A few weeks ago, I met a friend from Manila and toured her and her kids around Iloilo City hours before their flight back home. It started with a breakfast that tuned out to be a brunch after all. We went to JD Cafe and Bakeshop at The Roadhouse and as usual our peso went long way.The pancit molo came in a medium sized bowl and for the prices I paid (PhP21++) it was already worth it. Not that it was spectacular or tasted very good, but you can't get a more decent bowl of pancit molo than this at the same price. It has around seven large pancit molo balls and enough chicken strips and flavour too to make it worthwhile.Their chicken ala king is among the most popular. For Php27++, it's just a few slices of toast topped with a creamy chicken and vegetable concoction. Just a light snack and perfect side to some pasta or soups they have. And lastly their fresh lumpia was a rediscovery. I got some not so good memories of their fresh lumpia before - I never really liked how it taste. But it was a revelation when I tried it again. Not my usual favorite Ilonggo style fresh lumpia but when I tried it, I really craved for it ever since. For only Php11++, it's really a good buy and I think finishing 5 in just one sitting is not impossible after all.
With a large glass of pineapple orange juice and two dessert squares, my bill was only Php93++. So 'twas another good eats day JD Cafe and as usual it's less than a hundred.
A stones throw away from the plaza of La Villa de Arevalo is an ancestral house where one can find not only good pasalubong items but also a look into the past of the district. Known as the Sinamay House , this well preserved ancestral house is an attraction not only in the outside but also what it houses inside. A collection of what the past like is housed in the two storey edifice which also acts like a museum of sorts. Sinamay is simply known as abaca by most and, here, a variety of products made from this fiber can be found. I remember watching a feature on tv wherein the owner proudly showed a framed letter signed by the late Princess of Wales, Diana, showing her appreciation of the handkerchief she was given as a gift coming from this very shop. But the attraction I am most familiar with are the chewies and crunchies made by Mama's Kitchen. Attractively packed in boxes showing their current flavours and variety, this is among the better...