Thursday, June 5, 2014

Ili-likha Artist Village: Unraveling a Breathing Space in Baguio




Before I started traveling at length, seeing many places and experiencing cultures very different than my own, I have long since learned to find myself comfortable in an environment as Baguio. Why?

Because somebody else would have marketed asolar-powered aircon eventually, but no one would or could invent the blues and soul this place provides. It’s also the home of perhaps the most uniquely awesome and uniquely eating joints. So, if you like the good, old school shit—you’re spot on. 

It’s a city I feel particularly attached to and grateful for. Just about every time I walked into a new restaurant, I have been fortunate to track where some of the cooks come from, and know their back stories. I have been fortunate enough to see where that affinity for cooking comes from, and to experience preparing many delicious things.

It’s also one of those places I feel the happiest when a day’s work is over. I eat with some friends around a street stall and order cheese sticks with fresh, bright, strawberry taho while listening with moist eyes to sentimental songs from street musicians. We will look around and remark, for the hundredth time, what an extraordinary place this is.

My new found obsession with all things food may veer frequently into the silly zone—but I, in my own awkward way, am lurching towards what others might have missed, that a basic understanding of food—GOOD food—is always fundamental.



When tracking it all back—the recipes, the structure, the genealogy of light cuisine, I look back at those presentations and the combinations of ingredients.
I found this out of the world diner concept while pitching my coffee craving.Upon seeing the skeletons of the place, I can’t help but wonder. So I decided to embrace my disposition and had to get in.

Tucked in amongst the busy businesses along Assumption Road, Ili-likha Artist Village is an interesting hub that houses a group of artists and foodies. The place has no formal signage but it easily attracts and impresses with its rather quaint architecture. All you just have to do is follow your curiosity, and take an eyeful of ingenuity.

The place has three levels, and you enter at the topmost’. Dining area is located on the second and the dungeon on the first. Ili-Likha is partly finished (and has been under construction for four years now) making it more exciting as you discover each floor.


A not surprisingly indulgent extension of Oh My Gulay restaurant cum art place, Ili-likha is a divergent world on its own. Indie-genius filmmaker, writer, and actor, Kidlat Tahimik (who his films I studied during my Communications II class) encouraged a fluid scaffold through the efforts of various artists that continue to uphold the nobleness of the city. They opened a cluster of mini-restaurants,and adapted dishes with the best of what they’d grown up with—refined them to satisfy the demands of the public.

Many of the ideologies of the kitchens I’ve visited came directly from the imperatives of survival on the farm: “Use Everything, Waste Nothing.” Ili-likha certainly lives up to that, finding a way to spoil the area with notable art pieces depicting the rich culture of Cordillera and the history of our country.

In fact, the place in itself is a living work of art. But what thrill the experience are the stories shared. These were fascinating cooks who fill in their vacuum with passion for cooking, meeting people, and creating good food.So, if you see a simple looking preparation of fried rice, try and understand that what you are seeing changed the way all of us now order and eat today, that it marked a tectonic shift as important to the craft of cooking.

Light Food Cupboard
Ah, the fair. A wonderland ofhastily put-together architecture, anda place where smart conversations of goers mingle in the air with the scent of Baguio, each stall at Ili-likha offers distinct flavor profiles.

For most—especially in Session Road where authentic delis are few and far between—organic pasta is limited and some are far cry from the freshly-made heavy-creamedcarbonaraI had in Balay Gulay topped with generous parsley (one of the best I had in years). Marlon Caranto, who runs Balay Gulay with companion, Jun Ritwal, described Ili-likha as a breathing space.


Ang tema nito para sa’kin, parang mga kahoy na namatay na muling binubuhay at kapag naa-appreciate ng mga tao, nagkakakulay (I see it as reviving lifeless trees to create a place for people to meet, and when they appreciate that idea, it becomes more meaningful), says Caranto.

When you combine the food you love with passion, you produce amazing tastes. And that is what Laydeh Alberto of Café Greva does with waffles. Her lightly caramelized-on-the-outside and soft-and-chewy-on-the-inside waffle bathed with nuts and fresh sliced apple is a must try. Pair it with Keso’s Tsokolate Di Baterol—hot, thick, bittersweet chocolate drink made from local cacao beans for perfect combo.

Unlike any other rice meals,Hayahay depends less on meat and focuses instead on the inherent flavors of the vegetables and spices. The seasoning is different. The infusion is different.

Whichever dish you choose, you can trust every ingredient is as fresh as possible. Ili-likha takes made-from-scratch to a whole new level. The pasta sauce is made daily, the waffles are cooked to order, and even the cheeses are homemade. Every component is chosen to showcase the flavorful simplicity of a light vegetarian cuisine from a low-priced and pared-down menu.

So, want to get some of thesefor yourself? Spare time, and visit them. And if you miss the lunch rush, don’t worry. Ili-likha is opened ‘til 7 in the evening. (Louie dela Vega) FOCUS

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