Carla's Bakery

Bread connects every race in the world, it gives the quickest answer to every growling stomach. 
Every country has their own specialty on bread thus we can say that bread is our universal food. If France has their French bread, America has their loaf bread and China has their "Siopao", then Philippines has their freshly baked pandesal available anytime of the day. Pandesal is the most affordable and most common basic food for every Filipinos. Aside from the fact that it can be purchased hot and fresh from every bakery most of the time, it may also serve as an heavy meal best matched with hot coffee to start every Filipino morning right.

Rivera Street, Tinajeros Malabon City

Every morning, I always came across this bakery near our house, it stood out among all the other bakeries in town for its freshly baked and affordable breads. This aroma of their freshly baked pandesals never fails to wake up the whole neighborhood. Their breads rate from one peso to twenty pesos, depending on the size and the kind of bread. Because, most people in the community were from the middle class, their delicious and affordable breads attract more customers especially the students who spend on their daily "baons". They bake their first batch of bread at dawn, early in the morning, in the afternoon and in the late afternoon. 

Carla's Bakery

This is Carla's Bakery, most popularly known in the community as the "bakery sa baba" since it is located somewhere down the street. 

Carla's Bakery with Sari sari store

Aside from the different kinds of bread it offers, Carla's bakery also sells spreads, softdrinks, junk foods, canned goods, instant noodles, hygienic items ( e.g. shampoos, soaps, toothpastes..etc). This store is open twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week. People find it more convenient to buy in here, since it is also located at the center of the community, and it stands along the main road. 

Breads at Carla's Bakery

Aside from the freshly baked pandesals, the bakery also offers different kinds of bread such as Spanish bread, ube bread, hopia, cheese bread and loaf breads. We buy pandesals here every morning and sometimes we also buy our merienda here.

Pan de Coco

Hopia Baboy

Ube Bread

Their breads were soft and tasty. I love to buy their bread early in the morning not only that they are fresh but the aroma of their freshly baked breads never fails to let the passers-by stop by their store and buy. People fall in line every morning to buy their pandesal. Their pandesals were never displayed since they were straightly got from the kitchen. Aside from the quality of the bread and the products they sells, this bakery also has the most courteous and kind-hearted employees and owner. Just recently, during the calamity brought about by the Habagat, they gave free breads to the monsoon victims though they themselves were victims of the tragedy. Before their whole bakery was washed away by flood, they started distributing their products and breads to neighbors who lives lower than them. The kindness and generosity of these people made their products more appealing to the market, thus making them loved more by the people and well-known to the public. I would be more than willing to take you to this place when you came along our area. It would not just be a delicious bread trip, but more of an amazing story of how their bread made with love, kindness, hardwork and generosity moved the people in our community.

(Christopher Yu)