibrant colors of the gelato on display may just awaken your passion for dessert indulgence.
We actually heard about Barkin’ Blends Dog Cafe last year when it was about to open. Busy-ness plus the travails of commuting kept us from visiting until last Sunday when your Happyfoodies found themselves in the Katipunan area within barking distance (pun intended) of the cafe so we dropped by for an afternoon of coffee and canine company.
It actually came as a pleasant surprise that the cafe has already celebrated its first year anniversary as we felt that while as a dog lover we dig the idea, we don’t know if the novelty would wear off after a few months. Sure, it was a swell idea when it first came out, a concept that you’d probably read about in Japan or Singapore where the high costs of keeping pets or strict housing rules has created opportunities for creative pet lovers to build a business around a petting zoo type of establishment. We haven’t reached that state yet, we think, though keeping a dog is no joke – costly in terms of vet care, food, grooming and we never believe that dogs are just some form of status symbol for showing around; rather, they’re friends to care for.
Your Happyfoodies trudged to the northern highlands for the days leading up to the new year with an overnight stop in Baguio. By chance, we got billeted in a hotel on a quieter street parallel to the always-busy (read: noisy) Session Road and chanced upon the barely month-old The Coffee Library on the ground floor of the Rex Hall Student Residences along General Luna Street. Needless to say, it was a serendipitous find. Yes, it is eye-catching, with tasteful touches of ethnic crafts, mix of red brick and warm wood, even vintage “padyak” (foot pedal-powered) sewing machines converted into tables, but how was the food, you may ask.