Seen, Heard, and Tasted at La Parilla Cafe and Grill
What are you in for on this Sunday morning, my foodie friend? A detailed account of my experiences at La Parilla, that’s what.
Opening Day – May 7, 2015
Things Seen (… and felt)
It’s always a wonderful surprise checking on the blog and finding invites to food packed gatherings. \m/
Such was a feeling I had seeing the invitation from Ms. Kikay (Much obliged to you) to the opening of the new in-house restaurant for Inn Rocio. Already impressed with the photo of the garden on the invite, seeing the actual spot, totally floored me. What they’ve done with the space was just WOW. Aside from alfresco dining under this pergola or that, there’s indoor dining as well … well decorated indoors at that.
Indoors …
(Shout out to those who thought of including X the eatsplorer in one of the milestones of their food establishments, thank you kindly! For those whom I didn’t get to visit yet, I do hope you’ll patient with me. I find that to fully appreciate a meal, it has to be taken on an empty stomach and the thing is I get pretty full pretty fast *hihi How I wish I had a ruminant tummy like a cow’s so I could cover more eatsploring ground. =)) )
The spread for the opening. (La Parilla green salad which is more than green and the topping heavy pergola pizza, weee!) *nomnomnom
While I’m taking more of the La Parilla scenery in from my seat, let me leave you for a bit to digest the cafe and grill’s inventory of dishes. =b
La Parilla Cafe and Grill menu
Things Heard (… and felt)
It starts happy and is happy all the way at the opening of this cafe. Aside from another beautiful hangout, the chaffing dishes of food on display at the event, X+1 relished in meeting new people. The pleasure was all ours meeting the Roces family, Ms. Christine, Sir JR and Maam Marcy.
One angle of the garden dining area.
How I enjoyed their stories about the old Roces home with its garden that looked like one of the settings for period films like Much Ado About Nothing, Emma or Sense and Sensibility (check out the collage below, where Race is looking at photos on the wall. It’s the second one from the bottom left – between the old photos of City Hall and Pines Hotel); Inn Rocio that’s been in business for 42 years (whoa!), the planning and work that went into La Parilla as well as more ideas relating to the food industry.
Here, there, everywhere at La Parilla!
I also got to catch up with old friends, Carolina from school days and Kuya Sir Dhobie from Jollibee SMART Assistant days who both got me up to speed on banking, media and real journalism respectively. ^^,
Little details at the grill: You can buzz for service when you’re sitting outside. One of the arbours has a socket, too. *wink wink
Things Tasted (… and felt)
Feeling that I didn’t get enough of La Parilla and its dishes in that one visit, I presented the newly opened restaurant as an option to Sam when she was thinking of a venue for our May get together. (HaPpY BirThDaY, Samantha! Ü)
(Company functions, birthdays, receptions for wedding/baptisms/anniversaries, etc., you say? Yes, you can book the whole restaurant for such events. In fact, there was one going on indoors in this visit and so … kumain kami sa labas. *heehahahaha)
Tokwa’t bagnet =D
While we kept paella, La Parilla’s specialty in mind, we also picked out the tokwa’t bagnet appetizer. With one taste of it as her main course, Queen Ane said, it reminded her of C Boutique’s pork with tofu which we were glad to have here since I think the boutique hotel took their version out from their menu.
Our main dishes: Fillet mignon, sizzling bulalo, Atlantic blue marlin, and Asian fusion baby back ribs ^^,
As for the rest of us, I went with sizzling bulalo which I had a gift certificate for. (Carol won it at the opening and she gave it to me. Thank you, thank you!) It was a little too tasty but it might be because the soup dried out in the sizzle. Tender lean with fat marbling and one ring of bone with marrow in it, it was everything I could hope for in bulalo (minus the broth) Love, love the shiitake mushrooms on top =) Sam’s fillet mignon was nicely cooked, she said, and the ala paella rice served with the juicy steak was a great complement.
I didn’t get a piece of the kids’ baby back ribs but sliced through, the grain looked dry as if the sauce didn’t seep in. How I eyed the ensalada on the ribs plate that went untouched by the kiddies. =D For Race’s blue marlin, he didn’t get a whiff of it as one would get with herb encrusted versions but that might not be the way this was cooked so … Anyway, it was a decent fish entree.
Paella Valenciana (“,)
Paella like Mario’s is soggy flavorful rice in a pan that easily became a socarrat in the bottom. Even with a spoonful of rice with nary a piece of meat, seafood or vegetable in it, it was muy delicioso. Hooray for rice that doubles up as entrees.
Photo break from the gab gab gabbing *hihi
At our table set up in the garden, it quickly got hot when the sun moved out from behind a cloud. (“,) The parilla desserts provided us with some comfort from this heat. Race and I shared a good and simple glass of halo halo peppered with overzealously-crunchy-it-was-hard pinipig. *tee hee The ice cream sundaes that SamJo and the kids had consisted of two flavors, ‘pistacio’ and vanilla, that quickly melted into a sweet runny white and mint green swirled treat.
Halohalo and sundae with vanilla and pistacio flavored ice cream. =)
X marks La Parilla Cafe and Grill at Inn Rocio for good food in Baguio. That’s the long and short of the things seen, heard, tasted … and felt at the cafe and grill. Inn Rocio is so back in the foodservice game!
Food: 
Service: Very attentive staff. As busy as they were with the party inside, they never failed to check in on us to see if we needed something.
Ambiance: 
Price: 
Not bad, not bad for a resto in soft opening phase.
Huddle of the La Parilla higher ups. Lots more to the plan they’re rolling out, I’m told. Kudos, everyone \m/
La Parilla Cafe and Grill
Inn Rocio
68 Kisad Road (adjacent to Athletic Bowl)
Baguio City,
Philippines
442 6535
The entrance to the cafe and grill.
*Parrilla (emphasis on the two R’s) is a Spanish word that means grill.
**Queen Ane’s food blog and Sam’s City Behind the Fog blog are undergoing transitions and developments so there’s nothing going on in those URLs for now, please standby till they get back in that game, too.
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X Marks the Spot for Good Baguio Foods 
OMG their servings are huge. Barbecue platter and paella, just a little over P1k for our group of 5. Thanks for letting us know abt this newly opened Baguio restaurant, Xine! 🙂
Wee, a good deal! A pleasure to get the word out to foodies like you. Eatsplore away! (“,)
Hi Xine,
Your pics are awesome! We’re a couple and we’re planning to go to Baguio on our anniversary this year. And while searching the web for budget hotels, I came across this Inn Rocio (and found your article about their resto). Its just that there’s not so much I can find on how to contact them personally to make an inquiry/ reservation (I prefer to do so instead of using online booking sites). May I ask if you have their contact number or at least an email. Thanks very much for your help! 🙂
Hello there, Jemima Angeles! Appreciation for the photos much appreciated. *hihi
Here’s Inn Rocio’s contact details:
https://www.facebook.com/innrocio/?fref=ts (You can also send a message through here, says on their page, they respond within a few hours ^^,)
Landline: 074-442-4028
CP: 09228168657
I hope this helps! Have a memorable visit to Baguio and happy anniversary! (“,)