Does 5G Coffee House Have the Best Croissants in Cebu City? A Review

Does 5G Coffee House Have the Best Croissants in Cebu City? A Review

Sunday, March 24, 2024

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If you're thinking that I am a little too late...why yes, yes I am. 

Locals (or at least the ones on the internet specifically on Reddit) rave about 5G Coffee House having the best croissants in the city. They also claim to be "Cebu's best croissant" bakery which is a big claim and definitely is very intriguing.

Location

5G Coffee House is located inside San Antonio Village in Apas. Payment options are cash, Gcash and credit card (minimum of Php 1,000).

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/5gcoffeehouse/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/5gcoffeehouse/?hl=en

The Menu

The price is a little higher than most coffee shops, but I think it's still fairly priced for French pastries.

Ambiance/Service

I went to their shop with the intention of ordering for takeaway. They have the option of ordering online and having it picked up by any delivery service, but I wanted to see the shop for myself and also see if it's great for dine in.

5G Coffee House Interior

This is a very quaint and cozy coffee shop. There's ample bar-type seating which would make it perfect for those going solo. I imagined this would be full during peak hours very quickly.

As for the service, just for full transparency here, I did not like it so much. I think it may be since I came in very casual clothing or maybe they just weren't having the best day? 

It was a good thing that I searched for the flavours and checked out the menu before going there because when I asked what was available, the ones on the rack were just pointed out to me and I could not, for the life of me, figure out which pastry was which. So I just read out what was on my list when I ordered and just hoped for the best.

I personally would not want to go back to dine in.

Anyway, enough debby downer. Let's get to my order.

The Food

I got four pastries: a matcha croissant, cream cheese danish, kouign au cinnamon and pain au chocolat. Individual prices below.

The pastries came in this x4 takeout box:

Cream Cheese Danish

Cream Cheese Danish, Php 150

This is like a cheesecake and croissant hybrid for me. Their cream cheese danish is a relatively thin layer of pastry topped with cream cheese.

It is perfect for those who find the sweet variants of croissants a little too strong, but also don't want something so plain like a regular croissant.

This is not my favourite, but it still is worth it.

Pain au chocolat

Pain au chocolat, Php 130

I didn't like the chocolate in this as much as I wanted to, but the pastry in their pain au chocolat and honestly in all of what I ordered from 5G are top-notch. It is what many professional chefs say that butter makes a lot of difference in these types of pastries. 

Kouign Au Cinnamon...or is this their cinnamon roll?

Kouign au cinnamon (?), Php 140

When I ordered, I clearly asked for kouign au cinnamon. I say clearly because I practiced at home how to pronounce "kouign" before I went to the coffee shop. It was not until I went home that I realised this may not be a variation of the French pastry kouign amann. I have tried kouign amann from another cafe and I am quite familiar of its texture. This felt different so I Googled what their kouign au cinnamon looked like and I found this image in their official Facebook page:

https://www.facebook.com/5gcoffeehouse/posts/900838641311207/?paipv=0&eav=AfYaMuh3Zy3b0YeDhYP8Ac9QMYZRmABNKq6TrisdAR0LzXLI2da2Zx6IzMnEV3x4TnA&_rdr

As you can see, it is very different from what I was given. 

They may have changed their pastry or I may just be so wrong about this but this did not felt like kouign au cinnamon to me. With all that being said, I apologise if I identified this pastry as kouign au cinnamon if it is really a cinnamon roll.

Anyway, regardless of what this may be, I enjoyed this a lot. I have an obsession for all things cinnamon and this didn't fail. This is not so overwhelmingly sweet and the dough is just so perfect. It's soft and all the flavours, including the cream, just played so well with each other. 

Matcha Croissant

Matcha Croissant, Php 200

This pastry is an adventure. A very good one at that.

The croissant is flaky, the inside is light but very rich in taste and is buttery. The cream filling with matcha is a flavour explosion that plays well with the sweetness of the pastry.

I still have tons of croissants in the city to try, but this definitely tops the list and is the best one so far.

In conclusion...

The pastries are the perfect in between of richness in flavour and lightness of texture. They're very tasty and they are without a doubt, made of high quality ingredients.

Given my experience with their customer service, perhaps I will repurchase them if I am extremely craving for their specific pastries and even until then, I will just be ordering online.

Nevertheless, I really loved everything that I ordered and I think they're worth the high price.

Disclaimer: As you can tell by my not so poetic description of the food that I am not a food critic/expert nor have I ever claimed to be one. This is out of personal experience. Your experience and preferences may differ from mine. This review is not written with the intention to harm any individual, group or business. This review is not sponsored nor is it in any other type of x-deals.

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Trying Out "No Brand" Products: Snacks

Trying Out "No Brand" Products: Snacks

Monday, March 18, 2024

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I have been eyeing No Brand products since they opened the physical store in Ayala Center Cebu, but it was only until recently that I actually ordered a handful from them. I decided to try out the snacks department first as a stepping point. 

Disclaimer. The snacks that I tried in this post are ones I have tried in the Philippine or American versions so they're not really way out of my comfort zone. I would also like to apologise that a few products are already opened or unsealed in the photos because I opened a few of the products before taking a photo of them. I'll try not to be too excited next time. Lol. Finally, it is worth admitting that I am not big in Korean food and this is my way of warming up myself. That being said, I am also not an expert in Korean food nor am I a certified/professional food critic so take what I say with a grain of salt.

I ordered this haul via Foodpanda.

Products mentioned in this post:

• No Brand Vanilla Mini Wafers
• No Brand Cheddar Cheese Balls
• Nongshim Shrimp Crackers Hot
• No Brand Peanut Filling Cups 
• No Brand Potato Chip Original Flavour
• Kimnori Korean Crispy Seaweed Teriyaki 

Now, let's get into the review.

No Brand Vanilla Mini Wafers (Php 239.25, 300g)

This reminded me so much of the vanilla wafer from those huge M.Y. San Happy Time Assortment biscuit buckets that were almost always brought home from the city. The huge difference is rather this has a strong vanilla taste whereas the M.Y. San wafer is more like only cream and sugar. The wafer in this is almost melt in your mouth and is the filling is not too sweet.

I am not the biggest fan of vanilla and I did find the flavour a little overpowering after a few pieces, but for its price, I think this is a good deal. 

Manufactured in: South Korea

Will I repurchase? Maybe in another flavour.

Vanilla Mini Wafers Rating: ★★★☆☆

No Brand Cheddar Cheese Balls (Php 375, 370g)

I love this.

I really, really love this.

It's cheesy and it's just the right amount of salty - it's perfect. There's no dud balls a.k.a. balls with less cheese than the others. There were only cheesy and cheesier balls. There's no claims for "made with real cheese" but if this is artificial cheese, I still love it regardless.

I highly recommend this one.

Manufactured in: South Korea

Will I repurchase? Yes!!!

Cheddar Cheese Balls Rating: ★★★★★

Nongshim Shrimp Crackers Hot (Php 54.50, 75g)

I expected this to be like the spicy variant of Oishi Prawn Crackers. However, I was a little disappointed. This was bland and there's it's not even hot and spicy...and that's coming from someone who has very mild to little spice tolerance.

I found it difficult to finish this small bag because I didn't like the flavour.

Manufactured in: South Korea

Will I repurchase? No

Nongshim Shrimp Crackers Hot Rating: ★☆☆☆☆

No Brand Peanut Filling Cups (Php 229, 153g)

I never thought I'd say this but...I found peanut butter cups I love more than Reese's. 

This No Brand version is a little less sweet and because it's less overwhelming, I get to enjoy the richness of the peanut butter and how it blends really well with the chocolate. The chocolate, btw, is really rich and of good quality.

Manufactured in: Spain

Will I repurchase? Yes!

No Brand Peanut Filling Cups Rating: ★★★★★

No Brand Potato Chip Original Flavour (Php 79.25, 110g)

I honestly have repurchased this many times in the past and the reason why I kept coming back to it because for me, it's the less salty and more flavourful version of Pringles. 

This is a really good snack and I find myself going through this much faster than any potato chips I have had in the past.

Manufactured in: Malaysia

Will I repurchase? Yes!

No Brand Potato Chips Original Flavour Rating: ★★★★★

Kimnori Korean Crispy Seaweed Teriyaki (Php 74, 3pcs x 4g)

I only ever eat this with rice and tuna or with baked sushi, but since many people still eat this as a snack, I figured I'd include it in this haul.

The Kimnori brand is less salty compared to other brands I have tried in the past. The teriyaki flavour is really great, it does complement the regular tuna and rice combo well. At times, I did not even find the need for additional soy because of its flavour.

Manufactured in: Korea

Will I repurchase? Yes!

Kimnori Korean Crispy Seaweed Teriyaki Rating: ★★★★★

Disclaimer: As you can tell by my not so poetic description of the food that I am not a food critic/expert nor have I ever claimed to be one. This is out of personal experience. Your experience and preferences may differ from mine. This review is not written with the intention to harm any individual, group or business. This review is not sponsored nor is it in any other type of x-deals.

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Renting Mistakes I Made In Cebu City

Renting Mistakes I Made In Cebu City

Wednesday, March 6, 2024

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Being born and raised in a province and venturing into the city with the hopes of a better life without the privilege of owning a home is a very big challenge especially that I didn't have any generational wealth to back me up.

In the many years that I lived in the city, I have experienced quite a few rental arrangements that I just know I'll never go back to. 

Here are some of the very important (also admittedly naive) mistakes I learned from my years of renting in Cebu City:

Did not check for infestation reviews

Back during the pandemic, I had to move back from the province back to the city. I didn't have anywhere to stay upon arrival and staying in hotels were so complicated so I decided to just look for a condo to rent online. I went for a very popular high rise condo in the heart of the city. It was well-known so I figured it would be the safer bet.

Lo and behold, I stayed there and every single night tiny little cockroaches would roam around the unit. When I lifted some of the frames, there was even more of them. It was also a challenge trying to keep my dog safe from the infestation. Thankfully, I only stayed there for a few months because I went on a long-term vacation abroad. 

Months later, I was checking Airbnb and other booking sites. Turns out, most of the reviews of the rental units in that building was complaints of cockroach infestations.

Tip: If you have no choice but to reserve a rental unit in Cebu online, you may look at Airbnb, Booking.Com or Agoda listings also have reviews for other units in the building (other than Google).

Did not confirm whether or not the unit will be up for sale in the coming years

What I didn't realise any sooner was that properties rented out by private individuals could choose to sell the unit while you're under contract. This is completely legal and there's nothing wrong about this. I am also fine with switching landlords if it means the original contract is honoured. However, the thing that bothered me a lot was what happens before the sale.

I've had a landlord ask many times if I could have the unit ready for viewing. I was renting a studio unit by then and I never invite visitors because there was barely enough space for my dog and I. It was uncomfortable and very unusual for me having people around let alone strangers. It also took time to get the unit ready for viewing. 

Tip: If you have (and you should have) a contract, it is a very helpful addition to have a clause that specifically outlines how often you're comfortable with a unit visit. Also ask if the owner has plans of selling the unit in the near future so you can align your plans.

Not having a more specific contract

Looking back now, what I think could have helped me out a lot better was if I just took the time to redefine and specify the contract for mutual benefits. What I observed was that rental agreements here in the city are mostly really beneficial to the landlord. I thought that maybe if I had just really specified that I didn't want unit visits during my contract, how maintenance of facilities and appliances in the unit was to be carried out, rent increase, etc - I could have had less anxiety over those seemingly menial things.

Renting from known problematic landlords

In the past, I rented out a room from whom I knew had some unpleasant behaviours. I took the offer thinking that the behaviour wouldn't show through because I was after all, a paying tenant. Oh dear, no, I was wrong. Being a paying individual is not a clear enough boundary line for those who don't want to give me a good treatment.

Since then, I much prefer having a purely professional connection with a landlord and have that connection predefined by a contract rather than having to deal with a rental more personally.

Not considering the accessibility

I also once rented a room that was a little less accessible. Just getting out of the barangay alone took a 20 minute commute. I thought that was just a small price to pay for a better rent deal but it turned out to be a very big deal for me. The daily additional time just to get to the jeepney zones added up fast over the years and slowly became a major cause of stress for me.

Tip: Consider the travel or commuting options in the rental you're looking at and if that is something you're willing to go through in the long run.

Not having a realistic budget

I was very used to the idea that my rent should not take up a huge percentage of my salary. So, when I first hunted for an apartment room my goal budget could only afford me a single room with shared bathroom. I knew I could afford something better, but I kept thinking that it was impractical. I went for a decent looking room that had a very narrow staircase going up and it was pretty far from where I worked.

What I did not realise was that the distance, the traffic and the unpretty living condition slowly added up. I didn't want to stay home so I kept going out. I ended up spending more.

Looking back now, I realised that my budget was not realistic. I did not give myself the living condition I could afford just because people kept telling me not to overspend on rent. Realistically, for living conditions to be actually good, rent has to take a chunk out of someone's salary. Now my rent is higher than what I used to pay, but I am happier and I almost never find the urge to go out. It helped me a lot in saving more.

How about you? What rental mistakes did you make in the past? 

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