Manila: Commune Café

Commune Café is tucked between sky-rise apartment and office buildings, on the corner of a street in Makati. It looks a little out of place, but acts as a welcome haven for a coffee, breakfast or as a stop to wile away a few hours. We tried our first Filipino breakfast here - pork torcino with rice and a fried egg, which was surprisingly delicious. For someone who is used to cereal and fruit in the morning it sounded a little too much like dinner for my liking, but more fool me for not having tried it earlier. The coffee was also good, as was the cookie cupcake with salted caramel ice-cream. Now if someone can just tell me where I can get my hands on those green coffee mugs and saucers that would be great. Anyone? 

Commune Cafe

Liberty Plaza,

102 H.V. Dela Costa Street,Salcedo Village, Makati City

Manila

I'm finally getting the rest of my Philippines posts up, so expect to see a flurry in the following weeks. Next up is Manila. The Philippines' capital is one of the most exciting cities I've visited in a long time - it's hot, tropical, noisy, colourful and sprawling. It's also a city in flux, expansion and growth, and is currently undergoing a lot of construction. But it's so filled with life and energy that I almost didn't want to leave. The contrast can at times be a little shocking and eye-opening, with colourful, makeshift shanty town homes positioned next to skyscrapers, or just across the road. One of my favourite things were the jeepneys - the elongated jeeps, used as public transport, which are each more colourful than the next, and unique to the city. Parts of the city admittedly felt very American, especially the area of Makati, where we stayed, and there are malls everywhere. The main cluster of hotels are in Makati so it is a little more touristy, but it's a great place to base yourself when exploring the city. Below were a few of my favourite places:

Address book: 

Wildflour cafe + Bakery - great for brunch/lunch

CO/OP - concept design store and cafe, great for lunch and dinner 

Commune - great for coffee and breakfast (post coming soon) 

Yardstick Coffee - great for coffee

Your Local - restaurant, great for dinner 

Intramuros - Manila's old town