Sand Under My Feet: Filipino Breakfast Buffet Happening Every Sunday at Spice Cafe

According to John Gunther “All happiness depends on a leisurely breakfast.” And true enough for many of us breakfast is widely accepted as the most important meal of the day as it fuels the activities that lies in the day ahead. Moreover, breakfast should nothing but put a smile on our faces whether be it a light meal or full-on heavy one.

I believe no one does breakfast better than the Filipinos. Many other nationalities are surprised that we Filipinos eat rice 3 times a day and breakfast isn’t spared. I don’t know about you but whenever I have the chance to grab some breakfast before I head off to work, I’d rather eat a full meal with rice and viand than just eat oatmeal, or cereal or just bread. I think I can speak in general that Filipino tummies are wired to eat a complete meal during breakfast.

I’m not much of a breakfast person to be honest, especially when my body is so used to the graveyard shift. But now with the new schedule that I follow I have the chance to eat a hearty breakfast on a regular basis before going about my day. But you know what I won’t say no to? Hotel buffet breakfasts, they speak volumes to me. This is what I look forward to whenever I stay in or visit a hotel. Besides being able to stuff myself with massive amounts of bacon, with breakfast buffets, there is a variety of dishes that appeal to different cultural and national backgrounds.

Just last December, Poblacion Makati’s new hottest destination, City Garden Grand Hotel's Spice Cafe launched their Filipino Breakfast Buffet that happens every Sunday. I’ve tried their breakfast buffet the last time I went on a staycation there and I totally enjoyed it. Just this weekend I visited again with my foodie friends and the breakfast buffet offers a majority of Filipino dishes. Yes, there are some Western food as well but mostly are the ones also familiar with the Filipino palate like Chinese dim sums, pancakes, waffles, varieties of cheeses and DIY salads.

I love that I can decide just how much time I want to spend over breakfast. I mean I was able to sit back, relax and enjoy freshly brewed coffee with some famous Filipino breads like pandesal, ensaymada, pan de regla and Spanish bread that I brought to our table from the bread section while catching up with my foodie friends. I mean breakfast is supposed to be some people’s quiet time, but with the friends that I got, it’s always a riot every time we get together for a foodie meet up. I mean if you think I’m crazy, wait until you meet my friends haha!

I walked along all the food sections and just took whatever that appealed to me and my tummy that morning. Hotel guests were spoiled with a lot of choices of Filipino favorites like some Chinese dim sums, DIY eggs; loads of bacon and noodle soups. And then I passed by the carving station where you could find some sliced ham and, wait for it, Lechon Belly! Yes, Lechon Belly for breakfast, can you believe? How freaking awesome is that right?

A good breakfast gets your entire system up and running and will aid concentration throughout the day. And of course, a good breakfast should include healthy options. Spice Café had the danggit and the dried pusit. Can Ijjust say how much I loved the danggit and especially the dried pusit. Of course in every Filipino meal there’s always rice and Spice served rice with aligue (crab roe) and garlic rice. The rice with aligue was perfect with the danggit and the dried pusit.

They also have champorado and ginataang mais! I’m not kidding when I tell you I had one too many bowls of that ginataang mais! The dessert staples like their yummy yogurts were offered but how can anyone say no to creamy and smooth leche flan, that creamy maja blanca, that crunchy turon and the delicious mango sago. Ugh! I think that amount of food I ate that morning equates to two full meals already. Do I have any regrets? None! I missed their Danish pastries but the bread selections and the Filipino desserts made up for it.

Other Filipino dishes include: Ginisang Sardinas, Pancit Plabok, Lugaw, Biko, Longganisa, Tocino, Beef Tapa, Macaroni Salad, Mami, Daing na Bangus, etc. I'm not sure though if I saw some salted egg. Also, I love how they set up the whole restaurant with those banderitas (buntings) that gives the feels of a Filipino fiesta; the staff are even wearing traditional clothing! All the feels!

Just like the last time, City Garden Grand Hotel’s Spice Café’s breakfast buffet definitely made me all giddy and grateful for that beautiful Sunday especially that I get to spend it with my friends over good food and good laughs. I truly appreciated Spice Café’s breakfast buffet; they have created a breakfast buffet that will put a smile on their guests’ faces, no matter where they’re from. They offer the good variety of breakfast options whatever your preference. So, whether you feel like a leisurely traditional cooked breakfast, a healthy light snack or a bit of both, Spice Café got you covered.