Bavaria brings Germany to Iloilo City

Tucked in one of the side streets toward the plaza of Jaro district is a small “typical German restaurant and bar” aptly named Bavaria. Described as a taste of Germany in Iloilo City, this quaint little restaurant quietly is actually an open secret among foodies in the city.

Owned by Helen Stummer, Bavaria lets the Ilonggos experience the Deutsch fashion of merry eating and drinking. Designed like an old fashioned German tavern, patrons feel a transformation of ambiance the moment they step in. After passing through a narrow hallway, a cozy dining area awaits customers who feel like to have entered a museum of sorts because of the ornate decorations and displays in true German fashion.

Bavaria is mainly a bar that serves German drinks but it also dishes quite a number of German specialties. Somewhat the restaurant’s menu has expanded to include other cuisine like Spanish and the typical Filipino to attract more guests. But it is the German gastronomic specialties that are really authentic to the taste.

Among their best sellers are their authentic German sausages (in combo meals) and pepper steaks complete with mashed potatoes and sauerkraut (a personal favorite). They also have paella and typical Filipino combo meals. Aside from the German brews and other international drinks, among it’s signature drink is Spezi. Sounds foreign but it’s just a combination of local sodas as I was told.

Bavaria indeed has gone a long way and to survive the Ilonggos discriminating taste, which other restaurants failed big time, it must have done something right. Could it be the ambiance and the feel of the restaurant, the service and style or the authentic taste of it’s food? Discover it for yourself.

Bavaria Restobar
113 Seminario St., Jaro, Iloilo City, Philippines.
Contact Numbers. 320-2186, 329-0078, 320-2188

Note: The building is home to Nagarao Pension House and it also serves as a field office for Nagarao Island Resort off Guimaras island. Check out more photos of at Bavaria: A taste of Germany In Iloilo City

Ultimate Ilonggo Favorite: KBL Kadyos, Baboy, Langka

K.B.L. or Kadyos, Baboy, Langka is the ultimate favorite dish of most Ilonggos. It is also one of the most missed native dishes as kadyos and the souring ingredient, batwan , are hard to find when outside of the Ilonggo region. Basically, it is boiled/stewed pork dish owing its "deliciousness" to the combination of the soft and tender pork, the tamed sourness of batwan and the malinamnam na sabaw . One of the "secrets" of the malinamnamn na sabaw , is the fact that the pork, whether just the plain meat or pata (hocks) are first grilled or broiled. This gives the broth a rather smoky taste that makes it more appetizing.. Learn how to make the Ilonggo dish KBL (Kadyos, Baboy, at Langka) with the recipe below. Ingredients 1 kilo Pata (pork hocks) or pork cubes, GRILLED and sliced into bite size pieces 1 unripe Jack fruit, cubed 2 cups pigeon pea (kadyos) 6-8 pieces batwan fruit (or tamarind powder) 1 piece pork broth cube (

An Ilonggo favorite - Valenciana

Found in almost all occasions like fiesta, birthdays, reunions and others, Ilonggos really love valenciana because most if not all have grown accustomed of having it in special gatherings at home. A complete " go, grow and glow " dish because it has the carbohydrates, protein and vitamins and minerals in just one spoonful, Valenciana is really an " occasional dish ". Here's the recipe for Valenciana

Takway

The gabi (taro) is just one of those plants which is edible from "roots to tops". The most popular of which is the tuber part which is used in a variety of dishes and mostly in combination with coconut milk. Its leaves, of course, is the main ingredient of a Bicol specialty, laing . It is dried then chopped and sauteed with other ingredients including, again, coconut milk. Then there is takway . The local term for its tendrils/runner, that part which is torn between being a stem or a root for it neither grows upwards nor downwards - it grows sideways . Scraped off of its outer skin, takway is often a key ingredient in vegetable dishes like laswa and the gabi tuber with coconut milk and local snails know as bago-ngon . It is also popular when cooked adobo style with guinamos , the local bago-ong . It is very popular in the region that even big supermarkets sell takway in style - cleaned and plastic wrapped in styro with some additions to make it easier to prepare.

Batwan

Ilonggos know batwan or batuan by heart as the fruit is almost endemic to the Western Visayas. Its scientific name is Garcinia binucao, derived from the Tagalog name for the fruit, binukaw. It is a large green fruit with large seeds and its a favorite souring ingredient in most Ilonggo dishes especially KBL or kadyos, baboy, langka and the Ilonggo-style paksiw known as "pinamalhan". It is characterized by a tamed sourness compared to tamarind and kamias . The fruit is sold by pieces or kilo in wet markets and even big grocery stores. Batwan is the preferred souring ingredients for the Ilonggo favorite- KBL. The photo shows boiled batwan with skin and without skin (right) A favorite riddle when we were young - "Among the many fruits in the forest, but one (batuan) is the best. What is it?"

A cooking weed called Lupo

Lupo is a weed that is commonly found in ricefields and roadside in provinces. It is most prevalent in Ilonggo cooking compared to others as it is mostly the Ilonggos who can recognize lupo , though maybe called differently in other places. Most commonly used in laswa or monggo dishes to add greens like kamote tops, it also makes a good partner in sinabawan na isda recipes. It has hints of bitterness but don't expect it to be ampalaya-bitter like. It is mostly sold in wet local wet markets by the tumpok .

FLAVOURS OF ILOILO

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