Daybreak: A Breakfast Buffet at Days Hotel Iloilo

The long elusive breakfast buffet of Days Hotel Iloilo dubbed as Daybreak has finally been conquered as I was able to enjoy of this morning feast a few days ago. Aptly named, it was just a little after the break of dawn that Eric D (www.byahilo.com) and I went down to The Promenade to have our first meal of the day. And had to drag ourselves out of bed and get prepared.

It wasn't easy though as the room we had at Days Hotel Iloilo was among the most comfortable and relaxing. The standard double room was big for its class and had this simple yet sophisticated interiors. It has a sitting corner and a sort of office nook perfect for business travelers as well as bloggers who updated their blogs and tweeted their activities, among others. Amenities like a well stocked refrigerator, cable-internet connectivity, cable tv among others were well provided with.

The toilet and bath plus the closet area was also well suited for every guest. And there was even a safe where to put one's valuables in the comfort of his own room. But the bed blew us away, it was good enough for two and very cozy. With clean smelling and looking almost comforter like blanket and among the best and most comfortable pillows my head has ever laid on (and hugged), if I can spend the entire day in bed ...

But who could resist a sumptuous buffet at The Promenade? Not us, so cut our dreams short and we were welcome by the smell of breads upon entry. A selection of croisstants, wheat and white loaf breads as well as puto were waiting to be devoured.

Assorted cheeses and spreads line up the sides to complement them.

Soup was in the form of a make your own congee with different ingredients as well as toppings like century egg, hardboiled egg, chvies among others.

But if you woke up to the need of having a crunch, assorted cereals with milk and choco milk line up one side of the buffet spread.

If you feel like making and eating salad for breakfast, the salad bar, with it's spread organically grown vegetables and other ingredients just sits,literally, around the corner.

Next to it was the omelet station where, again, you can suit your taste with the filling you want to go with the egg. Want an all-ham filling? Just say so and they'll make it and serve it on your table.

The grill station had hotdogs, ham and bacon among others all waiting to touch the hot surface of the grill. I had almost 5 bacon slices, a hotdog and ham on my plate then.

Beside our table on the main buffet section, fluffy pancakes pile up and the next time I turned back only a few pieces were left, selling like hotcakes, literally. Even without the syrup or butter, it was an enjoyable early morning treat.

Wedges of baked potatoes were too appetizing to be ignored as I was craving for French fries the night before.

I like the consistency of the sotanghon - not to dry nor too wet, just right. And with the right flavour for an early morning appetite.

For those who want a really full breakfast there was fried fish fillet with tausi.

Filipino breakfast staple like the all meat, less fat tocino was just waiting to be plated off.

And so were the lean longganisa which I literally flooded with vinegar for that appetizing Pinoy taste.

Fresh fruits and fruit juices as well as coffee, tea and chocolate drink completed the breakfast menu offerings for it's Daybreak Buffet menu. And it's a very delicious way to start the day only at Days Hotel Iloilo.

Daybreak Buffet Breakfast

Daily 6-10am at The Promenade

Days Hotel Iloilo

4th Level The Atrium

Gen. Luna Street, Iloilo City

Tel. 337-3297 / 336-8801 to 10 / 0917-700-3297

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 native (foods) welcome in Guimaras

Even after having breakfast less than an hour that time, we couldn't say no to this lot of native delciacies that welcomed us in Guimaras. First and foremost, Guimaras best known produce is their sweet mango famous almost worldwide. And it comes with it's best partner, ibos. This brown baye-baye variety is made from toasted rice thus giving it a more disctinct flavour compared to it's more "caucasian" cousin. I like the one wrapped in banana leaves compared with the one in plastic for it gives it a more native feel. So when you're in Guimaras, be sure to check out the markets for these native delicacies that can make your trip more gastronomically satisfying.

FLAVOURS OF ILOILO

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