Relaxing dining experience at Calle Barlin

The mood was homey and the ambiance relaxing as the warm light of Calle Barlin exuded a yellowish glow to its interior. We were already hungry when we arrived as we spent much of the day going around several interesting spots in Naga City and surrounding municipalities.

Seeing that the restaurant is at the ground floor of an old house in Naga City’s old quarter, made it more interesting that I have to run my hand on the surface of the tree trunk that acts as a house post and feel its texture.

This used to be an old restaurant that was popular with Naguenos. Before the rise of the Magsaysay food strip, this old house used to be the location of Sa Harong, a must go to place for family dinners and dining during the 90s. Calle Barlin is the third reincarnation of the restaurant, and probably, under a new management.

It’s the in house restaurant of Hillary & Andrew Hostel which is at the second floor and serves typical Filipino and Bicol dishes and other popular Pinoy food.

As the dishes were served one by one, we bloggers also gathered around to take photos and went back to our seats as the food was distributed at our table. The crispy pata was good. Tender and the skin crisp. We enjoyed it that as dinner was dining down and winded into conversations, we continued to pick on the bone for scraps and pieces of meat.

The sinigang na hipon is also how I liked it. Being a Cebuano and averse to very sour sinigang that is typical of Tagalogs, the Bicolano version is tamer and palatable for me. Unfortunately, while the slabs of ribs were quite tempting, we actually had a hard time with it as it seemed to need more cooking. The rest of the dishes were just okay.

However, one that really stood out was the dessert of leche flan. We were told that it has a unique ingredient: rhum. I got curious and sliced off a small portion to taste. The tiny piece was smooth and creamy and sweet, as what a good leche flan should be. But as the taste starts to leave your palate, the hint of rhum kicks in. It was different but I loved it. Something new for a well cherished dessert that can be tricky to prepare.

I loved its texture, the way it melts on my tongue. The caramelized sugary sweetness fading as the hint of alcohol makes its presence. And I would have preferred to have a bigger portion, not some small piece that was enough to make me sweat profusely around my head and nose, my natural sweet tooth reaction.