Food and history at Kamuning Bakery and Cafe

I love history, though not while in school. Haha! I love stories about the olden days and seeing pictures of how places looked like decades ago. I love vintage items, ancestral houses and certainly, eating in old restaurants. When I read about the 77-year-old Kamuning Bakery and Cafe in some blogs, I got very curious and excited to go there. Doing some research, I found out that it opened in 1939 and that among the famous personalities who had been its patrons were the late President Corazon "Cory" Aquino and national artist Nick Joaquin.
Thankfully, it wasn't long before I had the opportunity to make my first visit to Kamuning Bakery and Cafe. I heard that my officemates were going there one afternoon to buy bread and I tagged along. Once inside the historic bakeshop, I beamed with a feeling of nostalgic delight seeing those breads that I grew up eating in our province of Quezon - kalihim, kababayan and even pinagong, which the town of Sariaya is known for. My friends and I couldn't resist buying a lot! And then, one Saturday last February, I finally was able to dine at the café together with one of my kids. 

Our orders:

Tawilis Pasta, P185. There were six kinds of noodle dish on the menu but I went for this one because it' s unique to Kamuning Café and besides, I love tawilis, which are small fish found only in Taal Lake in Batangas. I love to eat it breaded and fried to a crisp - it's perfect with my favorite vegetable dish pinakbet. This Tawilis Pasta that uses fettuccine is pleasant to the taste with its balance of creaminess with the subtle savory flavor of the fish. Yummy!

Kamuning Chicken Basket, P185. This fried chicken is good! Even my son gave his stamp of approval. It's rightly spiced and crunchy to the bite. Each piece is quite enormous, too! And there's fries that go with these. You can order a basket of two pieces chicken for P185, or four pieces for P370.

My son wanted rice with his chicken so I ordered for him. 

Blueberry Cheesecake, P65. This one's a little thinner that the ones you could have in some restaurants. Not short on the cream cheese and blueberry flavors, though. Probably the best cheesecake your P65. could buy nowadays. By the way, don't go searching for this on the café menu because it's not there. I asked the server if he could get me a slice from the bakery, and he gladly did, thankfully.

Brewed coffee, P75. Kamuning Café's cup of joe gave the perfect ending to my afternoon meal. Here, they use Arabica coffee beans from Sagada. As is my won't, 
 I had it black. 

                                             Mango juice, P80. My son's drink.

  Interiors - notable are some antique pieces, drawings
as well as other works or art

 

I loved the vintage wrought iron chairs similar to what my 
grandparents used to have.

 

Antique stained glass windows remind me of ancestral houses 
that I dream to live in. 

The bakeshop 

My childhood Pinoy bread favorites - kalihim, kababayan and pinagong plus many more. All breads are baked the old-fashioned way, using pugon or wood-fired brick oven.

Kamuning Bakery is divided into three sections - bakeshop on the left, cakeshop in the middle and the cafe at right. This is located at 43 Judge Jimenez corner K-1st Street, Quezon City.

As I see it, Kamuning Bakery and Cafe is a gem tucked away in this side of Quezon City for its priceless history and of course, the traditional Filipino breads and the coffee plus savory food offered at the café. The ambiance of nostalgia that it gives off is a treasure in itself as well, for people like me who find interest in history. 
But people come to Kamuning Bakery and Cafe not just for the food and coffee. They come to discuss, mostly about government and politics. Professors from the University of the Philippines and yes, the bigwigs in government do come and for this reason, owner Wilson Lee Flores last year decided to hold media forums here so aptly dubbed as "Kapihan at Pandesal sa Kamuning". Some of those who have graced these events were Vice President Jejomar Binay, Senators Francis "Chiz" Escudero and Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos and Representative Leni Robredo. 
So pay this decades-old foodie place a visit, folks and enjoy as much as I did, drinking and munching away a relaxing weekend afternoon. 
Happy eating!

Gerry's Restaurant and Bar: My new fave Pinoy food place

Gerry's Restaurant and Bar (formerly Gerry's Grill) is one of the most 
established chains of Filipino restaurants in the country. With 75 branches across the country and abroad, it's just about anywhere! Whatever mall you go to, you can be sure to find a Gerry's Restaurant and Bar. And it's been around for 19 years already, since its very first store opened 
in Tomas Morato in 1997.
This is why I don't know why it took me so long before I ate here for the first time only this year. I was chaperoning my sister who was vacationing from the US. It had been three weeks into her vacay and we've dined at most Pinoy restos in the malls except for Gerry's Grill. Finally, we were there at the SM City Manila branch. My son and his girlfriend, who were incidentally in the same mall, joined us for merienda.

Our orders:

Pancit bihon, P165. If you've been a regular visitor to this site, you already know that I love pancit bihon but am choosy with it. Well, Gerry's version did not disappoint and I actually loved it. Delicious and meaty!

Pancit palabok, P175. This one's my second favorite among Pinoy noodle dishes and I also loved it here at Gerry's. The sauce is not so much, just enough to cover and flavor the noodles. Thumbs up!

 Fried chicken, P255. I loved that this all-time favorite food of mine wasn't only delicious and crunchy, it's also served with fries. It's double the yum! I'm sure kids would love Gerry's fried chicken.. One serving has six pieces.

Batchoy, P135. Though we've ordered quite a lot or more than we could eat, my sister couldn't resist a bowl of hot soup. Batchoy is her favorite noodle soup dish as well as mine. And Gerry's served justice to this original Ilonggo favorite. Perfect for warming up a growling tummy!

Iced tea, P80 (bottomless); Coffee mug, P65.

Gerry's Restaurant and Bar at SM City Manila

I loved Gerry's Restaurant and Bar on my first-ever visit and would certainly love to be back. It's a good family restaurant as the servings are huge and meant for sharing, but as it is also a bar, it's also a nice place (for some people), to bring their friends for a drink. The menu is impressively extensive - 12 pages! Whatever Pinoy food you're craving for, chances are it's offered at Gerry's Restaurant and Bar. From bulalo to sinigang, kare-kare, crispty pata, kilawin to sisig and inihaw na pusit, they're all available here! Prices are reasonable and service is friendly though a little slow, at least during that time and in that branch. You bet it's so apt a place to bring a balikbayan. 
See you, folks, at Gerry's Restaurant and Bar!
Happy eating!

Trying out Kuya J

Kuya J, that restaurant often mistakenly thought of being owned by actor Jericho Rosales, is fast becoming a favorite family restaurant and certainly growing when it comes to number of locations. Before I knew it, it was in almost all the SM Malls I went to. Doing a little bit of research, I learned that Kuya J, owned by businessman Winglip Chang, actually started as a small eatery in Cebu. Today, it has 18 branches across Luzon and the Visayas.
Last January, I finally got to try Kuya J at SM San Lazaro together with my sister for a late afternoon meal. I was craving for pancit bihon then but because the server told us that their bestseller was pancit canton, we decided to give it a try, 
plus a few others to go with it. 

Our orders:

Pancit Canton, P165. Honestly? We should have ordered pancit bihon instead. The canton noodles seemed a little undercooked. My sister and I wondered how this dish became a bestseller.

Grilled Scallops, P230. This saved the day for us because it was really good - very cheesy and flavorful. A little bit leaning on the salty side but very delicious! And it was so beautifully arranged on the plate I almost felt wanting to put all these shells on a string and tie it around my neck. Hahaha!

Banana Langka Turon, P75. The sweetness of this dessert-snack provided the balance with the saltiness of the cheese in the scallops. A perfect ending to a less-than-perfect meal.

                                                      Melon shake, P85. Sister's drink.
               
                                             Brewed coffee, P60. My drink.

Simple, clean, elegant interiors

Some ladies couldn't pass up the chance of being photographed with Jericho Rosales - never mind that it's just a standee. My sister also wanted me to take her picture here but was feeling shy. Haha!..

Though we didn't like the pancit canton, it was still a good first time at Kuya J. I'm sure they have something good to offer and that's for me to discover next time. 
Hope to see you, folks, at Kuya J! 

Happy eating!