A/N: The various information about several dishes that will be mentioned in this, as well as on the next chapters, are all based on online search results and videos. The places and restaurants are only made by the author for fictitious manner, and any resemblance to actual existing businesses are only coincidental. For any mistakes or corrections, I will highly appreciate it if you will kindly drop it in the comments section. I will use your opinions to do better next time.
Thank you so much!
♡
"Good morning." I greeted Dylan who was standing on our usual table in the balcony. Napangiti kaagad siya nang makita ako..
Too much for a simple morning.
"You look.. nice, pinky." Pang-aasar niya. I rolled my eyes at him before looking at my outfit for today. I was wearing a pastel pink pocket shirt tucked inside my white ripped jeans and sneakers. Naka-black belt din ako and the open circle jewelry set that I have.
On the other hand, Dylan was wearing a plain white short-sleeved polo shirt paired with a black casual shorts and white shoes. His silver chain necklace and silver watch complemented his look. He looks downright handsome.
He pulled the seat backwards for me then sat in front of me. Nung dumating 'yung waiter. Nag-order na din kami ng breakfast. Ang sa akin ay corned beef na may kasamang kanin at itlog, cornsilog lang tawag namin 'dun sa Taguig. Natawa pa ako nang makitang Corned Beef a La Vega ang pangalan 'nun sa menu, ang gara!
Dylan ordered tapsilog for himself, I chuckle when I looked at the menu and saw Tapa a la Vega as its name. Ang gara huhu! Laging may 'a la Vega' sa pangalan ng lahat. Nakakayaman!
"Why?" He asked when the waiter left and noticed that I was fighting the urge to laugh, I didn't want to offend him.
"Nothing." I lied, pinilit ko pa ding pigilan ang tawa ko dahil sa mga pinag-iiisip ko. Ang gara naman kasi ng lugar na'to!
"Ano nga?" He asked again.
"Natatawa lang ako sa sarili ko." His brows furrowed because of what I said. "The breakfast that we ordered, Tapsilog and Cornsilog kasi tawag sa amin dun." I told him, hindi ko na napigilan ang tawa ko. May pa 'a la Vega' pa kasi lahat huhu.
Ang babaw ng kaligayahan ko diba?
"Talaga? Ano ibig sabihin 'nun?" He asked. Ako naman ngayon ang napakunot noo dahil sa tanong niya. Seriously? Hindi niya alam iyon?
"Seryoso ka?" I was skeptical. He innocently nodded with a slight pout.
I can't believe this!
"Hala siya, ang gara!" I was shocked, okay?
"Ano nga ibig sabihin 'nun?" Pangungulit niya.
Ang gwapo mo maging magara!
"Okay, cornsilog is basically Corned Beef, Sinangag, Itlog, Cornsilog. Tapsilog is Tapa, Sinangag, Itlog, Tapsilog. Gets mo na?" Pag-eexplain ko sa kanya. In-emphasize ko pa yung abbreviations para mas maintidihan niya saan nagmula 'yung Cornsilog at Tapsilog.
"Ganon pala? Ngayon ko lang nalaman 'yun." He looked like he was thinking. No jokes ba talaga? "Ang dami mong alam na hindi ko alam, Katherine. Tell me more!" He leaned closer to me.
Napaka-cute, amp!
"Okay, meron pang iba.." panimula ko. Inexplain ko sa kanya yung iba pang mga pagkaing alam ko na hindi nalalaman ng magagarang taong katulad nito.
Hanggang sa pagkain namin at pagkatapos, nagtatanong pa din siya sakin tungkol sa iba't-ibang bagay, pagkain o kung anuman na nalalaman ko. In-explain ko pa sa kanya kung ano 'yung pastil, maraming ganon sa Taguig, paborito namin 'yun nila Barbie mula nung College kami, ngayon niya lang daw kasi narinig iyon.
Jusko, para akong nakikipag-usap sa isang 7 years old na bata dahil sa dami ng tanong ni Dylan!
Ang gwapo niya magtanong!
Alas nuwebe ulit kami umalis at nasa byahe na kami, since ito nga ang Eat-Good-Food Day niya, nang magsabi siyang gusto niyang matikman yung mga pagkaing nabanggit ko. I can't believe a 27 years old guy don't know a lot! Ang yaman kasi!
Dala niya pa din yung tatlong cameras niya sa pangalawang araw ng kanyang trip. He was recording the road through the window of his side. Hindi rin naman nagtagal at nakarating na kami sa isang medyo may kalakihang kainan. Jasmine's Eatery, hindi siya fancy restaurant pero malaki ito at hindi rin simpleng karinderya, maraming tao kung titingnan mula sa labas.
Naglakad na kami papasok ni Dylan at sinalubong ng mabangong amoy ng mga pagkain. We sat on a table for two and a girl on her casual attire and apron approached us.
"Can I ask for your best sellers, miss?" Sabi ko, since it's almost nearly lunch, rice meals na ang kukunin namin.
"Yung mga best-sellers po namin, Ma'am, ito po.. Bicol Express, Laing, Ginataang Santol, Bicolano Dinuguan, saka po Spicy Caldereta." She said while looking at her list.
"Sige po, he'll have.." I stopped to ask Dylan whose eyes are roaming around the place. "Dylan, ikaw ano gusto mo dun sa mga 'yun?" He looked at me.
"Ate, dalawang order ng kanin tapos tig-iisang order ng tatlo sa mga best sellers niyo na sinabi mo." He said carelessly. Ni hindi man lang pumili?
"Okay po, ma'am, sir. Thank you po." She left after confirming our orders.
"San mo nalaman 'tong lugar? It looks nice, at ang bango kaagad kanina pagpasok natin." He asked while roaming his eyes around.
"I saw a lot of good reviews about this place online. It's not that fancy, pero masarap ang mga pagkain dito according to the reviews." I did the same thing as he does.
"This is actually nice, at least I've got to eat new foods. Paulit-ulit na lang kasi yata ang kinakain ko." He chuckled at that. Hindi na din ako sumagot, I can't think of anything appropriate. I looked at Dylan who was now taking pictures everywhere with his Canon. I was watching him even up until he started setting up his recording camera on top of the table. Siguro imo-montage niya din?
5 minutes passed before our orders came. Inilapag sa lamesa namin ang dalawang pinggan ng kanin, isang order ng Bicol Express, Spicy Caldereta at Dinuguan. Hindi naman siguro kami sasakitan ng tiyan dito, ano?
Muntik pa kami mag-away ni Dylan kung sino ang magbabayad dahil pareho kaming naglabas na ng wallet pero inunahan niya ako at inabot na agad sa waiter 'yung pera niya, not minding the change. Ang gara talaga!
I let him take a montage and pictures of the food first because he looked so passionate while doing that. When he finished, he smiled and gestured to me on the table, letting me begin speaking.
"So.. this is Bicol Express. It's a pork dish with coconut milk and alamang, 'yung ginagamit din sa bagoong, and a lot of chili peppers. Nakuha 'yung pangalan niyan mula sa tren na ang byahe is from Manila to Bicol, it's called Bicol Express." Sabi ko nang ituro ko ang Bicol Express na binudburan ng green at red na sili. He was just nodding from time to time, brows furrowed like a curious kid.
"Ito naman ay Dinuguan, it's made with pig's blood, ears and fats. Some people pairs it with puto, alam mo ba yun?" He nodded when I asked him while I was pointing to the said dish, natanong ko lang kasi baka mamaya hindi niya alam. Yung leche flan kasi di niya alam, pero yung pudding the sweet one oo, jusmiyo. "Nilagyan din nila ito ng green chili peppers for a spicy flavor."
"And this one.." turo ko sa Caldereta. "This is made of pork, potatoes, carrots, chili peppers, ketchup, peanut butter and tomato sauce. Usually bell peppers ang inilalagay dito but since we're in Bicol, where almost everyone loves spicy foods, they put hot chili peppers in." He was just nodding while listening to me.
Okay, hindi ko na na-tally yung mga nods, smiles, and chuckles niya.
"Wow, I don't know if you're a walking cookbook or map, ang dami mong nalalaman. Let's eat! Bago pa lumamig yung pagkain." He excitedly said.
I rolled my eyes at him when he said that before we started eating. Tuwang-tuwa siya sa mga pagkain na nasa harap niya. Was it his first time? Sabagay, the food served by his catering services last village party was all fancy and pricey. Ang gara niya talaga.
We finished everything for almost an hour, pinapak pa namin 'yung mga natirang ulam dahil konti na lang naman. Dylan was enjoying it, I'm glad he does.
"Where to, ma'am?" He asked when we were already walking back to his car.
"Secret. Hop in, let's go!" I cheered him up which made him smile.
Bumiyahe na din kami kaagad sa susunod niyang destinasyon. He was just patiently recording the view outside, nakuhanan pa niya ng video ang Bulkang Mayon na tanaw sa malayo mula sa dinaanan namin.
"We're here." I said when I parked the car in front of a restaurant. It's almost lunch time kaya sa buffet style ko siya dinala. It's a buffet style restaurant that offers Filipino dishes from different regions, highlighting, of course, Bicol's delicacies.
"Nandito tayo ngayon sa Bicoland, it's a buffet style restaurant na popular din sa mga turista at sa mga Bicolanos. Since you'll be having lunch, this is, I think, one of the best places." Naglakad na kami papasok but I stopped midway when he turned his gaze to me and gave me a furrowed brows.
"'Since you'll be having lunch?" He sounded sarcastic when he asked that, emphasizing the word "you'll", napa-pamaywang pa siya.
"Yes, this is basically your trip and besides, I'm still full. I can't-" I was cut off from speaking when he grabbed my wrist and started walking inside.
"No way, miss. Sasabayan mo ako kumain sa bawat lugar na pagdadalahan mo sakin." He strictly said. Ngumiti pa siya at marahang nagbow sa guard ng restaurant bago ako patuloy na kinaladkad. Napangiti din tuloy ako nang awkward kay kuya.
A man in his uniform talked to Dylan about reservations and the things, I can't understand what they're talking about because Dylan placed me on his back. Pinakawalan niya muna ang kamay ko bago nag-abot ng card mula sa kanyang wallet doon sa attendant, probably paying for the buffet. Hinawakan niya na ulit ako sa pulso nang ibalik ito sa kanya at saka naglakad papasok.
He let go of my wrist when we were already in front of a table with couches. Papalag pa sana ako pero tumalikod na siya sa akin para pumunta sa buffet area. Tapos susunod na sana ako kaso lumingon siya kaagad at sinenyasan akong manatili sa upuan.
Ang gwapo niya maging strikto..
And so I did, I waited for him while sitting comfortably on the couch. Most of the people are families, and foreigners. The place has a wide space, too. Maganda at sa amoy pa lang ay alam mong masarap na ang pagkain.
A couple of minutes have passed before I saw Dylan holding two plates, and balancing another two placed on his arms. He was just walking casually before placing the plates on our table without even having a hard time doing so. Praktisado na siguro sa catering services niya.
"Drinks?" He asked.
"Anything." I answered. He sarcastically rolled his eyes before leaving again to get us a drink. When I looked at the table, I dramatically massaged the bridge of my nose with the sight.
On one plate, he got a Bicol Express Pasta, Laing Pasta on the other. Bicol Express Pizza is on the third plate and a Spicy Seafood Pasta on the last. Lahat ng iyon ay marami at pang dalawang tao.
He went back with two glasses of Milkshake placed on top of two extra plates and the utensils. He carefully placed it on our table before taking a seat in front of me.
"Ang dami naman nito!" Reklamo ko sa kanya.
"It's our Eat Good Food Day today, miss." He shrugged before placing one empty plate in front of me, next is the utensils and lastly is the milkshake.
"Kumain na tayo, you can't miss these delicious foods. Halika na, bago pa lumamig ang mga ito." He said before putting each on my plate. At talagang naka-ngisi pa nga?
Ang gwapo mo ngumisi!
"Ma'am, ano na po?" He suddenly asked after putting each food on his plate too.
"Anong ano na?" I raised a brow on him, he chuckled at that.
"Tell me something about these foods." He said and gestured to the food in front of us.
Oh, right, I almost forgot.
"So this.." I pointed at the plate "Is basically Bicol Express that is combined with pasta. It's a popular food in Bicol, a fusion of Italian and Bicolano food. Instead of putting white sauce or spaghetti sauce like the usual, they put Bicol Express."
I pointed at the other plate "And that goes the same with this one. This is Laing, another famous Bicolano delicacy. Gata, gabi, luya, at maraming sili ang ingredients nito. Just like that one, it is a combination of pasta and Laing, also a fusion of Italian and Bicolano dishes."
I pointed at the next plate "This is everywhere, only that it is spicier in Bicol. It's a creamy pasta with shrimps and crabs topped with a lot of chilis. Popular din kasi dito sa Bicol ang mga seafood since napapaligiran rin ang Albay ng tubig. And lastly.."
I pointed at the bigger plate "This one is Bicol Express Pizza. Just like the others, it's a combination of a pizza crust and Bicol Express. Marami na ring mga restaurants and eateries sa Bicol ang nag-fufusion ng Italian and Bicolano because it tastes good. Here, they placed Bicol Express with cheese as the Pizza toppings instead of the usual tomato sauce and the like." He was smiling when I looked at him. He held up his milkshake and showed it to me with a curious look.
"What about this?" He sarcastically asked. I lightly slapped my hand on my forehead which made him laugh. Halata namang alam na niya pero parang mas gusto niya akong asarin sa pamamagitan ng pagtatanong. But, I can't say no though, that's my job.
"Milkshakes are the most recommended especially if you're going to eat something spicy. Milk is better than water when it comes to dealing with spicy foods. Mas natatanggal kasi nito 'yung anghang kaysa ang tubig. It's everywhere at may ibang lugar sa Bicol na pati mga smoothies ay maanghang na rin." I said. I rolled my eyes when he chuckled at me.