Every All Souls’ Day, we try to go home to Aurora to visit my late Dad and this year was no different. But instead of squeezing into traffic and stressing over parking, we decided to rent a motorcycle. Best decision ever. It made everything easier—from visiting my late Dad’s tomb, to squeezing through narrow roads, to spontaneously stopping wherever our stomachs told us to. And of course… our stomachs did a LOT of talking on this trip.

Ben’s Halo-Halo: The Signboard That Reeled Me In

Before checking in at Nalu Surf Camp, I spotted this huge, colorful sign for Ben’s Halo-Halo. I didn’t even know the brand, but apparently it’s originally from San Pablo, Laguna. The graphics on their signboard were so eye-catching that I told myself, “We have to try this later.”

So after grabbing our rented motorcycle from El Dawn Surfing School near Punta Baler which by the way is PhP 800 for 24 hours, we went straight there. We ordered the Original and the Macapuno flavors (₱130 each), and they told us macapuno was their bestseller. But here’s what surprised me—the ice. It was so finely crushed it reminded me of an ice cream. Plus, the milk was already mixed in, so it was creamy from the first spoonful—unlike the usual halo-halo where you’re wrestling with ice chunks and pouring evaporated milk over a mini iceberg.

The Original had that simple-but-yummy mix: leche flan ( I think), ube, macapuno, langka, corn syrup with tiny corn bits, and a few mystery additions that just worked. The Macapuno though? A bit too sweet for us, but maybe that’s because we’re not a fan of macapuno.

Still, it was the perfect “Welcome to Baler!” snack.

Gilliane’s Snack House and the Surprise Lomi Discovery

Somewhere near Quezon Park, we stumbled upon Gillian’s Snack Haus—plus a row of small stalls beside it. You can’t miss it. Just turn left from the main road if you’re coming from the town proper and it’s all right there.

The place was buzzling. Families, barkadas, locals, travelers—you name it. The prices were friendly and you could tell people actually enjoyed eating there.

Hubby ordered Beef Pares (₱110), which came with garlic rice, soup, and super spicy chili garlic. He liked alot of garlic and chunks of beef meat; for me, it leaned a little too sweet.

I also grabbed Beef Mami for takeout, thinking I’d save it for later. Joke was on me—I ended up giving it to the hotel security guard because of what happened next…

The Big Bowl Lomi Story

Beside Gillian’s is another humble food stall selling Batangas Lomi. This stall deserves its own place for diners. I forgot to get their store’s name.

We ordered their Regular Lomi (₱160), expecting a normal-sized bowl… and then they handed us a bowl so big it could feed 3–4 people. We thought “Did they make a mistake?” But nope—that’s really the serving size.

The broth was thick, eggy, comforting, and loaded with toppings – like chicharon, kikiam, pork liver, squid balls, etc. The “Overload” version (₱220) uses the same bowl—just with more toppings. They also sell fried lumpiang shanghai and gulay, and it smelled so good we almost ordered, but at this point the lomi had already defeated us.

This is why the Beef Mami I bought ended up with the friendly hotel guard. I didn’t want it to go to waste, and he happily took it.

Breakfast at Gillian’s

The next morning, guess where we went? Yup—back to Gillian’s. They were one of the few places open early.

Hubby got their “SpamSiLog” (₱80) which turned out to be ordinary luncheon meat, but the rice, soup, and fried egg made it filling. I ordered LongSiLog (PhP 80 for Pinoy sausage with fried garlic rice and egg) which was not included on the photos and Chicken Mami (₱70). Just with a few drops of chili garlic oil, it tasted so much better.

Bays-Inn Restaurant: A Familiar Restaurant

Later, when my craving for kinilaw kicked in, we headed to Akkaw Ihaw near Punta Baler—but no tuna that day. So we returned to the classic: Bays-Inn Restaurant, a place we’ve dined in multiple times already.

We ordered:

Sinuglaw (₱298) (combination of Pork Inasal and Tuna Kilawin, Sidak – their sisig + dinakdakan (₱308), Spanish Sardines Pasta Aglio Olio (₱238) plus a refreshing mango-skewer cold tea.

But honestly? The Sinuglaw wasn’t as good as before. The pork inasal was too sweet, the fat-to-meat ratio wasn’t great, and the vinegar mix tasted different. Less ginger and onion than I remembered. Hubby enjoyed his Sidak though.

Thankfully, the pasta and the mango tea saved the moment. Just wishing they added more parmesan cheese and crushed sardines than big pieces. It also has tomatoes and broccoli for added veggies.

Food took about an hour to arrive (long weekend woes!), so it helped that we ate light snacks beforehand.

The tea with the mango skewer was surprisingly good. The mango cubes tasted almost like pastillas—soft, sweet, and a bit sour. The tea itself was mild and slightly bland, but taking a sip and then a bite of the mango completely changed the flavor – refreshing in a unique way.

I wish I remembered the name of the drink, but the experience definitely stood out.

Kabayan Batangas Lomi

After attending the Mass at Baler Church (San Luis Obispo de Tolosa Parish Church), we walked to a place we’d been curious about since Day 1: Kabayan Batangas Lomi. It was always full, and now we understood why.

Hubby ordered Special Lomi (₱80)—very affordable! It had 2 slices of boiled egg, crispy pork, and an eggy broth he enjoyed, though I found it thinner than the usual Batangas lomi.

I tried the Chami Special (₱80). Sweet, spicy, generous serving, and it instantly reminded me of the chami I had in Lopez, Quezon years ago. Such a nostalgic bite.

Hotel Eats: Nalu Surf Camp’s Sandbar Restaurant

At Nalu Surf Camp, we already scanned through their menu before seating and we ordered:

Sizzling Pakbet (₱195), Crispy Pako (₱175), Chicken Inasal (PhP 280), 1 serving of rice (which turned out to be huge—like 2 cups each!).

The Crispy Pako felt more like crispy breading than pako, especially compared to the rolled pako version from Baler Ortus Restaurant. It came with two dipping sauces – ranch-like sauce and sweet chili.

The Manok Inasal (PhP 280 for a quarter leg size) was on the salty and sweeter side.

But the Sizzling Pakbet? Delicious. The alamang made all the difference and the vegetables still have their crisp texture with the right proportion of meat and fat. Small serving, but packed with flavor.

Here’s the Sandbar’s menu:

Ikigai: Not Japanese… But Quite a View

On our way home, we stopped by Ikigai, thinking it was a Japanese restaurant (because… the name). Turns out it’s a simple Filipino turo-turo. Nothing fancy with the food, but the view of Pantabangan Lake was stunning. Worth the stop.

Wrapping Up

This short trip back home felt extra special because we got to try so many new places—but I’m convinced we wouldn’t have experienced even half of them if we didn’t rent a motorcycle. It gave us freedom to roam, stop, eat, and explore without stressing over parking—especially during a long weekend when everywhere is full.

Next time we’re back in Aurora, we’re definitely renting one again.