Coffee Shop under the bridge

A constant source of wonderment and amusement among Ilonggos is the literally named Coffee Shop Under the Bridge, an “accidental venture” of businessman Lando Layson. Layson, 66, is fondly called by local media “Ambassador of River Development” because of his effort to develop the boulevard and keep the river clean.

“This is the world’s most expensive coffee shop; the roof is about P10 million,” says Layson, pointing at the Carpenter’s Bridge. He is one of the first to initiate the Healthy Lifestyle Partnership Association in December 2009 when the boulevard had its soft opening.He was also instrumental in having vehicles banned from using the road.

From a membership of 15, the association now has 400 card-bearing members. It does not collect any membership fee but has a commitment to regular exercise and healthy lifestyle, as well as keeping the boulevard clean.Layson, who starts his day with taebo exercises at 5:30 a.m., has asked permission from the DPWH to put a landfill on the smelly and dirty area under the P78-million bridge. After he was given the go-signal, he and his nephew, Joemarie Layson, spent P80,000 for the project.

Although it was a lot of money, Layson says he had to find a way to continue his taebo sessions with his friends—rain or shine.

“We would always run under the bridge every time there is rain and it became a habit, so I decided to improve the place,” says Layson, a trusted ally of Mayor Mabilog and overseer of the Iloilo River.

Bring your own coffee

Coffee Shop Under the Bridge, however, doesn’t sell coffee. Instead, patrons must bring their own coffee sachets. Hot water will be provided by the utility man hired by Layson to keep the shop clean.

Even before people started paying attention to the boulevard in 2009, Layson spent for the installation of 20 big garbage cans and sent 15 employees of his stevedoring company to clean the boulevard, cut the surrounding grass, and maintain the cleanliness of the two makeshift toilets he had constructed beside the Carpenter’s Bridge.

His coffee shop has been frequented by prominent individuals. Among them were Drilon, Treñas, Mabilog, socialites Judgee and Sarah Peña, Pavia Mayor Arcadio Goricetta and former Presidential Assistant for Mindanao Paul Dominguez.

Snippets from the article entitled
A boulevard for health, environment
By Hazel P. Villa
Philippine Daily Inquirer

Acknowledgements

PHOTOS Hawili Hurom Photography and PARIANOON of SSC | ARTICLE Philippine Daily Inquirer

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

Search This Blog