FOR NOW, open only in the evenings at 6 p.m. until the smoked meats run out.
COCINA DE LA CASA
#8 Morales Street,
(behind Harold’s Hotel)
+63 32 4010750
Stephen Aznar’s now defunct Café Elysa in Parian was my go-to downtown eats destination. The stories he weaves with his food always fascinated me, and they made for great copy.
His pancit, for example, was made from the salty native kind that needed little by way of seasoning except the fat rendered by sautéing slices of pork, and few greens.
BLEACHERS BARBECUES graphics and interiors capture the fast-casual dining feel.
This was the meal served in that affluent area for big parties, and every spoonful brought you back to those days.
Stephen is back, and so are his stories. They’ve found a new home in Cocina de la Casa, a whitewashed space in a beautifully repurposed home on Morales Street.
And he’s added a few more things on the menu from the treasured personal kitchens of Margette Garcia Sarmiento and Ina Ronquillo Aboitiz, both of whom Stephen has partnered with in this new culinary adventure.
PRE-OPENING PARTY, and Angel Briones trying her hand at writing down the menu.
His local buffalo cheese with herb-infused oil (my personal favorite) embodies exactly what the house stands for: fresh ingredients, subtle flavors, home-cooked familiarity and a restrained sophistication.
A Tripadvisor review puts it best: “blurs the line between fine dining and home cooked.”
