Ilocandia 1.2

We ventured inside the famous Cafe Leona and anticipated the value of a good Ilocano home style cooking. Ping leads me to the "turo-turo"  counter to check out their famous cuisine.



Leona's version of "Pinakbet" "Baridibod"

(L-R): GloV, Estela, Louee, Alex, Ping, Aurora, Vickie

With the many good reviews of this place, I wonder if the food critics & reviewers were catered to a "free" fare.    I.   Am.   Disappointed.  Pinakbet & Baridibod - overdone (possibly was in the pot, stewing for a long time).  The baridibod was sooo salty, they must have poured in a lot of "bagoong" into the pot.  Ping decides to stand up and get this exchanged (ha ha).  But in the end, all the food was "swacked" (my terminology for plates cleared). Thank goodness for the order of fried tilapia, a safer choice.

[[ Here, I compare the "baridibod" Antipolo style served by PeaEye, who carries her Ilocano cooking with a certain flair ]]

Ping also relishes the idea that she once was in cahoots with a great great grandchild of Leona.  She went to school with her @ UST (sorry Ping, forgot the name of your friend).  This grandchild was the precursor to Ping's first teaching assignment in Vigan @ the Saint Paul's Academy, an offshoot of the famous Cathedral.

St. Paul Church, Vigan, Ilocos Sur