Cafe Publico

 

 

 

When in Manila, there’s a plethora of choices for tambayan other than going to the malls with your friends. Cafe Publico in Promenade Mall, Greenhills can be your next gelato and pasta haven and, ultimately, your soon-to-be favorite chill out place. 

  

The star of Cafe Publico is the hardworking owner and master cook, Peter Chua.  

 

 

The passionate Peter Chua welcomed us personally in our visit to Cafe Publico. He told us that we would be served not just their famous gelatos but the complete Cafe Publico dining experience. My friends and I were thrilled and we waited eagerly for the food to arrive. While waiting, we all marveled at the comfortable and cozy environment that Cafe Publico offers. 

 

I took photos of the wonderful lights that envelop Cafe Publico, which reminds me of Spanish cafes I saw in foreign films. 

 

 

Peter would tell me that each of the pieces of design in the resto has an interesting story. And this level of intimacy and meaning is easily felt once someone sees the various mementos of Peter’s travels posted and displayed around Cafe Publico.

 

It felt wonderful that Peter himself prepared and served us all of the food which we immensely enjoyed. First up was the appetizer: his Crab Artichoke, served with crostini and breadsticks, tasted great, with a hint of cheese-like saltiness that made me crave for beer! Haha!

 

Crab Artichoke: cheesy-like and yummy! 

 

 

Then, the Pomodoro soup and Onion soup were served. My friend, Marvin, tried the Onion soup, while I took a sip of the Pomodoro soup. The taste of the tomatoes in the Pomodoro soup felt smoky and warm to the stomach. Marvin told me that he loved the cheesy topping and the thickness of the Onion soup.

 

Pomodoro Soup: smoky tomato with hint of basil

 

Onion Soup: cheese on top, thick onion goodness to warm your stomach

 

 

The best part of the dinner for us was the three very different but equally delicious pasta dishes. We all loved the creaminess of the 3-Cheese Beef Lasagna, the meaty-goodness of the Sausage and Spinach Spaghetti Arrabiata, and the crazyawesomegoodness of the winning dish, the Turkey Pastrami and Mushroom Cream Spaghetti. Our verdict? Cafe Publico doesn’t just serve amazing varieties of gelato, their pasta dishes, served al dente and hot, are unbelievably good as well!

 

3-Cheese Beef Lasagna: layers of cheesy and beef yumyum!

 

Sausage and Spinach Arriabata: meeeeeaaatty! 

 

Our favorite: Turkey Pastrami and Mushroom Cream Spaghetti!!!

 

 

But, of course, after the pasta, we still were given the chance to try some of their special gelato for dessert. Peter told us that he prepare these gelatos every day and he experiments on new flavors as often as he gets new inspiration! There was a time he did some Red Velvet gelato and even tried a very Pinoy flavor, Buko Pandan! Mmmm! He also sometimes tries exotic and unexpected flavors from time to time. Visit their resto weekly and you’ll be surprised to see their various gelato selections.

 

Gelato Galore!

 

 

We got to try these unique gelato flavors: Thai Tea, Banana Nutella, Sophia Lauren (strawberry and pistachios), and the one with the unforgettable name, the El-Pili-ube-rismo (Pili and Ube). Now that’s what you call unique!

 

My friend Marvin enjoying his very unique Thai Tea gelato!

 

 

Another reason to go to Cafe Publico is to join their weekly contest. Every Wednesday, there will be a new question and a winner of a gelato scoop of your choice! The questions are of pop culture nature, so everybody can definitely have the chance of being a lucky winner of Cafe Publico‘s fresh gelato.

 

Join Cafe Publico‘s weekly contest and get a chance to win a gelato of your choice! 

 

 

I got the chance to talk with Peter after our stomach-and-heart-filling dinner, and he told me more stories about Cafe Publico. The name of the cafe, Peter shared, is unlike other cafes or gelateria because his cafe was intended to have a comfy name. He wanted the place to be a public place for gathering, so he was thinking of “Public Something.” It dawned on him that Cafe Publico is a good name because it has a Filipino sound to it, yet it also seems very non-threatening and very open to the mass as he loves seeing simple crowd enjoying what he has prepared for them, and this is more fulfilling to him because he is not compromising his vision that he set out when he opened Cafe Publico. And with the warm ambience that you see in Cafe Publico, you will definitely be able to see the realization of Peter’s dream and feel welcome to hang out and enjoy his delicious culinary delight!

 

The great Peter Chua fulfilling his dream of serving his legendary gelato to the Publico! 

 

In Cafe Publico, you will not just be served with the best selections of pasta and gelato, you will definitely be chilling out with the ultra-comfy cafe which Peter built with love. 

 

When in Manila, make sure to drop by Cafe Publico–it’s the perfect place for pasta, gelato and chilling out!

 

 

Cafe Publico

+632 919 0519

2nd Floor Promenade, Greenhills

Open from 11AM – 12 Midnight, Mondays – Sundays. 

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Cafe Publico – The Perfect Place for Pasta, Gelato, and Chilling Out