At Home in Hizon's

There are two things that come to my mind when I hear about Hizon's Bakeshop located along J. Bocobo St. in Ermita, Manila (besides having good ensaymada).  First, it is a favorite hangout of Dolphy (a Filipino actor-comedian who passed away a couple of years ago) and second, it serves good porkchop, haha!  (I remember having it when I was a kid. . . and that was definitely a long time ago!)   

One day, while we were around the area, we thought of getting some lunch there (by the way, the coffee shop inside Hizon's is called Za's).  While we were going through the menu, I saw this on top of the table:

It's his favorite place alright. . .

While I am a fan of Dolphy, we got the other restaurant favorites because--- a) Turkey wasn't served that day and b) I don't eat Ox Tongue.

While waiting for our food, they served complimentary bread (very soft rolls!) and butter.

These definitely went well with the Chow Mein (aka Pancit Canton)

This is our new personal favorite.  The pancit canton was nothing fancy,  it was something that looked like it came out of someone else's home kitchen (which is why I like it!).   It was so flavorful (really yummy!) and they didn't scrimp on the ingredients.  This noodle dish just made our meal  . . . homey.

We got their Roast Beef too.  I've had better Roast beef from them before.  I hope they will be consistent with the tenderness of the meat.

And for the Man of the House (yep, Hubby is back home!), I got him the Grilled Pork Chop! 

There were two pieces of thick-cut pork chop that came with an apple sauce which hubby didn't touch at all (only because he likes his pork chop plain and simple. . . though I told him to try the chops with gravy, haha!)  The chops were more tender than the roast beef.  If I were at home, I'll be having this with rice and dip it in vinegar with garlic and pepper, haha! 

While Hubby was finishing his meal, I went to the bakeshop to buy some baked goodies.

Hizon's is known for their Ensaymada (with Quezon de Bola or Cheddar Cheese).  They also sell Dinner Rolls, Raisin Bread, Mamon, Taizan, Polvoron (to name a few). 

They are also famous for their Mocha cake (which has a caramel filling).

Hubby likes Macaroons so I got him a pack.  I am not fond of Macaroons but I liked these.  Hubby of course likes his Mom's Macaroons better (always!  Haha!)  I think nothing would come close to how she made them.  So I am taking that as a challenge!  (Not that I am competing with his Mom!)  I want to learn how to make Macaroons because I want him to relive those days when he was growing up, when his Mom was still around to bake them =) (How I wish I've had the chance to meet her so she could have taught me how to!)      

It was another Happy Tummy time for us!

For more details about HIzon's Bakeshop, please visit their FB page.

Hizon's Bakeshop and Za's Coffee Shop is located at 1197 J. Bocobo cor Arquiza Sts, Ermita, Manila.