— witsandnuts

Before christmas, my cousins prided on the shoes they bought in Liliw, Laguna few months ago.  For the uninitiated, Liliw is the shoe capital of Laguna.  While Marikina is the shoe capital of the Philippines and not being biased, I still prefer Liliw’s products since these are more affordable and has better quality.  However, I have never been in that town to personally buy a pair, I only tried some pairs distributed in the other towns of Laguna.

a christmas present to myself, what was yours?

There is an imeldific sense in every gal, and so after this “see through” flats that I got for christmas, I asked one of my cousins to accompany me to Liliw.  Liliw is a small town and shoemaking, distributing and selling is its main source of living.  I am amazed to see the whole street comprised of shoe stalls, and there are other by-products being offered to, bags, belts, etc.

Counterclockwise:  Yakal St. full of shoe stalls, Badong’s corner, some of the office shoes in Badong’s and its trusted cashier.  Prices are fixed.  You may bargain in other stalls.

I wanted these.

The prices are unbelievable.  Half the rocketing of Metro’s offers.  And the quality doesn’t suffer.  If you are going there, spend much of your stop in Badong’s.  They are supplying shoes to Otto and other shoe distributors.

(L) Planning to wear soon, (R) Worn at the airport on January 2.

Another good stall.  “Yari” means made from.

While in state of imeldification, my cousin, who is also a foodie, introduced me to a known local bakeshop:

An old bakeshop.  Apparently, doesnt’ care about branding.

It obviously has loyal patrons.  I’m surprised that the they can sell all those boxes in a regular day.  They take pride on its custard cake.  It is not that appealing, but it’s one of the best cakes I ever tasted!

This is pasted on the right wall. Not much into outer vanity.

Unlike this custard cake that we got for new year’s eve, looks can really be so deceiving.   If I’m in Liliw, I would like to compete with Liliw’s Bakeshop, hehe.  The thought is exciting, hehe.  Anyone?

We also dropped by in this Antique Shop:

“Samut sari” means mixture, combination, of different types.

These are the considered collector’s items inside.  Not of much interest.

But Liliw’s church is definitely interesting.

The area for the mass is not that big as it may seem.  But there are several images of patrons outside.  Like they are guarding and parading.  See photos here.

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Exotik Restaurant, Longos, Kalayaan, Laguna

Except for the word of mouth and occasional stop-overs of travelers at the highway, not much have been said about Exotik Restaurant.  They don’t have a website, not even an email address.

To where we were seated.

Named as the cleanest restaurant in Laguna.

Taken from top, spot right after the entrance.

The first time I dined here was in early 2003 and I had adobong tupa (sheep).   This time I had the courage to try more exotic eats.

Kuhol with gata and pako (snails with coconut milk and ferns), PhP100

The challenge to pick what’s inside adds to my appetite.

Inside the snails.  I especially loved the combination of coconut milk and ferns with spices in it.

Guess what are these?  For PhP280/plate.

Aside from being fried, you can also have these in adobo sa gata or toyo and as sizzling frogs.
Fried frogs are one of their bestsellers.

And to keep the sanity, we had sinampalukang native na manok (native chicken in tamarind soup), PhP285.  One of the best sinampalukans that I had!

From the restaurant, everything just seems so good:

Lake view.

Refreshing waters.

And their pets:

You can play with this.

The black snake at the bottom is the more famous one, named Samantha.

I suppose this is a little dangerous since she is placed not near the entrance.

Just before birdie was put back to the cage.

That’s literally a headshot!

Aquarium near the cashier.

Don’t forget to check the items in the souvenir shop.  Some of the items:

Tuba, bagoong, lambanog, etc.

Made from coconut.

Not just the food, but the ambiance counts!

Exotik Restaurant is in Highway, Longos, Kalayaan, Laguna. This is four hours drive from Manila.  If you are coming from South Luzon Expressway, you have to pass by at Sta. Cruz, Pagsanjan and Lake Caliraya.  If you are from Rizal, it would take less than two hours drive and you have to pass by at Siniloan and Paete.  Kalayaan would be the next town.

Related Post:
What’s New in Exotik Restaurant?

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