Tiny Kitchen Creations Bakery
The Philippines always reminds me of what America used to be like, corner markets bakeries and eateries. That was in the days before the empire and the supercorporations put paid to private enterprise. However entrepreneurship is alive and well in the Philippines and Capitolisim has not yet given way to coporatisim. When I was working as a chef I spent some time on the pastry cooking section… in short I was a baker. There is something magical about putting all the ingredients together and seeing your creation rise and turn into a beautiful loaf of bread or baked good. There are plenty of bakeries over here but the breads they bake are a little different from what we are used to in the states. For one the bread is on the sweeter side which makes sense since the Filipinos have a sweet tooth to rival that of Agustus Gloop in the Wonka Factory. So I always find it interesting to see a bakery with artisan breads. One such place is Tiny Kitchen Creations which can be found at Market Basket at the Damosa Complex. I was drawn by the decor of the stand which had an almost “Einstein Bagels” appeal to it. To my very plesant suprise I found they had something that I have never found anywhere else in Davao, Sourdough Bread. This is not the super sour chemically treated stuff you find in the states but real honest to goodness sourdough risen bread with pure ingrediants that even an organic food afficando could argue with. And the cost? 3 medium loaves for P54 ($1.10). They also have a nice selection of whole wheat breads, cookies and even toppings for your bakery goods at a reasonable price. They have definately won a return customer in me with their service and selection. When I first came over to the Philippines one of the things that really made me want to stay here was the food. The freshness, the variety, the exoticness of it was so appealing to me as a former chef and gourmet. Tiny Kitchen Creations makes the best use of ingredients and offers a gourmet product at unbeatable prices.
Louis,
I enjoyed your last article in LiP and it was good to see you back. I was also glad it showed your own site. I enjoyed your first 2 articles since I enjoyed Swiss Deli when I was there last August and look foward to eatig there once I return. I am moving there for good and will arrive Dec. 6th.
With your comment about “Einsteins Bagels” Are you from Florida? I live there now.
Also have you found any rye bread like the type in the states?
Hopefully we will meet once I am there with my Elena and her family. She is in Fortune Homes, Lanang.
Actually I’m from Maryland but my father lives in St. Petersburg. Einstein Bagels is in Maryland also, they just opened up in Ellicott City maybe last year. Rye bread is a mystery over here, I have not found it anywhere and to be honest, it would not fit in with the “Philippine” taste. They prefer their bread on the sweet side and a good rye would be a bit to hearty and tangy for them. My wife wasn’t impressed with the sourdough bread… that is until I turned it into good garlic bread to have with a chicken soup I made the other day, then she couldn’t get enough of it.
Louis,
Sound like you and your wife are having a good life there. I hope mine will be just as good. If interested, I have 2 blogs. http://www.filipinainamerica.com that was set up when I thought Elena would be moving here. Then I started up http://www.americanindavao.blogspot.com about why I am moving there. I hope to move it to my domain once I am there and have the time.
I hope if you also are interested to all become friends. I remember you got a chuckle about the trouble I started last August when I commented in LiP about the age differences there. Well look for me in 3 weeks.
Bruce (bruce@filipinainamerica.com)
Well as always “the good life” is a matter of opinion LOL. Yes, my wife and I are very happy, and unlike some expats I know over here, we choose to live fairly simply. Oh I know it’s far more grand a lifestyle than the common Filipino has but for me I have alot less than I had in the US and I’m happier for it. The age difference thing was funny, I think I started it when I wrote my first blog on LiP then it just snowballed. When you get over here I would definately like to meet you and your wife.
Louis,
I too will live a more simple life. A lot is because of how I lost my job. But I do not need a whole lot of stuff to be happy. Just a loving wife, a decent home and good friends. A little type of work to keep me occupied would be nice too. Maybe I will try to take up golf again and not be a duffer.
Hi! We are glad that you visited the outlet.. we are so happy that you took notice of our breads, yes we do it the “artisan” way. No instant mixes for us that produce the perfect look in bread but lacks in taste. We have formulated our sourdough bread to suit the davao market. We have tried in the past to produce the sour type of bread but ended up with returns from customers saying that the bread was rancid thus producing the sour taste. It’s my husband’s dream to be able to produce the original type. We also produce rye buns with 8 grains - the healthiest bread by far that we are producing, we do also rye loaf ( suited for the market- bec. it’s texture (soft) and rye sourdough. As of the moment we don’t have stock of rye products bec. we are still waiting for our rye flour to come in.
We continue to make it our commitment to make the best possible bread we can!
God Bless!
Vincent & Donna