Snacking Around XU: Little Miss Funnel Cake

Little Miss Funnel Cake sounds like the title of a nursery rhyme, but that is the name of a stall on the corner of Velez and Gaerlan Streets that sells funnel cakes. Funnel cakes are interwoven webs of batter shaped by squeezed out drippings of a bag with a nozzle appliance and the resulting mass is then deep fried. It is usually served powdered with confectioner's sugar and at the customer's option with fruit preserves and ice cream.

The store itself is pretty small but decorated in the manner that makes it look like it was lifted entirely from an illustrated nursery rhyme book. It has a few tables and chairs and an al fresco ambiance. But I was pretty impressed that they had free WiFi, which is appropriate since Little Miss Funnel Cake encourages its patrons to post on their social media sites their funnel cake experience. In fact, I heard all about this stall from the posts of connections on my Facebook news feed. It is certainly not a bad way to gain exposure.

I ordered a couple of the their fried dough cakes, Apple Cinnamon and Blueberry. The Apple Cinnamon smells divine since it's sprinkled with cinnamon. It also had a scoop of vanilla ice cream and a few pieces of apple preserves. The Blueberry funnel cake came with a generous spoonful of blueberry preserves and ice cream.

Blueberry Funnel Cake

As I expected, the cakes were sweet when tasted; that was why I ordered water but they've ran out. I had some cola instead which gave me a rush from all that sugar. I would have wanted to have some tea with my cake but Little Miss Funnel Cake's beverage menu could only offer soft-drinks. I'm definitely bringing my own drink should I return for more funnel cake.

Apple Cinnamon Funnel Cake

Overall, it's a nice place to have some sweet snacks. The decor and al fresco ambiance gave it a cozy feel. I suggest going there in the morning or better, in the late afternoon, when the sun isn't as punishingly radiant. Plus, they have WiFi, so one need not miss out on their internet diversions and perhaps tweet or post pics of your food porn.

Just Desserts: Korean Ice Cream

Korean Ice Cream. Probably the best reason Korean marts exist. That and these marts are the best place to get ingredients for a Korean style cook-off at home. Going back to the subject at hand: Korean ice cream. You enter one of these Korean marts and your eyes gravitate to the chest freezer in the middle. Inside are a variety of Korean frozen delights and though their packaging may be enticing but one would no idea how to decipher the Korean script. What to choose?

CDOmnivore has tested two of the more popular brands (as recommended by the kindly old lady shopkeeper) and here is our verdict.

Melona

That would be the ice cream bar with the green wrapper on the left on the photo above. When I think of Korean ice cream bars, the first brand that comes to mind is Melona. It's the first I've tried and has become a favorite. The bar itself has a refreshing fruity taste, quite perfect for Cagayan de Oro's tropical clime. In case you're wondering what flavor this is, the name pretty much gives it away.

Boong Samanko (Red Bean Ice Sandwich)

This would be the fish shaped ice cream sandwich on the right. Don't worry, it is not fish flavored as I initially feared. Instead it is a nice combination of creamy vanilla ice cream, red bean paste and wrapped in a wafer shaped liked a fish. I have no idea why this is packaged like a fish, but it tasted better than I expected.

Verdict. If you got the cash for only one frozen delight, I recommend going for Melona. This is the ice cream bar that made me forget about local brands. I mean, how could local manufacturers ever match the creamy melon goodness of it? But you will still be a winner if you went with the fish ice cream. These two have flavors rarely found in the local market.