Food extraordinaire by Sonja

Quietly standing at a corner of Chino Roces Avenue Extension in Makati City is a place simply called By Sonja. It did not use to carry a name, although it had always been known by the owner, chef Sonja Ocampo. And the place used to be the commissary of her famous Cupcakes by Sonja. For years, she tirelessly worked here to produce her bakery’s highly patronized pastries, cakes and pies that all came in cupcake form. It is also here that she developed exciting new flavors to offer her regular clientele.

The place is rather small but it does not matter, as she encourages more of pickups and takeaways now that it goes by the name By Sonja. Now a one-stop dessert shop, it has enough space for chillers displaying an extensive array of treats, such as whole cakes and pies, as well as counters showcasing assorted mouth-watering pastries and confections.

From a corner of the place emanates the heavenly aroma of freshly baked croissants and breads. They are to be transformed into delicious sandwiches once orders for sandwiches come in. This is the Viennoiserie section with its enticing lineup of flaky goodness, particularly plain croissants for sandwich purposes and an assortment of flavored ones.

For customers with particular dietary needs or restrictions, By Sonja responds with sugar-free, gluten-free, and plant-based options. She has vegan croissants, for instance.

“The goal is to have something for everyone,” explains Chef Sonja, whose travels to New York, France and Japan have deeply influenced her creations. “In developing our flavors, we are guided by a sense of refinement and restraint. We work hard to achieve what we believe is the ideal balance of flavors and sweetness. I guess this is where the Japanese sensibility that we aspire to achieve comes into play. We aim for simplicity in everything we do and strive to deliver in the best way we can.”

By Sonja actually offers four main products aside from whole cakes and pies. One important product line is the mille-presse, a must-try. It is one of Chef Sonja’s discoveries from Japan. Assembled in front of the customer upon order, it is made up of delicate shells that are caramelized until crispy then filled with a smooth, velvety filling. You get to choose among Vanilla Bean Custard, Vanilla Bean Custard and Strawberry, Pistachio and Raspberry, and Chocolate Praline and Banana.

Another is the crepes/galette. Chef Sonja fell in love with the crepe during her first trip to Paris in 1995. She loved it so much that she convinced her brother to put up a crepe kiosk in Makati as part of his business school thesis project in 1998. With Breton crepe as her favorite, Chef Sonja visited Rennes, the capital of Brittany, the French region where the Breton crepe originated from in the 13th century, and fearlessly immersed herself in the art and science of making Breton crepes despite not being French speaking. She puts that to good use now with By Sonja, as she offers six variations—Butter and Sugar, Yuzu and Honey, Salted Caramel, Chocolate, Banana Salted Caramel, and Galette Complete. The latter is a savory crepe filled with ham, egg and cheese. What’s more, the crepes here are made with Bordier Butter, which is acclaimed as the best in the world.

In the Viennoiserie, Chef Sonja has butter croissant, pain au chocolat, almond croissant, sausage croissant, kouign amann, mushroom with brie croissant, and prosciutto, tomato, basil and mozzarella croissant selections. Then there are the individual pastries/confections that come highly recommended by By Sonja, including Valrhona chocolate cake, seasonal mille feuille, chocolate Houjicha caramel tart, macarons, cupcakes and tea cakes.

You should give By Sonja a try. It is located at 2320 YMC Building, Chino Roces Avenue Extension, Makati City, with phone number +639-668-241-398.