Bag of Beans, Tagaytay

A few days after touching down in Manila, I went to Tagaytay for a quick trip with my mum. She was furniture hunting and she never stops until she finds the PERFECT piece. Bag of Beans has long been in Tagaytay, its a cafe that offers really simple food, they have a couple of different pies to boast about, and good Barako* coffee.

Though it is located on a main road, there is a dining area down a flight of stairs. It automatically transports you to a serene dwelling. It's quite airy and native, if you will. 

What's a day without a good cup of coffee? Of course, I had mine black.

Chateau Hestia, Tagaytay

I absolutely love the old Spanish vibe of the place.

My dad and mum both took the day off for my dad's birthday. The three of us headed off to Tagaytay which was something fairly out of the ordinary especially for us. I had no clue whatsoever where my dad was going to take us, but for sure it was going to be somewhere extraordinary.* Yes, it was the opposite way around, he was the one who surprised us! 

My dad has read about Chateau Hestia in a couple of magazines and he actually knows the owner too. The place is very hard to find but once you do find it, it has that relaxed ambiance and it very airy. I found it beautiful especially cause it had an organic farm out the back. 

The dining area was very simple. It was reminiscent of a chateau as the name suggests. There were plenty of windows that pulled in a lot of natural light. 

Complimentary bread and uhh.. a buttery eggplant dip if I wasn't mistaken. I wasn't the biggest fan of their bread, it wasn't dense enough for me.

Antonio's, Tagaytay

We're having a long weekend here in Manila. There was no work yesterday, and there's none today! So my mother, sister and myself went to Tagaytay, which is like Baguio, only nearer and more convenient.

Just like Baguio almost always means Le Chef and Cafe by the Ruins, Tagaytay is starting to mean Antonio's. Which is gorgeous and has great service.

They start you off with a crusty sesame roll and unsalted butter. 

Tootsie's, Tagaytay

I touched down in Manila last last Thursday, really early in the morning. I got home to our lovely new house and spent my time in the shower. It felt like home. YAY! I asked my mum what she was up to for the day and she said she was heading to Tagaytay to do some furniture hunting.

It's no secret that Tagaytay is a common destination for folks in Manila especially during the weekend. But lately, the traffic has been increasingly intolerable, a supposedly 1 1/2 hour trip turns into a long ass journey. Once you get there, there's always the issue of where to eat. And these days, common restaurants in Manila have been setting up shop up there, people just usually pick whatever that seems convenient otherwise their usual or favorite.

It's because of those sorts of things that small restaurants like Tootisie's have a rather small opportunity to shine.* The place is very cozy, sort of a country home setting almost. It's fairly reminiscent of Mom & Tina's too. The items on the menu are obviously personal and dear to the owner. Some were even noted with the respective person that it was associated with.