8 destinations to discover in Laguna and Quezon
The COVID-19 pandemic has limited travel over the past few years. Although many have not been able to go out of the country, it was always so good to see friends and family exploring local destinations.
I was invited to join a Kulinarya Tagala tour around Laguna and Quezon featuring local sights, attractions and, of course, foodie destinations. The two-day tour was hosted by San Miguel Foods Culinary Center in celebration of National Food Month with hopes of helping boost local tourism.
Ted’s Bed and Breakfast, Ted’s Kitchen, and Aurora Filipino Cuisine
Ted’s Bed and Breakfast is located in a compound in Sta. Cruz, Laguna that houses Ted’s Kitchen and Ted’s Events Warehouse, which used to be the Salonga family farm and rice mill. It’s currently owned and run by sibling chefs Day Salonga and Gel Salonga-Datu. They have 13 fully air-conditioned cabins that can fit a maximum of 37 people. It is perfect to book for family getaways or a destination event with accommodations.
Within the compound is also Ted’s Kitchen, an American diner-themed restaurant, which also offers Chef Gel’s Cakes and Pastries. Chef Gel Salonga-Datu is known for her Bibingka Cheesecake.
Aurora Filipino Cuisine is named after the maternal grandmother of chefs Day and Gel. The restaurant was originally located at the 1920s ancestral home. It was converted into a restaurant, closed and relocated within the Ted’s Bed and Breakfast compound, with a private dining area. It is a tribute to their family lineage, and also showcases heirloom recipes and dishes native to Laguna. Some of the notable dishes served during our brunch were the chicken adobong dilaw, cooked with turmeric and inalamangang baboy cooked with fresh alamang and sinugno na tilapia. The Sta. Cruz tilapia is slathered with burnt coconut sauce, flavored with guava and enveloped in banana leaves and grilled.
For dessert, try Aurora’s Torta de Pili. It has layers of meringue, chiffon and Essenso coffee-infused buttercream in between layers, topped with a generous arrangement of candied pili nuts.
Ted’s Bed and Breakfast, Ted’s Kitchen, and Aurora Filipino Cuisine is located at KM 83 National Highway Brgy. Duhat 4009 Santa Cruz, Laguna.
Linang ni LK
Linang ni LK is a farm resort offering farm-to-table cuisine. We were able to sample Lucban favorites such as pansit habhab topped with Lucban longganisa. Two rules for Pansit Habhab: No. 1, skip the calamansi; instead douse it with vinegar. We were served vinegar infused with blue ternatea flower. No. 2, make sure your nose doesn’t touch the pansit when eating it from the banana leaf, the traditional way.
Linang ni LK is also known for its Ube Taw, glutinous ube-flavored rice balls in Magnolia Gold Label and ube halaya-filled spring rolls tossed in caramelized sugar and sprinkled with sesame seeds. Within the farm grounds is also a small coffee stand called Linangs Artisanal Coffee offering a selection of coffee brews including Kape Salay and Kape Pandan made with all-natural lemongrass and pandan syrups.
Linang ni LK is located at Brgy. Kalyaat, Sitio Pandak 4328 Lucban, Quezon.
Bukid Amara
Bukid Amara is a 7-hectare bloomscape featuring an edible flower garden, fully automated greenhouses, a variety of herbs, and a man-made lake. They specialize in a themed landscape where they change the bloom color motifs and themes according to the occasion.
Bukid Amara is an Amorsolo-inspired dream for Michael “Farmer Mike” Caballero as his farm resembles the Amorsolo painting with a mountain in the background. In this case, it’s Mt. Banahaw. He traded his corporate job for simple farm living. This is exactly what Bukid Amara wishes guests to experience during their visit—an opportunity to exchange their office shoes for farming boots for a day. This picturesque “#farmsthetic” paradise is popular for photo shoots and pre-nuptial shoots as well as picnic grounds with friends or family.
Ongoing is a three-week-long melon-tasting tour from April 25 to May 15 featuring different types of melon varieties from all over the world. The tour includes a taste test of at least four different melon varieties and snacks.
To learn more about Bukid Amara, visit their website here. It is located at Sitio Aramin Brgy, Lucban, 4328 Quezon.
Rodillas Yema Cake
Rodillas Yema Cake by Monica and Jett Bakeshop is widely known for its yema cake and cheese ensaymada with yema. It is owned by the husband-and-wife tandem of Vincent and Judith Rodilla, who still wake up every morning at 4:00 a.m. to personally produce the yema icing for their cakes.
Monica and Jett Bakeshop is located at A. Mabini St., corner Lucban-Tayabas Road, Tayabas City, Quezon.
Jardin de Pio
Jardin de Pio is a restaurant celebrating Spanish, Italian, and Filipino cuisine. It is located by the Padre de Pio sanctuary in Barangay Gibanga, Tayabas, Quezon. We were welcomed with rondalla music and the Tagayan ritual. We all had to take shots of lambanog, sing and dance together to signify equality.
The dishes served were pan de ajo with a creamy spinach dip topped with cheese, Jardin salad with house-made guanciale and a fig vinaigrette, gambas with aligue sauce, Aglio Olio with fried shredded Purefoods Corned Beef and adobo flakes, Jardin de Pio Pizza with bacon, pecorino, and mozzarella, Paella Pollo washed down with a San Miguel Beer Sangria with strawberries, lemon, and orange slices. For dessert, we were served pistachio silvanas.
For reservations or inquiries, contact 09173212260. Jardin de Pio is located at No. 113 National Highway cor Mangosteen Street, Brgy Calumpang, Tayabas, Philippines.
Seves Hotel & Resort
Seves Hotel & Resort is located by the beach in Sariaya, Quezon. It houses 24 fully air-conditioned deluxe rooms with either one king bed or two double beds, three barkada rooms with 12 dorm-style, double-deck single beds and, coming soon, villas that can accommodate big families or just groups that want the privacy. Seves values the preservation of cultural heritage, which is why they make it a point to promote the livelihood of locals in the area by proudly displaying their works of art around the resort.
Although we weren’t able to spend too much time at the hotel, I enjoyed my morning swim at the beach and laps in the pool while the rest of the group enjoyed their breakfast. The breakfast served included malunggay pan de sal, an egg station, Purefoods bacon, Lucban longganisa, Chef’s Selection sausage patty, Chef’s selection chicken tocino and, of course, garlic fried rice.
For bookings and reservations, you may log on to https://www.thesevesresort.com/.
Antonas Pastries
Antonas Pastries is a pandemic-spawned business that flourished through the dedication and hard work of Emmanuel “Hobbie” Enriquez and his wife from Lucena City, Quezon. They are known for their chicken empanada. Antonas also makes crème brulee puff pastry and flavored eclairs such as coffee, chocolate, caramel, pistachio, and lemon. However, I truly enjoyed their taco turnover and their cheese roll. Their cheese roll had a soft, pillowy, sticky dough stuffed with Magnolia Cheezee, brushed with Magnolia Gold Butter and rolled in sugar.
For orders of Antonas Pastries, you may contact them on Instagram.
Sitio de Amor Leisure Farm Resort
Sitio de Amor Leisure Farm Resort is a multi-hectare farm featuring six uprooted houses from all over the Philippines.
The lovely Caluag house where we had lunch was the summer house of Tomas Morato Sr., which President Manuel L. Quezon used to frequent. It was originally located in Caluag, Quezon and built in 1920. Lunch was provided by Everyday Eden Lifestyle + Café, owned by Beth Amat, who also runs Eve & Co Floral and Events Styling. For starters, we had the pako salad with onions, tomatoes, salted egg, and edible flowers. One of the highlights of the meal was the sinigang na hipon sa buko, which was cooked in coconut juice with shreds of buko and kamias as the souring agent for the soup. Everyday Eden presents the farm-to-table concept in a more approachable way to tickle the appetite of Filipinos. Also served for lunch was sinaing na bangus, chicken inasal and inihaw na liempo paired with mustasa salad, burong kamias and sinantolan. Buko, santol, and kamias were all incorporated into dishes as they were all readily available at their farm. For dessert, a puto bumbong station was set up with top-your-own condiments of Magnolia Gold Butter, sugar with sesame seeds, and desiccated coconut.
Farm-to-table lunch by Everyday Eden Lifestyle + Cafe, Styling by Eve & Co Floral and Events Styling
Chicken inasal and inihaw na liempo paired with mustasa salad, burong kamias and sinantolan.
Sinigang na hipon sa buko, which was cooked in coconut juice with shreds of buko and kamias as the souring agent for the soup.
Balinese-inspired infinity pool at Sitio de Amor Leisure Farm Resort, a multi-hectare farm featuring six uprooted houses from all over the Philippines.
Farm-to-table lunch by Everyday Eden Lifestyle + Cafe, Styling by Eve & Co Floral and Events Styling
Chicken inasal and inihaw na liempo paired with mustasa salad, burong kamias and sinantolan.
Sinigang na hipon sa buko, which was cooked in coconut juice with shreds of buko and kamias as the souring agent for the soup.
Balinese-inspired infinity pool at Sitio de Amor Leisure Farm Resort, a multi-hectare farm featuring six uprooted houses from all over the Philippines.
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Sitio de Amor is located at KM 88.8 Maharlika Highway, Purok Paraiso, San Antonio I San Pablo City, Laguna. For more information and bookings, visit https://sitiodeamor.com/.
