Not all who wanders are lost; some are just simply looking for coffee.
Coffee is usually served on our morning breakfast table. Sometimes, on our office desks. Many times, it is magnetized into our hands. But, do you recall your coffee being served in the middle of a rice field? Well, let’s test each other’s wanderlust by following the whispers of the locals about this ‘viral coffee shop’ in the grasslands.
The first step to this adventure is reaching a bamboo triangular arch. Beneath your feet, the paddy fields lie flat and boundless stretching across a sea of green and gold rice stalks. Far off, birds flit. And with every step, the noise of the world slips further behind. All around, the breeze carries the scent of harvest, and the sky opens wider than you remember it ever could. Ahead lies the café called Agkapita. It is a humble structure of wood and glass, crowned by a deck offering a sweeping view of rolling fields and gentle hills. It is a place one would distinguish as partly a coffee shop and wholesomely a sanctuary in a cup.
Their coconut coffee, served according to your degree preference, is rich and aromatic. Not the traditional way, but the coconut ingredient speaks its cultural roots. A house signature pasta blended with gourmet tuyo completes your yearning of the sea. The salad of two kinds with a colorful mix of root veggies and hearty greens brightens up the table, and as one with the hues of the nature. Have we talked about their pizza? Freshly-baked with fresh herbs and spices. Soon, a tupig—very popular and tasteful in Mangatarem—will be served on their coffee table. We bet you couldn’t wait any longer! What else do they offer? It’s for you now to find out.
Our advice: If you ever need a reason to step off the usual road and into a little adventure, you know where to go. You know where to stay. You know what to say: “Ag kape ta (Let’s have coffee).”
Location: Daang Kalikasan, Mangatarem, Pangasinan
/MJGE
