Resort Feature: Balesin Island Club (Why It’s The Perfect Family Getaway) - Part II

Balesin Spa

We started late the next day because the rain poured from morning until early afternoon. When there was a respite, I took Jia to the beach on Lamon Bay in front of our villa. There was no one else around.

Jason told us there were nearly 500 guests during that long weekend but we often felt like we had the island to ourselves. We encountered other guests during happy hour and dinner but, even then, the place hardly felt packed. The island itself is already exclusive, but if you are a stickler on privacy, you may opt to reserve their private dining areas and recreational facilities such as shisha and karaoke rooms where you and your friends can eat and have fun away from the view of other guests.

We resumed our tour of the island with Jason in the afternoon when the sky cleared. We visited the spa, sports center, and St. Tropez village. 

The spa treatment rooms

It rained again in the middle of our tour but our spirits were lifted upon seeing the bright colors of St. Tropez, which reminded us of our visit to Southern France in 2014.

When I saw the sports center, I immediately regretted not being with my pamangkins and our friends. There's plenty to do here, with indoor and outdoor basketball and tennis courts, badminton courts, a fully equipped gym, an airsoft shooting range, a rock climbing wall, a paintball shooting area, a driving range and putting green, and an archery range. They also rent out mountain bikes.

If you're more inclined to aquatic sports, you may go windsurfing, diving, paddleboarding, fishing, and sailing, among others.

They also have a stable for those who want to go horseback riding.

This serves as home to and a showroom of transplanted northern artisans and woodcarvers who've created some of the stunningly beautiful furniture and displays in Balesin.

Balesin Chapel

In the evening, my husband and I decided to have some "us time"so we reserved tickets to The Tux reunion show. Before the show, we had dinner at Han-Gang, their Korean Restaurant, with our baby and yaya. But our third wheel decided she's had too much excitement for one day and fell asleep.

We thoroughly enjoyed the performance of The Tux. Even Balesin's CEO, Mike Asperin, jammed with them and boy, he can sing! No wonder, every village in Balesin has a videoke room, and the Clubhouse has several. In fact, they regularly hold videoke nights at the Clubhouse where they give away free membership.

Resort Feature: Balesin Island Club (Why It’s The Perfect Family Getaway) - Part I

In one of the long weekends of August, I took my family to Balesin in Polillo, Quezon as a birthday treat for my husband who recently celebrated his birthday. We had an 8:30 a.m. flight so we booked ourselves at a nearby hotel to make sure we got to the Alphaland Hangar on Airport Road on time.

We had a rough start because my daughter had fever when she woke up and seemed to have a cough. Thankfully, it broke quickly after we gave her Tempra. Her pediatrician told us to just observe her cough and give her double dosage of Ceelin in the meantime.

When we arrived at the hangar an hour and a half before the flight, there were already plenty of passengers waiting. Our flight was delayed for 30 minutes but it was fine because the baby was asleep. We boarded a bus to get to the plane, which took off shortly after. It was a quick 25-minute flight.

We were welcomed with a drink and lei when we disembarked. Then we walked to the Clubhouse to check in (You may opt to ride one of the jeepneys on standby but it’s really just a short walk).

We were booked at Balesin Village, which was perfect because it was just a short walk to and from the clubhouse. It was also fronting the best beach on the island.

Balesin is a members-only island club but you can arrange a visit if you're looking to become a member or if you know someone who is a member of the club. It's an ideal destination for families because there's plenty to do, whether you're a kid or an adult. I didn't realize how big the island was (it's 500 hectares!) until we got there and started touring the facilities.

We spent our afternoon exploring some of the villages guided by front office manager, Jason, who was so friendly and accommodating. He even volunteered to take us around again the next day to see the rest of the villages since it was too much to do in one afternoon with a restless toddler in tow.

Riding in a golf cart with Jason in the driver's seat, we got to appreciate the lushness of the forest cover, which enhanced the feeling of being tucked in your own private space. Our first stop was Phuket Village.

Every village has its own pool and recreational facilities, restaurants, and bar. Accommodations vary between villas and hotel suites, but all villas are similarly set up, with a king-size bed and a daybed, and a veranda.

Our second stop was Costa del Sol, which we were told had the best restaurant.

This is Costa del Sol's restaurant. Before we left for Balesin, the club's VP for Sales, Kathy Solis, advised me to partake of their cochinillo and wine offer. It sounded really good but it was good for six people. Maybe next time when we go back with a bigger group.

Jia and I, with Jayson, Balesin Club's warm and engaging front office manager

Our third and last village stop for our first day was the Royal Balesin Villa, which hosted the wedding reception of actress Heart Evangelista and senator Chiz Escudero.

The Royal Balesin Villa was huge, with a laid-back, very Miami vibe.

After our tour, we had ourselves dropped off at the Clubhouse for merienda then went back to our villa so that Jia can have a nap.

We opted to have our dinner at the lovely Toscana Village.

The village was patterned after Bobby Ongpin's villa in Tuscany. The olive oil used in the restaurant is from Mr. Ongpin's Tuscan vineyard. Mr. Ongpin is the owner and chairman of Balesin Island Club.

We ate fabulously in Balesin and this was just the first of many meals. Kudos to management for offering fantastic food at very reasonable price points. 

Margarita Fores's Spaghettini Al Telefono

It takes time to build a relationship. While I revel at every new food find, there are a few that I return to like an old love. Cibo’s penne al telefono is one of them. At the tail end of summer, I joined Margarita Fores at Casa Artusi’s first Divertimento in Fattoria where she showed participants how to cook the spaghettini version of this Cibo favorite. You’ll read all about my Casa Artusi experience in Mabuhay magazine’s September issue. In the meantime, here’s the recipe to Gaita’s spaghettini al telefono:



Spaghettini Al Telefono

1 pack De Cecco spaghettini
½ kilo blanched and deseeded red tomatoes
1 tbsps. Olive oil
1 tbsp. chopped garlic
250 grams butter
1 liter cream
100 grams cubed mozzarella
3 to 4 grates of fresh nutmeg
100 grams Laguna cheese (white cheese)
A bunch of fresh sweet basil chiffonade
Salt and pepper, to taste

1. Cook spaghettini according to package direction in boiling, well salted water.
2. In a heavy pan, sauté tomatoes in garlic and olive oil.
3. Add cream, butter and nutmeg.
4. Put pasta in the sauce. Allow some of the salted water to drip into the pan so that the sauce would adhere better into the pasta.
5. Add the mozzarella and mix until the cheese starts to melt.
6. Season with salt and pepper.
7. Transfer to a platter. Garnish with Laguna cheese and basil. Serve.

Restaurant Recommendations in South Triangle, Quezon City (A Series): Lola Cafe

I consider QC, particularly the Timog-Morato-Scout area, my ‘hood. I work here so I have plenty of opportunities to try new restaurants nearby. When I do, I am conscientious enough to withhold judgment until the second visit (unless the service is so bad I vow never to go back).

I can name a few stalwarts in the area, places I visit so often I must have already sampled every item on the menu. I can tell you, for example, that A Taste of LA almost never misses. You should try the callos, osso buco, three-cheese pizza, morconitos, pritchon, bistek Tagalog, grilled pork chop and beef fondue. No wonder they’ve lasted this long and are still going strong. I’ve also heard praises for their sinigang na salmon sa miso (clear soup with a souring ingredient like tamarind or bilimbi, cooked with salmon and Japanese miso) but I’m not a sinigang person.

When it comes to Paella Valenciana and cochinillo, Alba’s is a no-fail option and the dinner buffet is well priced at P750+. I also have a thing for their coconut macaroons.

If you want Thai, drive without hesitation to Thaipan and order the soft-shell crab and cinnamon pork ribs. I go to Cerchio when I’m craving for the salty crunch of their Singaporean crispy squid, and to Relish just beside it for the roasted chicken. Recently, I went with family to Alfredo’s, a Tomas Morato institution. The steak is still good, especially if you like it old-fashioned, that is, served on a sizzling plate and ladled with deliciously greasy gravy.

There is not a better time to explore this neighborhood than now when a growing number of vacant ancestral homes are being given a second lease on life as restaurants. One such establishment is Lola Café-Bar, which I highly recommend. I’ve been there twice prior, and the food made a good impression, but I didn’t realize how consistently good their flavors are until I got to try a wider selection of dishes recently during my brother’s birthday dinner.

Here’s my Lola Café experience:

“I love this. It’s shabby chic,” quipped my nine-year-old niece Julia as we approached our table at the mezzanine while admiring the Mason jar droplights. The walls were adorned with framed quotes in Spanish, Italian and even French. On a wall, a chalkboard menu detailed some of the specials.

Lola Cafe was built in a nicely restored home on Scout Lozano. It maintained the main structure and played it up with vintage furniture and rustic details that added to its charm. Not too shabby, not too chic—a combined quality that also defines its food, which is at once homey and refined. It is real food done real good.

As a starter, we ordered the bone marrow sisig (P230), a new item on the menu. It seemed like a heavy way to start a meal but the serving was small. It came with three crackers and a side of what tasted like tamarind sauce so I allowed myself a small bite. It was certainly novel but I still prefer my marrow on bulalo, which we also ordered (P420).

The kids enjoyed the pesto fries with sunny side up egg so much I only managed to grab three strings.

Of the three appetizers, my favorite was the wagyu salpicao (P320). The meat was tender, arriving in a pool of rich, garlicky sauce.

One thing that Lola has perfected is the making of luscious meat. The kare-kare must have been warming in a bath of peanut-y goodness for hours because the meat was melting. Same can be said about the kimchi kaldereta, which earned the nod of everyone on the table, who loved spooning the sauce over their steamed rice. It’s also hard to find fault with the binagoongang baboy with grilled eggplant.

I also had a taste of my mom’s roasted pork belly and found its mild sweetness a good compliment to the plush belly meat.

The only disappointment was the adobo balsamic chicken, which was my pick. It sounded promising but I found the glaze a tad salty.

Like any other Filipino family, we make it a point to order a noodle dish during birthdays, to signify long life for the celebrant. We made a stellar choice with the tartufo pasta, which was creamy, perfectly seasoned and worth another visit.

Of the three desserts we ordered (they ran out of the pavlova), my vote goes to the banoffee pie, whose graham cracker crust went so well with the creamy custard filling with chunks of banana.

My niece Julia preparing to attack the cupcake

My foodie family

The Menu

Lola Café-Bar
99 Scout Lozano,
South Triangle, Quezon City
Phone 632-501-2620

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