Thatched Roof House in the Philippines

Nipa hut by Alexcooper1. WIkipedia

Thatched roofs used to be the traditional roof construction norm in the Philippines. There are now few homes left that use natural dried leaves or grass to shed rain. Typically, roof thatching is used on nipa huts, the traditional-style house of Filipinos of old.

Through the centuries, the thatched roof never lost its popularity, though it became rare to see them used in houses, even the old ones from the early 20th century which are made of wood and stone. These days, old houses are stll found standing in heritage places like Vigan, Batangas, and Bulacan, but the roofs of most of them now use modern sheet iron.

Fortunately, there are still houses in the Philippines which use roof thatching. The house pictured here is found in Bulacan province. Notice that it also uses the traditional capiz shell sliding windows. Though the roof of the small garage is corrugated iron, the house is still a quaint picture  reminiscent of how all houses used to look in the country.

C2 Restaurant's Traditional Filipino Cuisine

There's a restaurant at the SM Megamall called C2 that serves traditional Filipino cuisine. C2 means Classic Cuisine, so don't confuse it with the iced tea product. Anyway, eating here can be a treat with the friendly waiters and colorful seventies-inspired light fixtures (left). The restaurant is all about Filipino food, and they serve their own jazzed up versions of classic dishes like the Philippine chicken adobo (shown below with the crispy tilapia) and hubad na lumpia (top).

If you eat here, you may be pleasantly surprised at how old-time favorite dishes can give a different experience to the Filipino palate with added ingredients in the preparation and presentation. If you're already familiar with the usual taste of traditional Philippine food, you will find the versions served at the C2 a delight, tickling you with new twists to old tastes. Even familiar drinks offer new tastes for your buds. If you're lucky, you may run into a friendly waiter who knows a lot of trivia on food and history.

The C2 restaurant mentioned here is found at the Atrium section of the SM Megamall in Mandaluyong. It's menu specialties are Ensaladang Prutas at Lato, Guinataang Puso ng Saging, Crispy Squid, Cirspy Tilapia, Prawns in Aligue Sauce, Boneless Crispy Pata, Pork Humba, Tinolang Binakol and Tokwa't Baboy.

UPDATE: This C2 branch at Megamall has closed.

 

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