Alpas | Restaurant + Garden + Guesthouse
When you dine at Alpas, the fish on your plate may have just gotten through its backdoor sea & those vegies picked right outside its walls. And yes, the ladies serving your lunch may just live right off the fence or you might be sitting on an upcycled chair.
This is Alpas — a hyperlocal restaurant, an organic garden & a seaside guesthouse at Tobias Fornier in Antique. Above all, it is growing a community sown on sustainable living, nature conservation & love for the Antiqueรฑo culture.
Into Antiqueโs Gastronomic Spin, Alpas Style
Straight out from our Philippine Airlines flight from Clark, we trailed on Antiqueโs attractions like thereโs no tomorrow. Sight-after-sight, story-after-story, this quaint coastal province rolled up so fast, just halfway thru the day.
But I have to admit, I couldnโt help but think about lunch. We trouped down the south roads towards Barangay Pacencia in Tobias Fornier. Seriously, it was a long ride & arriving to a peculiarly designed bamboo faรงade sort of hinted a beautiful strangeness ahead.
After all, I was right. I instantly felt the connection of its cool design aesthetics with the menu, the way things go & the zingy rural vibe. Alright, Iโve come to my kind of place, a mindful farm-to-table eatery.
Alpas is a plateful of deliciousness! Think fresh matambaca in malunggay oil or succulent roasted pork served with cucumber salsa. How about a richly marbled beef tenderloin with a medley of pickled vegies in sinamak gastrique?
All their meats are organic, native & free-range, assuring you of a synthetic-free goodness. In fact, their pork are exclusively sourced from Green Warrior Eco Farm in Barbaza.
However, at Alpas, they can easily reimagine a vegetarian or vegan offering at the peak of freshness. Indulge in sautรฉed cabbage & ampalaya or monggo with pickled okra & saluyot. Yup, if you love plant-based menu, this place is truly savory wild!
Responsible ingredient sourcing is what sets Alpas wonderfully different from others. Here, they make food from organic gardens & buys all fixings at fair trade from local producers.
They are local, seasonal & smack bang on the loveliest beach in the south. Meaning, their menu changes according to what are seasonally & locally available. Make sure to make arrangements with them so you know whatโs in & hot for the day.
Creating Spaces That Matter
Alpas is something of a rarity in a province otherwise dominated by fastfood chains & MSG-thick fast-casual eateries. Additionally, theyโre making a healthy revolution not only in taste but also in their earth-caring advocacies.
Bamboo-made restaurants may not be new but their design is a stand-out. It has extra-large windows that allow more natural light inside, thus reducing energy consumption. In its interiors, upcycled wood & bamboo make up much of its furniture.
If you are used to simply pulling the flush handle & walk away after a toilet moment, here itโs different. They use compost toilet with soil & rice hulls for disposals. They segregate garbage, conserve water & everything to reduce impact on the environment. Awesome, right?
If beachside hole-ups are your kind of getaway, Consuelo House beds you with the murmurs of the waves in the background. This sea-breezed guesthouse comfortably accommodates a party of 5 with complimentary breakfast.
Albeit small, Alpas is however big on its permaculture practice where they grow herbs, vegetables, trees & fruits chemical-free. Chickens & goats freely roam here too!
As if everythingโs not enough, Alpas also supports various local producers of handicrafts, all-natural soaps, even books written by Antiqueรฑos. Likewise, they partner with local organic farmers, schools & organizations.
Behind Alpas is couple Ken & Kim Cazeรฑas — restaurateur, stewards of the earth. Both raised in America, this eco-duo found love in their beachside paradise in Tobias Fornier. Now, they lead the town in sustainable living.
All told, Alpas is more than just bringing healthy bowls & bites to Antique. Itโs part good food, part larger-than-life green-living, but wholly & sustainably awesome!
-oOo-
Alpas
Sitio Banban, Brgy. Pacencia, Tobias Fornier, Antique
www.alpasph.com
www.facebook.com/alpashere
09393582092
Book your Antique trip though Katahum Tours
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