36 days to go!

Our wedding is on a Saturday morning so you still have the rest of the weekend to explore beautiful Batangas! :) You can go on a food trip, visit historical and miracle-laden churches, or simply go swimming in any of the fun resorts in Lipa and in nearby towns.

This will be part 1 of our "places to visit" segment of this evolving blog and it will aptly be called food trip!

Batangas is known for many delicious delicacies such as bulalo, tawilis and maliputo for your main fare; macapuno, panutsa, rimas for dessert; and my ultimate fave, lomi! Yumyum ;)

For bulalo, nothing still beats Rose & Grace. You may have eaten a lot of times in their Tagaytay branch but the original restaurant is found in Sto. Tomas, Batangas, before you reach the public market. If you take STAR tollway, just take the Sto. Tomas exit and you'll find it on your right, a few meters from Jollibee.

In Tanauan city, which comes right after Sto. Tomas, you'll find a new restaurant called Casa Mabini in Tanauan Event Center. The food is delicious pinoy fusion and is so interesting that I promised to come back until I've tried out all of them! Notable dishes are the adobo pasta, tapa spaghetti, bagnet & pomelo salad and other witty combinations that truly bring pleasure to your palate. I won't describe how the place looks like so you'll be pleasantly surprised when you get there for the wedding reception. Suffice it to say that I fell in love with the place the first time I laid my eyes on it (taken from a song I heard somewhere... mmmm). It's rustic, charming, refreshing and simply beautiful. Tanauan Event Center is a hidden gem behind the Tanauan church, La Consolacion College and Tanauan gym. From STAR tollway, take the Tanauan exit, turn left to city proper. Just go straight way past the public market, Jollibee and KFC until you see the church. Turn right and follow the road till you reach Collantes St. Tanauan Event Center is on your left.

Tapa Spaghetti

In Malvar, just before the Lipa City arch is the Lima (for LIpa-MAlvar) ecozone on your left. Hidden here is Lima Park Hotel whose in-house chef is Paul Poblador, son-in-law of Patis Tesoro and well-known for his pinoy fusion dishes in Cafe Salud in San Pablo, Laguna (part of Viaje del Sol) and another not-to-miss resto in Baguio. He also whips up delicious dishes that will bring a satisfied smile on your face at the end of a hearty meal. This was what happened to us when we partook of the crab festival offerings. :)

Watch out for part 2 and photos tomorrow!