Cozy and Cultural Solibao

Solibao is a homegrown food establishment which serves Filipino food since 1972. Currently, Solibao has five outlets in Baguio City. One branch stands out due to the cultural ambiance it presents, as it is located within the esteemed and homely walls of The Heritage Mansion. And this place was our first food stop when we arrived in Baguio. 

Solibao Restaurant

The Heritage Mansion

Soliba Restaurant was just a walking distance from our hotel (Baguio Burnham Suites). After registering and dropping off our luggage, we took a short chilly noon walk along Kisad Road until we spotted the Heritage Mansion. We arrived there around half-past noon and I was surprised that only an elderly couple was there having lunch.

Upon entering their doorway, Borgy and I were at loss for words. It's nothing fancy; the room is not even that huge. Despite this, there was a certain grandeur accompanied with the wooden walls and wooden furniture. Small chandeliers hung from the ceiling and gave the room a warm glow. Artworks hung on the walls; wood carvings are place atop the mantel shelf of the fireplace and there were bouquets of flowers on corners and tables.

Solibao's homey interior

Solibao's homey interior

There was even a long table at the far end corner of the room catering for a large group of people.

As for us, Borgy and I have decided to take a seat at the left corner of the room beside the curtained window. This gave a romantic setting as the grey skies dimly lit our corner of the room. :")

Their menu was very simple. No-frills, no-shenanigans. Just the simple laminated menu you usually see on non-upscale restaurants in the country.

They serve a lot of Filipino dishes from different heritage and cultures. I wanted to try their bagnet but unfortunately, the bagnet is served with kare-kare and other dishes. We ended up ordering the inihaw bilao which consists of different grilled favorites. This food item is actually good for 4-5 persons but since Borgy and I eat like an army, we decided to order just that, rice, and juices for our drinks.

Solibao's Ihaw-Ihaw sa Bilao

The bilao consists of grilled pork belly (inihaw na liempo), grilled milk fish (inihaw na bangus), grilled squid (inihaw na pusit), grilled eggplant (inihaw na talong), slices of onions, green mango, tomatoes, and pieces of grilled green chili. This bilao was served with fish paste (bagoong isda), calamansi, and red chili (labuyo). Since my exceptionally fastidious boyfriend does not like fish paste (contrary to shrimp paste, which he loves) very much, we asked for soy sauce instead.

It looked underwhelming when they served it. Yes, I was expecting a huge bilao brimming with grilled goodies. It was supposed to be for 4-5 persons after all. But anyway, we dug in and yes, I found out it was harder to eat all of them. (Fact: my eyes are bigger than my stomach.)

The grilled pork belly tasted great; not too oily, the slices were thin so the flavor was not overwhelming with each bite.

I can't say much about the grilled milk fish since I am not a big fan of bangus (*gasp*). 

The grilled squid was gristly. :( It also looked like it had been cooked and left at the table for an hour before it was served.

The slices of green mango were absolutely sour and very unripe. I grew up in Zambales where mangoes are aplenty and even then, I'm more fond of the ripe yellow mangoes instead of the manggang hilaw.

Overall, their food was great. I believe they also have catering and parties packages. You can check out their site here: Soliba's website. They have four other branches all over Baguio City but, I recommend the Heritage Mansion branch. The ambiance and surrounding are amazing and perfect accompaniment for their authentic Filipino cuisine. All dishes were affordable, too. It's definitely worth a visit. :) Next time, I'd definitely try other items from their menu like the palabok and puto bumbong!

Solibao Restaurant - Heritage Mansion
Kisad Road, Abanao Extension,
Baguio City, Philippines
Open from 6:00am to 10:00pm

More on Baguio here! :)