The Original Tender Trap

For this post, I would like to share photos of the original Tender Trap Bakeshop which sprung within the confines of my family compound at Lee Street, Addition Hills, Mandaluyong City. In my first post, there are photos of my first "industrial-strength" kitchen, which actually used to be a two-car garage. As the business grew, I saw the need to build a second kitchen. With the blessing of my parents, I converted the old formal dining room into a space that now houses monster-size, heavy-duty baking equipment. Check out the pictures below.

One of the ovens I use and abuse daily.

I have major equipment, I know.

Mixers out of Monsters, Inc. :)

All I did yesterday was bake ensaymadas.

That's me pulling out those babies from the oven.



The entrance to the "pick-up point". Just press the buzzer on the right and Becky, our storekeeper, will let you in.


Proceed.....





Not bad, eh? :)



Anyway, I'll do another post again but right now I have a cheesecake to bake. Oh, lest I forget, here is the the answer to the mystery pictionary question in the previous post....


It is...


...not petrified cheese curls as my sister-in-law had guessed. :D


The odd little things that make up the lamp fixtures are actually....


BUTTERFLY COCOONS.


Okay, gotta run.


Nightie-night.


Beth

I'm Baaaack

My last post was ages ago, I know. Sigh. I've been busy, sick, busy, sick again, yadda-yadda-yadda. Must be the changes in the weather. It's been chilly, don't you agree? Well, at least in the morning and evening.

Anyway, for this post I'd like to share some photos I took recently when I checked out my little coffee shop in Virramall, Greenhills. Keep in mind that I am no ace photographer and tech geek. But I hope the pics are enough to make you salivate and visit my little restaurant. :)



That's the facade. I took the pic right after the staff opened the shop for the day's business. The little girl in the yellow shirt is my 10-year old niece Claudia Faustine ("Clio"). The woman in white with her back turned to the camera is Yaya Norma, who was my brother Michael's nanny and now is taking care of his little girls. Norma's been with the Zialcita family for nearly 40 years! Loyal and dependable help is so hard to find nowadays. Sigh.

Another shot of the facade. Tender Trap coffee shop is located between the Fruit Store and Dimsum & Dumplings and sorta behind Haagen-Dazs (sorry, peeps but I'm totally artless when it comes to describing locations).

Karen heads the crew and you may call her at 721-0104 for enquiries/orders.

Now let's step inside and check out the goodies. :)

Just some of the babies on display.

My Turtle Pie. As you can see, I don't scrimp on ingredients. :)

Looks like a couple of pieces were already purchased. Hooray.

Oreo Cheesecake. My sis-in-law Lalaine calls it a calorie grenade. Call me a Calorie Terrorist, then. :)

Mango Pavlova. I love mangoes. I know it doesn't look appetizing in this photo (blame the photographer, hehe) but in real life this is yummy-looking...and yummy. (I'm so modest)

Two slices short of a whole cake. This Blueberry Cheesecake is one of my bestsellers. I don't use any gelatine in this one (like what a lot of bakers do). I use lots of Philly cream cheese, sour cream and everything else rich and pure. And I don't believe in scrimping on the blueberry topping. Heck, bring it on and dump all that gooey goodness for that ultimate gastronomic pleasure.

Macadamia Rum Cake. I consider the recipe my invention...and every dieter's downfall. But I think every calorie is worth the guilt.

Another angle.

A cozy booth for sweethearts...or girlfriends who would like to gossip in private over cake and coffee.

I'm still finalizing the menu. Our current list includes soups, salads, pastas and a few light meals but my business partner and I would like to add a few rice topping selections. More on that in the next post.

Tables and chairs ready to welcome the first batch of customers for the day. I like spending some time here before the brunch/lunch time madness, while it's still quiet.

Okay, let's play pictionary, folks. Look at that lamp fixture. Try to guess what it's made of.

Lalaine my sis-in-law, the second she first clapped eyes on it, exclaimed: "What the ---" and then paused before saying, "Um, petrified cheese curls?"

I laughed and said no. I told her what those funky yellow things were and she was amazed.

Can you guess what they are? :) Take another look.

I'll reveal the answer in my next post. Now it's time to hit the sack. I'm getting fuzzy-headed as I zipped through the day on less than six hours of sleep.

Good night, folks. Zzzzzz....