Sometimes, the best food finds are the ones you almost wouldn’t notice.

I came across Cacao Premium Handcrafted Tablea on Instagram and got curious. It’s a tiny, no-frills spot in Tisa serving puto and sikwate, with their regular cacaowate starting at just ₱20 a cup.

What caught my attention even more was learning that they actually roast and grind their own cacao beans sourced from Mindanao. For such a small place, there’s something nice about knowing a little more work goes into every cup.

I tried their set meal, mango sticky rice, and both versions of their cacaowate. The deluxe is noticeably richer and more concentrated, but surprisingly, it was the ₱20 cup that impressed me. It still had a good cacao flavour and, more importantly, it wasn’t watery like some of the sikwate I’ve tried elsewhere.

The puto was another win — firm, not soggy, and exactly the kind of thing you want to dip into a warm cup of chocolate.

Don’t come expecting a polished café, though. The place is small and there’s no parking. But maybe that’s also why I liked it. It’s simple, affordable, and feels very much like one of those neighbourhood finds you’d happily come back to.

Cacao Premium Handcrafted Tablea is in Tisa, Cebu City and is searchable on Google Maps. They’re open 5:00 AM to 6:00 PM daily, except Thursdays.

For ₱20? Definitely worth the little detour.=)