Sweets success

Indeed my non-budging waistline and the constant need to brush my teeth are just minor testaments to my insatiable sweet tooth. I think ever since I was a kid I would always look forward to that delectable moist piece of chocolate butterscotch cake at the end of the meal or sneak that extra cinnamon snickerdoodle from the cookie jar. Heck, baking is the only real culinary prowess I can claim to have and I think that was just born out of the desire to be able to make sweets for myself. (Pillsbury Dough Boy I love you!)

So you can imagine that I enjoy taste testing the latest delicious pastries and pies that pop up in different restaurants in the metro. When I was working for the Peninsula Manila a few years back I had the joy of doing several pieces on their in-house master chefs and one in particular’s specialty was chocolate (I was in heaven!). Afterwards, when my friend put up his café in Rockwell he allowed me to help in taste testing several different concoctions of various pastry chefs he was thinking of consigning. I took that job seriously — tasting each creation until I was completely satisfied and then spending five straight hours in the gym the following day to work off one teeny slice of cake! (Sigh)

To be sure love for sweets certainly comes at a high price. But sometimes two hours on the treadmill are justified when you bite into that perfectly moist vanilla cake or savor that last mouthful of creamy strawberry pie. At least that’s my line of thinking whenever I come across a sweet treat I find completely irresistible.

So you can imagine how the amount of time I spend at the gym skyrocketed after the first time I walked into Bizu. For those of you who’ve been living under a rock and haven’t heard of Bizu, it’s a French-inspired patisserie located at Greenbelt 2. It’s incredibly hard to miss with the bright inviting yellow and purple interiors and rows and rows of delightful pastries lined up in the window including a wide range of multi-colored macaroons that simply melt in your mouth!

Bizu, which is the French word for kiss, was a venture started by Anabel Tanco two years ago as a small pastry and French café kiosk in Glorietta 2. At the time she was just beginning to test the market to see if a larger version of the patisserie would be successful and feasible in the future. The public quickly answered her queries by falling in love with Bizu’s sweet treats from the very first bite. Word of mouth spread about the gastronomical delight of their delicious Samba and Nirvana cakes and pretty soon people would go out of their way to this tiny sweet haven to order the whole cakes. It wasn’t long before the larger version of this sweet little kiss opened its doors to an appreciative audience in Greenbelt. Even now Bizu remains packed with food-lovers at all hours.

"This bistro is a place that provides a venue for good conversation coupled with satisfying soul food — comfort food — that’s French inspired," Audrey Tanco, Anabel’s daughter and PR associate for Bizu says. "It‘s good food one can indulge in any time of the day."

Truer words have never been spoken. At any given time I can saunter into Bizu and find something to satisfy my palate. Whether it’s time for a meal and I order their mouth-watering pasta or it’s time for dessert and I choose from a plethora of treats including my favorites: strawberry chiboust, strawberry shortcake, nirvana cake, or chocolate and caramel macaroons (a Bizu signature item!)

"My mom studied with a French cook," Audrey explains. "She took the French concepts and made them her own. It took her quite a while to make her first macaroon perfectly although now she’s quite the expert," she adds proudly.

"They really are our bestseller," Anabel agrees glancing at the multi-colored round pastries in the chiller. "They’re made out of ground almonds and are very hard to make. Even with the recipe it’s doubtful anyone can make a macaroon like these on their first try. It takes a lot of practice and the perfect imported ingredients."

In fact, every dish served in Bizu is specially prepared with signature techniques and all imported ingredients to ensure top quality for all their dishes.

"Bizu’s real goal is simply to elevate the Filipino palate’s appreciation for pastries that goes beyond the usual fare," Audrey states. And with the vision of pushing the envelope further Bizu is continuing to expand their menu as well as their locations. They serve a non-conventional breakfast fare comprised of Filipino favorites along with their signature stuffed French toast and eggs pate and salmon. Also they will be launching an afternoon tea menu including various finger foods and small pastries and a pot of tea of your choice. In addition they are inviting more private events to be held in the bistro like bridal or baby showers or even baptism events. On top of all that, they are slated to open a small café in Alabang on the first week of May.

With the constancy of their delicious cuisine and the constant strive to continue to get better it’s no wonder this once little kiosk has become the booming business it is now. Simply pop a macaroon in your mouth and you’ll be hooked for life, the thrill it’ll send through the taste buds is tremendous and sweet – not unlike a loving kiss.

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What’s your favorite dessert? E-mail me at aquamarine_tranquility@yahoo.com