I Love Milk Tea & Coffee

Ah finally.

After a thousand years, a post :)

Anyway, I'm doing this for a friend so ... without further adieu...

(yes I won't explain my absence...it will take me too much time haha)

I Love Milk Tea & Coffee

(I Love Milk Tea & Coffee in Facebook)

I Love Milk Tea and Coffee

Location: 92 E. Santos St., Concepcion Uno, Marikina City
How to get there:

From Cubao, take any jeep/FX that goes to Concepcion (Philstress, Molave, SSS). Tell the driver you're dropping of at J. Molina (it's an intersection with E. Santos itself) OR Concepcion Elementary School. You should be dropping off either in front of the cafe or the corner nearby.

Liezel and John (the sweet owners)

Here are the owners of the place: the married couple John and Liezel Lucas. And yes, John's an American. The interesting part? Both of them came from entirely different professions not related to food before coming up with this cafe:  John actually was more into building bridges and boats for a long time before he came here to the Philippines. Liezel on the other hand, was into the IT field.

The whole team

So where did the idea come from?

John had some favorite indie coffee shops back in the US. One of them had a name "True Love Milk Tea and Coffee" which was where the place's name was derived. Liezel on the other hand, along with the ongoing trend of milk teas here in the Philippines, was keen on setting up a tea place. So they decided to create a cafe where they can merge both American and Philippine "cultures" to bring out some of the best of both worlds.

Now enough history lessons! :P

The counter

it's a nice family or friend get together place

The place is pretty cozy and warm. It's also very spacious which is good for birthday and small events. 

the "love" seats

As you can see, the "love" seats are cute and are comfy. The place needs some improvement on the wall decors though as they're still pretty much printed posters without frames or art.

for the "outsiders" :)

There's some tables outside for those who either smoke or like the roadside view. Don't worry, the place is well lit and safe as there's always people around the place. I guess the only downside to the place is parking. If you've got a car, you can either do a "to go" or park at the school nearby then go their place.

Now for the food stuff!

The place offers mostly, as the name suggests, coffee, tea and milk tea. On the side, there are also quick snacks to compliment your drink:

the drink menu

the snack menu

The prices are student friendly and are fit for the serving though I wouldn't say the same for all the stuff I've tried.

And now...

So I tried their bestsellers for each category of tea, coffee and snacks:

Mocha Frappe

Name: Mocha Frappe

Price: 90php

One thing I like about this frappe is that it was very easy to drink. The reason I said that is because the typical frappe I get from branded stores always have some of the crushed ice in the way or get left over. This was a pretty seamless drinking experience to me. And of course, I also liked those chocolate toppings which added more fun to it. On the downside, although the frappe tastes okay, it tasted kind of watered down. I don't really taste much of the actual mocha or coffee. I mean it's there but not too distinct... MY BAD: I drank it after I took some photos of the place SO it may really have watered down due to the melted ice... that means I may have to try this drink again haha.

Wintermelon Milk Tea

Name: Wintermelon Milk Tea

Price: 55php

Recently I've moved on from a coffee lover to a tea lover. Not exactly milk tea but I do drink that too. So I was kinda excited to try this one especially it has one of my favorite flavors: wintermelon. The verdict? I'd take their mocha frappe over this one. The reason? I was expecting a unique taste that I always get from wintermelon but somehow, I didn't find it from this one. It's there but not the one I'd usually get from other tea shops. And the milk was faint as well. The usual milk teas I get are either the right balance of both or the milk is just stronger (like in the case of Gong Cha). On a side note, the pearls are generous and good for the price. On the brighter side, since they're new, I could say that they have a good avenue to mix and match their drinks better. :)

Ham and Cheese Crepe

Name: Ham and Cheese Crepe

Price: 70php

Ah but of course, we save the best for last. THIS crepe over here is a WINNER :) For the typical Filipino palate, savory crepes are either not popular or unusual. Savory crepes are made from buckwheat and are unsweetened. Here though, as long as it's non-fruit, they call it savory. When you ask a commoner about what a crepe is, they'd usually say its got fruits and cream and whatnot. But actually, savory crepes have been around for some time. Not everyone's offering it, but it does exist :) Anyway, this obviously is a savory one and I'm glad that I tried it out. The crepe itself was done just right for me (looks kinda burnt though) but it wasn't too dry when you taste it. What won me on this dish is the fillings. It had a generous amount of ham and cheese inside and it was cooked really nicely that even if it was already cold, you'd still appreciate the taste of it. It had the right saltiness and the crepe was good for balancing the perfect combination of ham and cheese. RECOMMENDED!

the message corkboard

Besides the good food and nice place, they also put a message board near the front for those who are in the trend. :) A lot of people seem to like their fries. Hm, I should've tried that too...next time :)

love :)

Oh I only put this shot here because I remember my special someone when I see this. :) #uls.

Anyway, overall, the place is very accessible, clean and cozy. It had lots of space and has the standard entertainment like magazines, the corkboard and a TV that played movies. The snacks seemed good overall and the drinks are okay but I think it will be better. If you're in the Marikina area, I suggest you try out this place. Plus their staff and owners are very friendly :)

PS: I recently tried their caramel frappe...IT WAS GOOD :) and John let me try the grave for their new dish Burger Steak...IT WAS GOOD too! :)

See yah!

~2GBTG!