Cafe Bola

In Manila, another favorite restaurants of mine is Cafe Bola.  It is also owned by Margarita Fores, the lady behind Lusso, which you can read about here and Cibo (also one of our favorite places), among others.  Cafe Bola, literally translated means Ball Cafe.  This is because the first branch that they opened was in SMART Araneta Coliseum (previously just called the Araneta Coliseum before SMART bought it), the biggest venue in Manila for concerts, and basketball games!  Thus the name I guess.

We usually had a meal at Cafe Bola before or after catching an Ateneo vs. La Salle UAAP game.  They are known for their Bolas... which are giant meatballs that they serve with your choice of sauce, served either over noodles or over rice.  But enough about that... I never went there for the bolas!

My favorite is this dish:

They serve the best adobo flakes and kesong puti!
Adoba flakes is shredded really flavorful meat (normally chicken or pork) served with white cheese
Php180 (SG$5.30)

Kamias Shake
This is the other reason I love Cafe Bola.
Kamias is closely related to Balimbing or StarFruit.
It's a firm sour fruit normally NOT made into a shake.  That's why this is a pleasant surprise.

This is me enjoying my Kamias Shake.

We went to Cafe Bola right after we watched Disney On Ice for an early dinner. I had to order a lighter dish since I had a very late lunch while we were watching the show.

I love how they put a local twist to their dishes

I ordered the balayan Caesar Salad with adobo flakes topping
I was very happy to eat a low carb, lite version of my favorite dish
Php130 (S$3.80)  

We also ordered two kinds of the local version of crostini and spreads for sharing.

Swamp Cabbage and Cheddar Cheese Dip with Pan de Sal rounds
It's the local counterpart of the famous Crostini and Spinach Dip of Cibo
Php125 (SG$3.70)

Banana Heart and Keso de Bola Dip with Pan de Sal rounds
Php155 (SG$4.60)

I like putting a lot of dip on my Pan de Sal round
This is the swamp cabbage one

I also like the Banana Heart dip, which I tried for the first time.

Naked Ilonggo, Style Chorizo and Egg
One of my friends ordered this.
It looked so good I'm putting it on the maybe I'll order this next time list.
Php200 (SG$5.90)

With the friends we watched Disney On Ice with,
minus all the kids who had their own table

The original Cafe Bola branch is located at the SMART Araneta Colliseum, beside Starbucks near the Gateway Mall entrance. They used to have a branch in Greenbelt but I just read somewhere that they have already closed down.