Stumbling into some nice quiet places along Maginhawa Street

The thing that always draws me to Maginhawa Street in Quezon City is the element of surprise. There's always something new to stumble into, like hole-in-the-wall places only a few people so far know about.

More than just teas: Station 7Tea8 Co.

Take this tea place called Station 7Tea8 Co. It looks like your usual milk tea place from across the street. One step inside its glass door, though, and I'm already charmed by the eclectic vibe. As a friend would say, “May ambience!”

To your left as you enter is the Do-It-Yourself Health-Tea corner, where you find jars of tea leaves and and a shelf of ceramic teapots and teacups. A sign tells you what to do:

• Pick a pot and cup.
• Choose your tea leaves.
• Pour hot water.
• Take a vial of amber syrup.
• Steep for 2-3 minutes.

Simple, right? It reminds me of the little teapots and teacups I played with as a kid during bahay-bahayan playtime. A pot of the organic DIY Health-Tea costs P65 here.

My son and I were there for a late lunch, however, and so we turned to something cold to accompany our meal. The house blend iced tea is made of organic herbal leaves and was a refreshing accompaniment to the meals.

I had the green tea and bacon pesto pasta which was good. The bestseller, I was told by the guy at the counter, however, is the smoked oysters and seafood pasta. My son devoured it in minutes.

A group of guys came in with a guitar—regular customers, the guy at the counter said. While waiting for their orders, one of them started strumming their guitar, and I inwardly hoped they wouldn't do a deafening rock tune in this little place. I could hardly contain my grin then when I recognized the first strains of Tadao Hayashi's “Wave”—acoustic jazz style. The guitarist followed it up with a cool rendition of Michael Jackson's “Man in the Mirror” and by then I was tapping my feet and surreptitiously stealing glances at this group. Alas, their orders arrived and we had to leave before the dark clouds let down the rain.

Mexitalian cuisine at Felicidad

“It's beside a vulcanizing shop,” was my friend Claire's reply when I asked which restaurant Felicidad was next to.

Coming from Philcoa, we spotted Felicidad on the right side far from the main stretch of restos on that road. From outside, it looked like a house-turned-café. It turned out that's exactly what it is.

What probably used to be the garden or garage now has hardwood table and chairs with fresh flowers and plants providing accent here and there.

Felicidad serves Mexitalian cuisine at affordable prices, and should you have a hard time deciding between a chimichanga or a pasta dish, well you can have both at less than P150 per combo meal (comes with iced tea too).

I had the Pesto + Hungarian Sausage combo meal and it was filling and sulit for the price. No wonder students and university profs come to this unpretentious café.

Aside from the popular Eggplant Parmigiana, Pesto ala Rosalinda, and Burritos, there's an off-the-menu bagnet rice dish which Claire said is writer Ricky Lee's favorite. I heard he goes here once a week to just hang out with fellow writers and artists.

Books and more: Cool Beans Café

I've heard of Cool Beans Café and have always wanted to go in whenever I would pass by Maginhawa, but it was only recently that I had the chance to drop by.

Now this place is heaven for someone like me whose idea of a great lunch consists of a good book and a little meal.

The library-café has walls of books—from art to manga, fiction, biography, history, and more. Not at all stuffy like some libraries, Cool Beans Café is cozy, and you'll feel at home reading a book on the sofa or on the little tables while sipping a cup of strong Cordillera coffee.

With a delicious tuna melt panini on one hand, and an art book on the other, I didn't feel the time passing by quickly. Soon, my lunch hour was up.

Maginhawa Street is becoming a foodie destination. While other restos on this strip are great for barkada gimmicks, these three places are perfect for those seeking something more quiet and different. — BM, GMA News

Station 7TEA8 Co. is at Unit C, 162 Maginhawa St., Sikatuna Village, QC.

Felicidad is at 38 Maginhawa St., UP Village, Diliman, QC.

Cool Beans Cafe is at 67 Maginhawa St., QC.