In The Heart of Session Road: Il Padrino Caffe X Ristorante

play date for adults

The summer season in the Philippines is dwindling to an end, but my kids still have school well into the month of May. My co-parents and I are all hoping for break, but have to content ourselves with afternoons and coffee spoons (you'll know my age if you can guess which band sang this, lol). When my co-parent (and batch mate) Aileen called me up to join her for some grub at Il Padrino, I jumped at the opportunity of getting away for a bit.

It's been roughly 8 years since Il Padrino opened shop and fairly new here in Baguio. Here's my first impression of it's Baguio branch:

Il Padrino's other locations

1. LOCATION - Session Road, Baguio's main thoroughfare, is perhaps THE most accessible location there is. Problem though is parking, as on street parking is limited to certain hours of the day; parking at the wrong time could have you ticketed by the city's traffic cops. Still, I'll give it a 5/5 rating for location.

2. MENU - great selections, ranging from their all-day breakfast choices to their pastas, sandwiches, pizzas and sweet treat. LOOOOVED IT! From the choices to the price, thought is was all great. Score: 5/5 Here's a look at their food offerings:

3. FOOD - Aileen and I decided to split the food. The servings were quite huge, good enough for 2-3 people, who aren't light eaters. Food that we ordered was also DELISH! Luckily, our co-parent, Yael joined us a little bit later, to help us finish off the wonderful meal, that we originally thought would be a "light" snack. We ordered these: (SCORE: 5/5)

a. Hearty Sandwich - triple-decker sandwich of sliced ham, bacon, chicken fillet, lettuce, tomato, cucumber and cheese (199), comes with fresh cut potato wedges
b. Apricot Steak Salad - pan seared beef tenderloin (really tender, even when cold) on a bed of fresh romaine and iceberg lettuce, with an apricot mustard dressing.   
c. Lime Basil Cooler - not off the regular menu, but rather a limited time summer drink. Totally refreshing with a powerful basil punch to go with sweet-tangy lime flavor.

Aileen and I, pleasantly surprised with our food

4. SERVICE - service with a smile, quick, efficient and willing to lend a hand, to take our photos. SCORE 5/5

Now joined by Yael

5. AMBIANCE - casual, laid-back dining with ample dining areas in the resto's two-story floor space. Just how a cafe should be. Whether you're on business, "me-time" or with family and friends, it's a perfect place to dine or to chill in. SCORE: 5/5

Except for the fact that parking can be difficult in the area, I really didn't have anything to gripe about. I even tried to nit-pick, but remained unsuccessful. Il Padrino Baguio gets a perfect OVERALL SCORE of 5/5 in my book.

From TMW, may all your wanderings be better than ours!