ZOLA Resto & Café: Baguio’s Staple Go-to Place For Students And Young Professionals

You’ve probably spent a day or two trying to make sense of what you’re doing at school or stressing over what your job is demanding from you. We all know the best way to rid yourself of this feeling (even temporarily)—leave everything behind and relax with a cold bottle of beer or a warm cup of coffee. That’s what ZOLA Resto & Café does best. They’ve been everybody’s stress companion for over 10 years now, and they keep on getting better at it.

Located at Upper Session Road in Baguio City, ZOLA Resto & Café is situated perfectly and strategically between establishments, offices, and schools. It’s an inviting place that calls to you when school requirements and work deadlines’ push comes to shove. During early mornings, it’s a safe refuge for various night shift employees all over the city. It’s usually where they get their dinner fill—since you know, they kind of have a messed up body clock—and at times recharge themselves after long hours of talking on the phone and dealing with irate customers.

All throughout the day, it’s transformed into a friendly atmosphere of students rushing requirements and other office people trying to get their act together. At night, it’s one of the most chill places to drink and lay back.

The place speaks for itself, and so does the food.

ZOLA Resto & Café’s Top 5 Comfort Foods

We entered the place with the guise of a stressed-out employee and happy-go-lucky student. There are 5 dishes that suits these personas best, and they don’t disappoint.

First up is the Buttered Pork Chop, which sounds very common and normal. But during the first bite, you’ll be greeted with a familiar but fresh taste that comes from it’s deep-fried breading coated in some kind of butter from a very secret place in the Netherlands. It’s good for a meal that helps you focus on the food rather than the bad juju that you’re feeling.

The Taal Rice is the longest best seller of ZOLA Resto & Café. It’s been on the menu for over 9 years, roughly the same age as the place itself. It features a healthy mix of garlic-tinapa fried rice, slices of salted duck eggs, fresh tomatoes, and onions. Always the perfect breakfast meal, but you can always go rogue on the normal food schedule by having this for lunch or dinner. It’s one of their best sellers, and one of my personal favorites.

The Grilled Chicken Pesto is another unique take on the pesto family, it’s your usual pesto serving but set apart by fresh lean chicken and authentic cheese that would make your heart melt because of how welcoming the taste is. It’s not too leafy and not too rich. Perfect for the student or office bum looking for a median between what’s real and not. I mean if you’re having a bad day at school and at work, try this and you’ll instantly be fine.

On to my next personal fave, the Salted Egg Fries. It’s a great and friendly serving of french fries coated with salted egg. I know, I know it sounds weird but once you try it, your eyes will beam brighter than the brightest freaking thingamajig you’ve ever seen. The egg coats the original taste of the normal french fry, and so it’s a good alternative. You might even find yourself coming back just for this too.

And finally, the Neopolitan Pizza is a delight. Most students and young professionals never get tired of pizza, but if you’re always having the same type of it, you’ll end up wanting to punch that annoying dude in class who always looks at you like you’re some kind of a metal-plastic machine hybrid from engineering class. So yeah, this Pizza has a thin crust served with fresh vegetable toppings and generous meat pieces. It’s not too cheesy and not too meaty, perfect for the fine balance between overdone mediocre pizza. Have this with a bottle of beer, and you’re good to go.

And now for the verdict

As a young professional myself, it’s hard to look for a staple hangout place that you can go to with your friends. Baguio is a small city, but with the hundreds of cafés and bars and restaurants opening, a solid choice is hard to make. But with ZOLA Resto & Café, it’s easier to find, very accessible and very affordable. Even when petsa de Peligro looms with its menacing threat, it’ll always be a place willing to accommodate you. And if you’re a student struggling to find a safe and tranquil place where you can hang out and finish your thesis or project in the morning, they’ve got the coziest seats available, and outlets are also found everywhere (Yay for never running out of power!)

ZOLA Resto & Café is a good place to go not just because of the food and the place, but it’s an inviting space for you to unwind and just reset yourself. It will always be there for you, no matter what your Facebook status says.

It’s like having a friend that sticks with you no matter how weird and obnoxious you are.

It’s like having someone to run to who will never turn their back on you, no matter how big or small your dilemma is.

Check out ZOLA Resto & Café on Facebook.