Corner Bakery Company: Definitely Not Just Another One

A dear friend of mine has been gushing about this cute place where they serve really good cakes and pastries. After postponing going to this place for some time, we successfully got there one Friday night. 

The quaint, little bakery has that cozy appearance to it right at a glance. It is small and is not really full of people, which can probably be attributed to two things; its distance from the main road where PUJs pass by or the owner's desire to keep it under the hole-in-the-wall category (as the server told us). 

Nice :)

We were hungry, but we did not want to get too full for the sweets. So we opted to share on a regular-sized pizza. This is the basic Margherita Pizza. It comes with a thin crust, cheese and the taste of herbs infused in the crust. It can satisfy 3-4 people and priced at P320.

Next comes the sweets.

This is the blueberry cheesecake. Sold at P55-60 a slice, the cheesecake part is a delight to the senses. I am not a huge fan of the blueberry addition to it though. 

My personal preference is this choco swirl cheesecake. Available at the same price range as the previous slice, I adore how the cheesecake part and the choco crust just mix together inside my mouth. Every bite just makes me want for more. 

I love sweets so much that it is so hard for me to stop once I get started. Hence, the s'more. This one costs P40. It's like a cupcake with a large marshmallow on top, which is a bit unique compared to the traditional s'more. While the usual s'more involves getting the mallow and chocolate sandwiched between to graham crackers, this one consists of the chocolate fixed in the cupcake and the mallow right on top of the cupcake. Definitely creative!

Despite the owner's desire (as pointed out by the server), I just cannot stop myself from sharing about this great find to the rest of the populace. It is too yummy to be kept as a secret. I really hope Corner Bakery would forgive me for this.

Anyway, to rate Cornery Bakery Company:

Billed: P500 - This included already 3 bottled mineral water and take-out stuff composed of 1 sliced bread, 1 focaccia bread and 1 french bread PLUS three full, smiling faces. Not bad!

Service: Fair. It was timely, which is not that surprising since we were the only ones there. The server/cashier/all-around girl was not very accommodating or friendly though. She was obviously in a hurry to have us out of there. This is probably because it was almost closing time or she was simply tired from working the entire day. So I'm giving her the benefit of the doubt.

Ambiance: Lovely! As my friend would put it, it is the best place to say yes to a suitor. The lighting is great, and the whole place is small yet not crowded, whether people are around or not. Unfortunately, I have decided not to take photos of the interior as a sign of respect to the owner's wishes. You would have to trust my word on how nice the place is :)

Cornery Bakery Company

Mondays-Saturdays 9am to 9pm

Sundays 1pm-9pm

Directions: Turn left after Castle Peak and go straight until you see the Corner Bakery

Cool Savers Halo-Halo: A Healthy Option To Cool You Down

I first tried this tasty version of the local love years ago when I was still residing within the city limits of Cebu. I've brought a couple of friends there, and they love it as much as I do. By some stroke of luck, I am now residing in the nearest outskirts of the neighboring town. Hence, Cool Savers Halo-Halo became the ideal option whenever the craving for something sweet, cold and healthy attacks me or anyone in my family.

My brother said that Cool Savers actually have other branches to include one in Punta Princesa in Labangon and another one in Poblacion, Minglanilla. I have been used to the one in Tabunok though. The entire ambiance had an enticing appeal to it. The structure is actually built like a large and open version of the traditional payag. It was wholly wooden with a second floor that offered a nice view of the skyline. It was a personal favorite spot for me especially during dusk when the blue sky starts turning dark with a myriad of colors in between the actual transformation. That was before though. A year or so ago, the open area that served as the large window of the place to the rest of the world was utilized to house a large and tall building. At the moment, that open window offered what feels like the butt of the cemented structure in front of it. Since then, I have opted to stay downstairs. This is my personal history with Cool Savers in Tabunok, Talisay City.

Here is the first thing that you see when entering the place. Simply yet very airy.

 

Second floor (Viewed from downstairs)

 Wash your hands before eating!

The choices

They had a different counter offering possible dinner options that include the usual puso (hanging rice), fishball, tempura and siomai. Customers may also go with some of the popular instant pancit canton or noodle soup. The counter highlighting their specialty though is this one on the top. The prices range from P35 to 55, which is based on the sizes of the halo-halo. 

 The largest halo-halo available

 

 Me with Mr Kyme's cousin waiting for our order

The best thing about Cool Savers halo-halo in Tabunok is how fine the ice is. There is definitely not going to be any blocks of ice left in the glasses once you are done with their halo-halo. More so, the crushed ice have a sweet flavor by itself. I cannot be really sure (and have been dying to ask them about it but thinking they might not tell me because it is their secret to their business), but it seems like some sweetened milk is already incorporated in the ice right from the very beginning. This is the only logical explanation me and my friends who've tried their halo-halo can think of. Guess we would have to try it on our own homemade halo-halo if it does work :))

However, there is no assurance that the halo-halo from Cool Savers in other parts of Cebu actually tastes the same. This is simply because I have not tried any of the others.  It would be wrongful to generalize without ample basis after all.

Cool Savers Tabunok is on San Isidro Road, Tabunok, Talisay City. It is located at the intersection going to Kimba from the Tabunok flyover.

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To rate Cool Savers Halo-Halo (Tabunok)

Price: Very affordable (Largest at P55)

Service: Tolerable. Not the best but not that bad either.

Food Quality: Definitely the best ice cream for me. It puts the versions offered by fastfoods to shame :))

Maitre Chocolatier - A Sweet Yes Or No?

When it comes to sweets, I go gaga!I even promised myself that there should be a bottomless supply of choco syrup in my future home (the present one cannot accommodate it yet). This was the main reason why this quiet cafe (new to my eye and other senses) attracted me along with my partner-in-crime on rainy weekday night. It Except for a group or two other people, the cafe was really unoccupied. We did not take that negatively though since it is possible not a lot of people have noticed this place since it is right at the edge of the lines of coffee shops and food places in that part of the terraces.

We went right in and did appreciate the look and peacefulness of the place. The seats were lovely and comfy the way they are supposed to be in coffee shops. The menu was exactly what we expected it to be. Full of chocolates. Since we already had dinner, we opted to get some coffee and desserts. Unfortunately, we got served the wrong one. Worse than that, they did not give us the right order and simply told us to just keep the one that they mistakenly served. The coffee was partner's, and he was mad. We did not want a lot of drama, so we opted to enjoy the coffee instead. There was nothing special about it though. We ordered this

(but I forgot the name already). It was good but too pricey for me.

Overall, the cafe is not something I would recommend. Too pricey all for the presentation. I'm not very familiar with how expensive chocolates are supposed to be, but the servings were in midget. That's just me though. For those who are into chocolates and willing to spend a fortune for it, this might be the place for you.
Maitre Chocolatier
101, Level 1
The Terraces Ayala Cebu
Cebu Business Park
Contact Number: +63 32 238 7116

My sweet tooth, on the other hand, thinks it can be satisfied with less expensive options :)