‘Halo-halo’ for the health-conscious

When you say Halo-halo, a number of Filipino favorites come to mind: If you want trendy, there’s Bebang. If traditional, there are the likes of Razon’s, Conti’s and Milky Way. If on a budget, of course, there’s Chowking.

But if you’re health-conscious, at 56 Jupiter St. Makati City is Happy Garden Café that is among the best places to enjoy one of the best Halo-halo in town.

Designed as a restaurant catering to the needs of the health-conscious members of Sunshine Place, a recreational center for seniors established by SM Foundation, Happy Garden Café is operated by premier catering company Bizu. While the restaurant serves Bizu’s signature French macarons and cakes, it has been envisioned as an “oasis” for gluten-free and farm-to-table dishes, including Halo-halo.

While other Halo-halo have ingredients swimming in syrup, Happy Garden Café’s Halo-halo is not that sweet since its ube halaya, macapuno, langka, sago, nata de coco, saba, sweet corn and leche flan are not drenched in sugar. The dessert’s taste is anchored on these condiments’ natural sweetness — topped with almond flakes for extra crunch.

At first, a glass of the Halo-halo seems small and pricey at P220 per serving. But it is so good that one might finish it to the last drop — and it is so filling that having it for merienda alone seems enough. It could even be shared by two to three people — true to the restaurant’s mission of offering fresh, wholesome and made-to-share culinary fare.

Happy Garden Café at Sunshine Place provides the best stage to enjoy such a Halo-halo. Faithful to its oasis theme, the restaurant conjures a “forever summer” vibe in its lush and maaliwalas or cozy but spacious interiors.

Studies show that looking at something green is already therapeutic, and since Happy Garden is bedecked with pockets of green at the right places, it is a holistic place that is also good for the mental health of Sunshine Place’s seniors community and diners of all ages in general.

Browsing through the menu, a good complement for the Halo-halo is the restaurant’s Batchoy, which isn’t salty and is naturally flavored by iron-rich chopped pork liver. It could come as bland as compared to traditional Ilonggo Batchoy, but according to Neny Regino, what she and other Sunshine Place seniors love about Happy Garden Café is that you can request for every dish to be customized depending on your taste and health requirements.

And although a restaurant for the health-conscious, Happy Garden Café evokes a “forever young” modern spirit, mirrored by its sundry of dishes from salads, to appetizers, mains and desserts.

For starters, among the tantalizing ones are Caramelized Crispy Baby Squid, Fried Lime Chicken Wings and Thai Shrimp Cakes with Agave Chili Sauce. For soup, Pumpkin and Cocoa Cream seems unique. Beef Shortribs in Guava, Porketa Sinigang and Deep-Fried Pla Pla with Tamarind Sauce seem interesting among the mains; probably made more interesting if paired with Keto-friendly sides like Cauliflower Rice and Steamed Black Rice. These sides are also available for individual bowls, “comfort in your own bowl if you want a quiet time for yourself,” the menu says. Solo and sharing options are likewise available for noodle dishes.

For beverages, options range from indulgent ones like Matcha Float and Spiced Banana Turon Latte, to sugar-free, fresh-pressed sugarcane refreshers, power smoothies and juices. Don’t worry — the restaurant has plenty of clean comfort rooms with bidet!

When celebrating a special occasion, besides cakes like Tres Leches (cake baked in three different kinds of milk), the restaurant has a flower shop outside where arrangements can be personalized on-the-spot to make any day — even ordinary ones — extra special.