Sweet Delicacies of Negros Island

Did you just return from a fantastic vacation in Bacolod and are trying to decide what pasalubong to bring back? Or maybe you just want to make sure you try all of Negrense's famous delicacies while you're there.

Anyway, you're in luck because I've written this article specifically to share with you suggested pasalubongs while in Bacolod! As the undisputed "Sugar Capital of the Philippines," prepare for a massive sugar overdose as I walk you through this list. Let's get started in no particular order!

A bunch of Negros’s sweet delicacies captured a week ago June, 09 2022 at 1:27 on the afternoon

The famous Masskara Festival is held in Bacolod City. People travel long distances from all over the world to attend the month-long festival in October. Bacolod is well-known for its top tourist attractions and unique delicacies, in addition to the Masskara Festival. Some of our country's best dishes can be found in Bacolod. It is an excellent location for sampling traditional Ilonggo cuisine.

Some of bongbongs famous delicacies, photo taken on June 18, 2022 at Bacolod City Brgy 16 Negros Occidental

Bong-bongs is a famous shop in Negros known for its “pasalubong items” such as Piaya, banadas, napoleons, tart, bischocho, baye-baye, sambag, barquillos, butter scotch, dried fruits, and other snacks. You can find Bong bongs shop anywhere even at malls just remember the logo and trade color is blue. Bong bongs is the most trusted pasalubong brand and Negros' best pasalubong center. We listed below some of the best sweet delicacies of Negros that you must try:

1. Caramel Tart

Shape liked a boat, Caramel Tarts or Boat Tart is a popular delicacy in Bacolod. The boat-shaped crust is a pastry made with buttery caramel filled the crusty tender crust, and laced with white icing. Caramel Tarts is a perfect pasalubong paired with any beverage.

Bongbongs caramel tart,photo taken on June 18, 2022 at Bacolod City Brgy 16 Negros Occidental

Now you might be wondering what this is, and it’s likely because you know it by its other name – boat tart (so named because of its boat-like shaped crust).Some say this is the best tart they’ve ever tasted in their lives! Well, we wouldn’t go that far. Whoever said that needs to eat more tarts. But we must admit the rich creamy buttery caramel filling makes for a distinct filling, and the boat-shaped delicate crust certainly doesn’t disappoint.

Lyka Awacay having a bite of Bongbongs caramel tart, photo taken on June 18, 2022 at Bacolod City Brgy 16 Negros Occidental

These look perfect. But since the caramel tarts are quite fragile, some bits may be chipped of during handling and packaging. It is a wonderful snack as well as dessert. It seems that if there’s a big pack at home, it wouldn’t last very long as all of us would always eat at least two each time–from after breakfast, after lunch, snacks, and after dinner. So yeah, we eat it pretty much all day. Sometimes, I would bring a small pack in my bag when we go out so that the kids can munch on them anytime. And they love it.

2. Piaya

Piaya is the most common item you can find in pasalubong centers, markets, and malls all over Bacolod. It is an unleavened flatbread filled with muscovado—a type of unrefined sugar. If you have been to the New Silay-Bacolod Airport or Bredco Port, you’ll notice how most of the passengers have Piaya-filled BongBong’s or Merczi boxes with them. There are also several street food vendors around Bacolod who serve this delicacy hot and fresh, and by pieces.

Bongbongs ube piaya, photo taken on June 18, 2022 at Bacolod City Brgy 16 Negros Occidental

Reynaldo B.Villan and Ma.Lomer Cañedo started cooking piaya using borrowed fry pan "KALAHA" with an P80 savings from separation fee to buy piaya ingredients. They used 7-up Bottle to flatten piaya.

A photo that you can smell if you’re living in Negros Island, Piaya comes from different flavors and available now in coffee flavor. Captured last week June 09, 2022 at 01:17 PM.

TRIVIA:

Piaya one of the famous sweet delicacies in Negros Island, it is made up of filling dough

with muscovado and glucose syrup popular in different flavors such as ube flavor, cheese, coffee, chocolate, mango and original.

Negros is known as “the sugar bowl of the Philippines as it produces more than half the nation’s sugar output. The North and the west parts of the province are largely composed of plain and gentle slopes that’s why Negros produces large amount of sugarcane.

A light crunchy leaved round bread, one of the special sweet delicacies you can found when you shop in in bong bongs. Captured last week June 09, 2022 at 1:19 in the afternoon.

3. Banadas

It is light but crunchy leavened round bread similar to pacencia cookies but bigger in size and top coated with icing. The etymology of the word itself is of Spanish origin “Bañado de Sol”, with an English term which means sunlit.

Bongbongs famous barquillos, photo taken on June 18, 2022 at Bacolod City Brgy 16 Negros Occidental

4. Barquillos

Barquillos is another popular delicacy and pasalubong from Bacolod that originates in Spain. Barquillos looks like an unflavored rolled wafer stick, but it is flavorful and crunchy which makes it a perfect snack or can be used as a topping for desserts.

Wafer rolls or barquillos is another banner product of Bongbong’s Piaya and Barquillos and is considered to be one of the most delicious snacks ever. Bongbong’s Barquillos are made from the most basic ingredients, namely, flour, butter, eggs, sugar, vanilla, milk, cooking oil, and water. They are made by pouring a thin batter onto a wafer iron or what they call as the barquillera. Today, Bongbong’s have different varieties of barquillos from the traditional one to flavored and bite-size types.

Bongbongs Ensaymada captured last week June 13, 2022, at 06:32 pm. Bacolod City

5. Ensaymada

A pastry dough we get into Spaniards. Ensaymada is a brioche bread that its origins from Spanish ensaymada that has now loved by Filipinos. This soft bread has many variations now such as ube ensaymada in bongbons, topped with a lot of cheese.