Casa Rap

Nice seeing you again, Casa Rap! ^_^ 

     After wrong turns and 3 hours on the road, (went to San Benito Farm first which we thought was the same with Hacienda San Benito where Terrazas de Barako is, where we were supposed to have lunch-unfortunately, there was misunderstanding so we weren't able to eat there) we finally reached Casa Rap at Km 90, San Jose, Batangas.

Peaceful Haven

     Casa Rap was formally opened as a restaurant in 2003. It used to be a clearing house for environmentalist from 2001. It's owned by Sis. Emmy Alday who is an advocate for the environment. Proof of this can be seen in the restaurants earth-friendly design and decors. 

THE AMBIANCE

Secret garden

Intimate dining

     The whole place feels like a secret garden! The myriad of plants, flowers and trees give of a refreshing vibe. The one-of-a-kind decors around make the place interesting and special. The vines allow for natural light to pass through and makes the space feel more intimate. You really feel one with Mother Earth when you're in Casa Rap! :)

Earth friendly :)

     Sis. Emma used scrap materials for some of the unique designs found around the dining area. Her love for art and the environment is what made the restaurant's interiors so special. You can really appreciate beauty in simplicity at this place! Framed articles and newspaper clippings featuring the resto are also displayed - proof of how much people  love their experience at Casa Rap!

Carved on stone and wood

     Short,inspirational messages carved on stones are scattered around the area - one near the small, man-made pond, while others are hung on trees. There's a small area past the stone pathway dedicated for prayer, or merely for relaxation and meditation. It's like a green house with a wooden bench on one side and a long plank of wood on the other. A table with the message This is a place for prayer... for everyone sits on the middle. It's a good place to rest, especially after a hearty meal.

Dining area

     Another feature which we think gives the place its unique experience are the different chairs and tables. Others are round and made out of stone, some rectangular tables made out of wood topped with glass, one that is low, perfect for kids, while others seeming like picnic tables paired with benches.

THE MENU

Casa Rap's Menu

     Casa Rap is a slow food cafe that serves organic meals. They only cook the food once you order them. Waiting is no problem since we know that the food is fresh and there are a lot of things, nooks to take photos of anyway while waiting. :p On the menu are pork, beef, noodles, fish, sugpo, and salads. They also have fruit shakes and famous desserts like the halo-halo and suman.

Condimnents

     Everything at Casa Rap is unique, even the containers for the condiments. We love how they're labeled with leaf-shaped covers.

THE FOOD

     For starters, we ordered the Casa Rap salad, pancit, and sinigang na gindara. For our main dishes, we chose fried tawilis, ginataang sugpo, and crispy pata! We'd never leave without having their bestselling halo-halo, as well as their suman.

Casa Rap Salad (100php)

     This salad has crunchy lettuce leaves, hard-boiled egg, singkamas and yummy okoy with a sour dressing. We like how fresh the ingredients are! It was a good start for our hearty, healthy lunch!

Sinigang na Gindara (150php)

     We're lucky that this dish was available (it says it's seasonal on the menu). We love how the fish melts in your mouth! The serving portion was also big which is always good. :p And sinigang will always be one of our favorite comfort food. :p

Pancit Miki-Bihon (80php)

     Another comfort food! The noodles were soft and flavored just right. It had lots of ingredients which we like! We weren't able to finish it though, not because it wasn't good but we were already so full. Haha! :D

Fried Tawilis (80php)

     Small but terrible! Don't be deceived by its size. :p The fish was crispy on the outside yet soft inside. The calamansi added a zing to the salty, flavorful tawilis - also a good appetizer! :)

Ginataang Sugpo (150php)

     We sure were amazed at how big this sugpo is! It was really chunky and meaty! Best use your hands -- it's more enjoyable that way. :p This dish tasted great, too with the somewhat salty shrimp and spicy coconut milk left us wanting more rice. :D

Crispy Pata (450php)

     Would you believe the 3 of us were able to finish this big chunk of meat? That's how good it was! We love the crispy skin and the soft meat underneath all that sumptuous skin! The meat easily fell of the big bone and tasted great with the soy sauce. We munched on it even if we had no more rice. Hehe! :p

Suman sa Lihiya (25php)

     One of the desserts they offer is this sweet suman with sweet sauce. It's a great Pinoy dish that we'll surely have again, the next time we visit. It was firm and not hard, the sauce just the right sweetness and consistency. The crushed nuts added texture to this sticky dessert -- all sooo good!

Casa Rap's Halo-Halo (80php)

     Save the best for last! This is the best halo-halo we've had! It was creamy, sweet and so refreshing! It had ube, melon, pinipig and the vanilla ice cream on top was lovely! The ice was so soft unlike the other halo-halo's were the ice would clump up into a hard ball. This one stayed soft, like a sherbet! It's a sin not to order this when you're at Casa Rap. Haha! :D

Watermelon, Strawberry, Melon Shakes (45php each)

     Our fruit shakes were delightfully refreshing -- perfect with our Pinoy meal! They were perfect for the warm yet breezy afternoon! :) 

CASA RAP EXPERIENCE

Thank you for the treat Pius! ^_^

     Needless to say, we were so full after having all of that! We ordered for 6 people instead of 3. Haha! We had to unbutton our jeans from all the good food we ate! The ambiance was perfect, the servers were really helpful, putting in their 2 cents on what we should get and the food served were awesome! Because we ate so much and finished at around 5pm, we didn't have dinner anymore. :p Gluttony's bad! Haha! :D

Casa Rap

Km. 90, Brgy. Banay-banay,

San Jose, Batangas
Open from 7am - 5pm
Contact Number:  (043) 726 2873
(0916) 212 6685