Dining out in Bacolod means going to restaurants that offer family specialties. It’s a personal experience. Each dish gives a taste of the restaurant owner’s story through food.

At Quan, I met up again with Chole Cuenca Chua after a decade, and enjoyed its Puto Pao.

The beloved rice cake recipe was passed on to Chole’s mother Agnes Cuenca by her great-grandmother Mercedes Jalondoni. Chole brought these delectable rice cakes to parties and shortly after, orders came in. The Puto Pao became a hit.

Her mom created other rice cakes such as cassava and kutsinta. Panaderia classics were also added to the list.

There was a time when Agnes had siopao filling but not enough flour to make the dough. With puto batter in front of her, she thought, why not spoon the siopao filling on banana leaves and top it with puto batter. A new kakanin or delicacy was born.

As tribute to her mother, Chole replicated Agnes’ specialty dishes and launched Sud-an (ulam or dish in Ilonggo), a line of cooked, frozen, ready-to-heat food.

I tried the callos and sisig. Both were very tasty and had a clean finish. Each mouthful was satisfying, especially with a bowl of warm rice.

 

 

The consistency of the callos was thick yet still soupy. The diced tripe had a distinct texture, yet it still melted in my mouth. I could not have enough it.

The sisig was straightforward—deeply flavorful, rich, with subtle hints of liver.

The pinamalhan was delicate—pinatuyong paksiw na bangus of sorts that used tuba vinegar which Agnes herself made.

On why she called her outlets Quan, Chole explained that her mother’s conversations with her sisters always included the word “kuwan,” perhaps when they couldn’t quite remember what it was they were referring to.

The small estante that opened in 1986 now has nine outlets and counting. Not bad for an enterprise humbly named Quan.

Call Quan La Salle branch at (034) 7071982.

 

Felicia’s

Carla Lacson of Felicia’s treated me to its specialty —grilled old-fashioned ensaymada served with a demitasse of hot chocolate.

“Felicia’s is as Negrense as Negrense can be,” Carla said.

Truly homegrown, the patisserie was first operated by Fely Lacson Montelibano to showcase the pastries of her sister, Sony Lacson Cometa.

Sony would bake from her home kitchen without realizing that she was doing some of the best cakes and pastries in Negros Occidental.

 

Her other noteworthy creations that have become pasalubong favorites are the Pili Crumble, Almondettes, Turron de Pili, and her own take on the fruitcake.

After Sony’s death, her daughter Marisan devoted her time to Felicia’s to ensure that her mother’s recipes would live on.

Keeping it all within the family, Carla’s cousin, Vincent Macasa, a professional pastry chef, has joined Felicia’s. By infusing his own flavors and showcasing his own personal line of sweets, his presence has made the bakeshop even more interesting.

Must-samples are Vincent’s thin, crisp, multilayer Sans Rival that comes in a variety of flavors including salted caramel and ube. His Cookie Thins and Chocolate Cake (which he named Felicia’s) have become customer favorites, too.

“Felicia’s is a testament to a family in which good food has been a gesture of its warm hospitality,” Carla said. “It is also a testament to a province where the good life means good food, all the time.”

After 10 years, the original Felicia’s on 6th Street, Bacolod, has expanded to SM Bacolod, 15th Lacson Street, and even to Iloilo.

Call 0923-329-7870, (034) 433-6586.