Plazuela de Iloilo excites the Ilonggo mallrats

I was about to go home yesterday when all of a sudden I just decided to drop by the still unfinished Plazuela de Iloilo. A month ago it had its soft opening with a few locators open but now, though works are still going on, it has quite created a buzz among Ilonggos.

From the architecture and the press releases it had, it showcased it Spanish theme maybe as a reminder that Iloilo was the last Spanish bastion in the country. The name of the mall itself, Plazuela shows obvious reference plus its main activity area is known as Plaza Mayor.

A new concept of malling in the city as opposed to the usual box typed malls and very compact malls, Plazuela de Iloilo makes malling a leisure. It echoes Iloilo’s way of life – not so hurried despite the hustle and bustle of city life. Compared to the adjacent mall, SM City Iloilo, Plazuela is really very spacious – in fact my first impression is it’s actually a waste of space – lol.

But a beautiful one – it could be the next most photogenic places in the city when it’s completely finished. While other malls fill up every crack and nook of space for retail, Plazuela has lots to show. Though I can’t be sure how it wills look and feel when its 100% filled up but still its al fresco motif creates and illusion of space.

When I got there yesterday, it had its first event at the Plaza Mayor – the graduation rites of a certain culinary school. Right timing it would seem as they activity center also hosts a 15-day food festival and a bazaar. In tune with the season, the center of the plaza had a giant Christmas tree – the biggest Iloilo City have ever scene.

The back portion of Plazuela has two pocket gardens; on both sides of the Plaza Mayor and further more is the vast parking area. Its color scheme hides the fact that you’re already in the backside as it is still as attractive as the front – actually I find the back portion more engaging.

Among the locators that are already open for business are Padi’s Point, Sony Centre, R. Florete Jewellery, Queenbank, Little Martians and a host of food stalls. Soon to open are Peppy Thai Deli, Deco’s La Paz Batchoy, Hamada Japanese Restaurant, Red Corner by HongKong Kitchen, Al Dente, ICenter – An Apple Concept Store, Rose Pharmacy, Cebu Pacific Ticketing and a lotto outlet to name a few.

Plazuela indeed had raised the standards of malling in Iloilo City by way of architecture and maybe tenant quality. It also has given Iloilo City a sort of preview of what to expect with the development of the old Iloilo airport by Megaworld Properties. Surely the district of Mandurriao has positioned itself as the new Central Business District as it houses the new breed of shopping, fun and entertainment in Iloilo City.

More Plazuela de Iloilo photos

Fruits from the grocery

These packs of cut up fruits were bought from SM Delgado's grocery. Got enticed by their color and luckily, they were as good as they looked, especially the papaya. Each was just less than Php 22, really a bargain!

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

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?"

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.

FLAVOURS OF ILOILO

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