In my hunt to satisfy my summer cravings for all things cold and fattening, I met Rea Gomez of Bono Gelato.
I visited Rea’s stall at SM Aura after my Manong Boy told me of his recent food find—a scoop of taho gelato. It even comes drizzled with arnibal, he said, amused at the whole concept of it. And it did taste like taho, he added.
My curiosity was piqued instantly. I had to get myself to Bono and see what was going on. Innovation—new ways of presenting and serving old-time favorites—truly excites me.
I rushed to Aura the day after and saw Rea in her shop with a cup of coffee. A bubbly character, she led me to the counter for a gelato tasting. We made our way from vanilla (made with real Tahitian vanilla) to all the flavors of the day, from the subtlest to the more robust.
Each flavor had its own character, but like a true gelato should, it melted easily on the palate. Creamy, satiny, a nice body to the base, this was sinfully rich and delectable gelato.
Local flavors
I fell in love instantly with the local flavors. The ube tasted like homemade halaya but in gelato form, with real soft chunks of purple yam. The mango was equally fantastic, with a swirl of mangoes plus chunks of it, the taste of which told you that the mangoes were handpicked at season’s prime. This gelato gives justice to the glorious Philippine mango!
The buko pandan was made with a coconut cream base, with subtle hints of pandan and loaded with strips of fresh young buko.
I praised Rea for how brilliantly whipped the local flavors are. She said, “We always try to create local flavors; however, these are very seasonal and we refuse to use a fruit or flavor if we have to enhance it with sweeteners. So summer really is a great time for local flavors, and we’re getting our creative juices going.”
In contrast, “Taho is available year-round, and this was inspired simply by the idea of a frozen taho (I don’t enjoy hot taho on a hot day),” said Gomez. “We worked hard on getting the exact flavor profile, and we’re happy we nailed it. We make our own base from soy curd and make our own syrup from coconut sap.”
Expect the taho to be less creamy and rich, as the base is made from soy milk.
Long story
I had to know how Bono Gelato became the “real, genuine gelato.”
“It’s quite a long story, but to keep it simple, my partners—Zarah Manikan and two who wish to remain anonymous—and I came up with the concept after scouring the globe for the best ice cream. We ended up in Italy, and went to a gelato university in Bologna. We also met a lot of maestro gelatieres there, who were gracious enough to teach us in their own stores. We came back to Manila with the idea of bringing that same quality and experience we enjoyed in Italy.”
“We make everything from scratch using all-natural ingredients—no emulsifiers, no colors, nothing artificial. We churn our gelato daily in small batches, and you are assured that the scoop you are enjoying was made only just hours or even minutes earlier. We churn onsite as needed, using vertical batch freezers, then stored in Pozzetti cabinets to ensure no light or air contamination. It also helps keep the temperature constant.
“We are the only gelato brand in the country doing it this way, and among just a handful around the world. It actually isn’t the most practical or commercially ideal, but we’re sticklers for quality, and we’re really hardheaded. If you’re going to put something in your body, it might as well be the best, right?”
There are many challenges to their brand of gelato-making, said Rea.
“We are the first to introduce this ‘level’ of gelato here, and it’s been challenging to show people the difference and what makes it better than just regular ice cream.
“Sourcing ingredients is also quite challenging, as well as creating or introducing more exotic flavors. We’ve been dying to introduce savory flavors, but are almost quite sure they won’t sell. We’ve introduced some flavors with peppercorns and chili peppers, and we were so excited, but we ended up eating most of them.”
Follow the sun
By using the best, fresh ingredients and being almost OC about how they make it, Rea and her partners are able to come up with standout gelato.
“I like to say we ‘follow the sun’ and source from wherever an ingredient is in season,” said Rea. “We had an Amarena flavor (fresh cherries) sourced from Canada. Then it went out of season there, and we sourced the cherries from Chile. I’m waiting to see where they will be in season next, because even I am missing this flavor, it’s so good!
“Last December, we came up with Chestnuts (from France) with Cognac and Candied Orange peel. Fantastic. But then the chestnuts were impossible to find after that one batch. Sayang!”
Before a gelato flavor is rolled out, it’s tasted several times by the team. “We also ask friends and suki to give their opinions before we finalize a flavor. R&D is always a fun process for us,” said Rea.
Rea served me the not-yet-commercially-available mango sake. You could taste the sake in every bite, and chew on mango that was soaked in it for 48 hours. I’m not sure this is for everyone, but I like it. It’s different, and quite a gustatory delight.
Fresh, pure, natural gelato in Manila is the next best thing to having it in Italy.
Bono accepts orders for specialty flavors. Just call in advance. They also cater for birthday parties, weddings, events. Call tel. nos. 2156976 or 0917-8506766.
For a copy of my new cooking class schedule, call tel. nos. 9289296, 4008496, 0908-2372346 and 0917-5543700.
