Amid colorful restaurants at UP Town Center in Diliman, QC, is a fashionista haven. Nic’s bakery-café stands out for its chic interiors—contrasting stripes and fashion illustrations on the wall.

Nic’s, owned and run by fashion designer-turned-food entrepreneur Rina Silayan-Go, is named after Nicole, her eldest daughter.

Its interior design is a throwback to New York in the ’80s, where Go worked after studying fashion merchandising and marketing at Wood Tobe-Coburn School. She was assistant to the fashion editor of Working Mothers, under McCall’s Publishing, and then sales associate at Lord & Taylor, in the sportswear division under Ralph Lauren.

One of her most fulfilling jobs was as marketing associate in Seventeen Magazine, producing fashion forecast books, mood boards and traveling around America to understand the market.

Returning to Manila, she took a leap of faith by starting a fashion label, ViseVersa, for career women. Its trademark was the apple-green-and-brown striped packaging caught in a grosgrain bow—colors and bold stripes evoking summer at the Hamptons.

In 2011, Go and sister Maggie, an architect, indulged themselves in their other passion, baking. They supplied pastries to two top coffee chains.

“It was the most natural thing,” said Go. “Maggie had been baking since childhood. Later, we tested recipes of friends and family,” (Maggie died a few years ago.)

As Go immersed herself in the food business, local fashion retail was becoming more competitive with the influx of foreign high street labels. She eventually sold ViseVersa and focused on food.

Family friend and interior designer Tina Periquet worked closely with Go to design a chic café that reflected the owner’s fashionista personality and sojourn in New York.

Giant gift box

The walls of black-and-white stripes echo the packaging of Henri Bendel.

“It feels like being inside a giant gift box,” said Periquet, who added that the aim was to achieve a modern classic look.

Black and white is a sophisticated, noncolor scheme that allows the color of food to pop out and attract the guest. The pasta sauce looks more red and the ensaimada bread becomes more golden against this background.

The restaurant looks more spacious than it actually is, since the broad, white stripes and white tabletops bounce off the light.

A bulky appliance such as the refrigerator becomes décor as it is embellished with black trim and tied with a ribbon to look like a gift box.

The focal point is the wall filled with large black-and-white illustrations of fashionable people in New York. These artworks capture the frenetic pace of the Big Apple.

Periquet pointed out that the illustrated streetscapes are suggestive of windows on the solid walls.

On another wall, photographs of Audrey Hepburn in the film “Breakfast at Tiffany’s,” and of other famous landmarks, evoke nostalgia.

The interior design and decorative touches bridge the link between Go’s personality and the food.

“The owner’s sense of style is informed in everything,” said Periquet.

For summer picnics, Nic’s black-and-white striped packages are fashionable ways to store the restaurant’s popular and fuss-free dishes—such as bruschetta (which goes well with sweet and savory dips), classic Caesar salad with bacon or smoked salmon, and meat lasagna. Drenched in mozzarella cheese and bolognese, the last is a diet buster.

For healthier fare, the baked salmon with Caesar salad is ideal for those on a keto diet—just skip the mashed potatoes.

Desserts such as parmesan ensaimada, double fudge bars, mini cinnamon rolls and fluffy cheese rolls are easy to pack.

Feminine ambience

The feminine ambience is ideal for a Mother’s Day celebration, especially because Nic’s is known for its comfort food.

The mild, natural flavor of the milkfish is intensified by the smoking process, and the diner could add either capers and mushrooms, tomato or basil.

Chicken parmigiana pasta oozes with melted cheese over warm, herb-flecked pasta and breaded chicken.

The shrimp pesto pizza is memorable for its crispy crust.

The ultimate sign of affection is Chocolate Tower, the velvety cake with dark chocolate swirls.

For Mother’s Day, Go’s daughters, Nicole, 22, and Madison, 14, concoct surprises. When they were younger, they prepared a breakfast tray of heart-shaped pancakes, bacon and fresh orange juice, adorned with a rose.

“They are older now so their expression changes,” said Go. “They post heartwarming dedications about me on Instagram or Facebook—avenues of communication I don’t have the savvy for.” Go and her daughters’ involvement in Nic’s include daily testing of recipes, overlooking the quality control, and fortifying the brand vision. —CONTRIBUTED

Nic’s is at G/F, Phase 1B, UP Town Center, Katipunan Ave., Quezon City; tel. 9585574, 09999933234, 09177002513