“A” La Parilla Kind of Day

It’s been a while since my last foodventure with my blogging besties, Xine and Sam, so that’s just what we did, we went on a and I realize this post is long overdue, but you know what I always say, better late than never!😅 For this foodventure, X insisted we go to newly opened La Parilla Cafe and Grill along Legarda Road, so that’s just what we did.😁

I had to bring the kids along as school is out for the summer.

I’ve been back to La Parilla several times, with family, but this post is about my first ever visit.

I wanted to order everything on the menu on my first visit, but that’s just not possible, and I don’t like anything to go to waste, so I always only order what I can finish. I looked at the menu and literally had the baby back ribs screaming at me.😂 

So that’s what I ordered first.

La Parilla calls it Asian Fusion Baby Back Ribs, and if that doesn’t make you curious about it, I don’t know what will.

It’s called that because instead of serving it with a side of mashed potatoes and a salad, like most baby back ribs, it was served with rice and grilled veggies instead, good news for adults, not so good news for kids and the kids at heart.

I loved that it had okra, grilled eggplant, tomatoes, grapes and a side of alamang*, I did not however like that the okra was charred, I love okra and the charred parts made it bitter. I’m also not a fan of how dry the baby back ribs were on the inside, also, disappointing that it wasn’t fall off the bone tender, like there was a little bit of fight left on this meat and I didn’t like that.

It’s quite pricey at 315Php too, but I’ll give them points for being unique, you don’t see Asian fusion baby back ribs anywhere in the city, that’s for sure! It’s filling, sure, but it can definitely be better. Perhaps a bit more sauce would make it better and maybe a longer cooking time so the meat becomes more tender.

I also ordered the Tokwa’t** Bagnet. Why? Because I’ve been craving the one I had at Charley’s Bar which was oh so freaking good and I wanted to see how this one would fare.

At 160Php, not bad, and it was really good. The sauce was a perfect balance of tangy, sweet and salty, just the way it should be. Not crazy about the bagnet because it distracted me from actually enjoying the tofu, which is already hard to do because I really don’t like tofu unless it’s prepared Tokwa’t Baboy style.😜 It’s complicated, I think I love/hate it.😜

Xine has already been here before so she insisted that we just had to try their Paella.

They offered 2 kinds of Paella – Paella Valenciana, which had chorizo, chicken🍗, meat 🍖and seafood🍤 and Paella Marinara, which is made with seafood.

Now, I am deathly allergic to shrimps and crabs😰, but I thought, what the hey, I can just pop in an anti-histamine later and I’d be fine, so we ordered the Paella Valenciana so I can still enjoy it and eat the meat without having hives from the seafood.😋 I was right, it was worth the itching and little bit of hives I got from the seafood and I’m glad Xine insisted we try it.

The crusty part on the bottom and on the sides of the Paella was the best part for me, and although I tried to not eat any shrimps or crabs, it would have been wrong not to, so I tasted some and omg, life is so unfair, why am I allergic to shrimps and crabs?😩 It was soooo good! I loved that there were some clams hidden inside the rice, being allergic to shrimps and crabs made me love other seafood and mussels and clams are some of my favorites.

Because I had the kids with me that day, ‘L’ had to have dessert, so he did. I was so full that I didn’t think I had enough space for dessert. He ordered a sundae, I thought it was expensive for 100Php, but anything to stop him from nagging me.😁 And for the price, it wasn’t that bad. It had 3 scoops of ice cream, your choice of flavors (as long as your flavor of choice is available), drizzled with chocolate syrup and garnished with a chocolate wafer stick and a cherry. He chose vanilla and pistachio.🍨

The food was good, but it’s the ambiance in La Parilla is even better. Like seriously, there’s an outdoor seating area, so you don’t have to worry about people listening in on your conversation or worry about bothering people with your noise because tables are far apart. I love the ambiance, perfect for families who want to have some privacy or for couples who definitely need the peace and quiet.😜

Based on my experience alone, I thought about definitely coming back, which I did as I previously mentioned. I can’t wait to be back again and check out if they have something new to offer.

What are you waiting for?⏳ Don’t take my word for it, pay them a visit yourself!😊

---

La Parilla Cafe and Grill
Inn Rocio, #68 Kisad Road
Baguio City

*shrimp paste sauteed in garlic and onions.
** Tokwa is Tofu.