Pinoy Foodie

I was born and raised in the Philippines. Recently, I realized that many of my good memories of life in the country are about food or are food-related. I created this blog to share with you my pleasant memories as well as my random thoughts on food, cooking and eating. Hope you enjoy reading my posts. I welcome your comments.

Friday, June 16, 2006

Summer and Patios

The patio is the most desirable piece of real estate in Canada in the summer. Canadians just love to hang out in the patio to soak in the sun. Restaurants, cafes and pubs don’t even wait for summer to officially begin to bring out the patio chairs and umbrellaed tables. As soon as the stubborn Old Man Winter bows out, patios begin to mushroom all over the country.

Not all patios are the same though. Some are more coveted than the others. What is reassuring is that the best patios are not necessarily in the most expensive restaurants, just as the best foods are not always served in the classiest eateries. And, there is no additional charge to the use of the patio, no time limit to its enjoyment.

Patios, I should say like a real estate agent, are all about location, location, location.

A pleasant neighbourhood, one with old trees and especially one that offers a scenic view, can host the perfect patio. That is easily said than done though. Often, neighbours object to the setting up of patios because of the rowdiness of alcohol-influenced guests and the traffic they create. A zoning application has to be filed and a permit to serve alcohol has to be secured.

There are always battles over the opening of patios. It is a conflict that puts most city councilors in a quandary over who to support --- the neighbours who deliver the votes or the business people who bring income and jobs to the neighbourhood.

As I said, patios are all about location. Even within the patio, there are choice locations. This can be the shaded table under the tree. This can be the table where the client can be seen or the one that has an unobstructed view of the scene. Some have secluded areas where couples out on a tryst like to hide.

There are patios with something special. One restaurant patio is known for its tree house. I asked a friend to accompany me there because I was curious about the so-called tree house. It wasn’t a tree house at all but a second-floor patio built to accommodate an existing tree’s branches. I told my friend that in the Philippines, a tree house would sit on a branch of a tree. I was feeling superior until my friend asked if people lived in those tree houses. With the monkeys as pets, I’m sure she thought.

Tree houses don’t belong only in Third World countries I told her. I’ve seen American movies that showed kids playing in tree houses. Remember “Stand by Me”? As a teenager in the Philippines, I thought tree houses were where teenagers in other parts of the world performed the rites of passage.

Patios in the Niagara Region offer views of the vineyard. The restaurants are all classified as fine dining so prices are higher, but why skip the matching of food and wine when you are in wine country? Go all the way. Wearing a summer dress or suit with a wide-brimmed hat would even make the experience extra special.

Lakeside patios are special as well. The sultry breeze and the view of the water, with sailboats on it, simply fill our senses with summer.

Patios are about timing too. One has to experience them while they last. Summer in Canada is short and not everyday is filled with sunshine.