Based on what was sold by the limited shops I visited and street vendors I saw hawking their products during the limited time I was in Sagada, there was a surfeit of honey, lemon, coffee, and blueberry in this municipality of Mountain Province. In the course of our trek to Bomod-ok Falls, Virg pointed out trees of blueberries and coffee to me, the former I did not recognize, the latter, I know a little too well.
In order to prolong the Sagada experience, I bought pasalubong from Sagada Homestay Diner (where we had majority of our meals), Ganduyan Souvenirs, and from sellers on the side of the road. I can say that except for one item, I enjoyed the Sagada pasalubong I purchased.
For related entries, please read Bomod-ok Falls (Sagada), Kiltepan Peak (Sagada), Sumaguing Cave, Banaue Rice Terraces, and Sagada - Food.
Here are the photos of pasalubong from Sagada:
Gabay Blueberry Cookies, P100.00 (US $2.00) at Ganduyan Souvenirs. The cookies crumbled easily, which I found surprisingly nice. Thankfully, the blueberries were not too distractingly huge, and the cookies themselves were not too sweet.
Lidomko’s Arabica Coffee Cookies, P120.00 (US $2.40) at Sagada Homestay Diner. The same item cost P100.00 (US $2.00) at Ganduyan Souvenirs. I do not drink coffee, and it follows that I do not particularly like food with coffee flavor. However, I ate four of these cookies in one sitting, and I did not dislike the taste. The cookies had real coffee tidbits, which did not affect me, but made someone else wide awake for hours.
Kambay’s Homemade Strawberry Pastillas, P40.00 (US $0.80) at Sagada Homestay Diner, 3 packs for P100.00 (US $2.00) at Ganduyan Souvenirs. I did not like it one bit. The strawberry flavor was too artificial.
Kambay’s Homemade Strawberry Pastillas, P40.00 (US $0.80) at Sagada Homestay Diner, 3 packs for P100.00 (US $2.00) at Ganduyan Souvenirs. I did not like it one bit. The ube flavor tasted like medicine.
Lemon Pie, P30.00 (US $0.60) per piece, P220.00 (US $4.40) per pan, at The Sagada Lemon Pie House. The reputation of this lemon pie precedes it because everyone said it is great, the best lemon pie they have tasted. On our last night in Sagada, we changed our dinner plans to eat this lemon pie. The queue of lemon pie fans was long, and business was brisk. Imagine my disappointment when I tasted the lemon pie but did not taste a hint of lemon. It was soft and airy, but it could have been a different pie but definitely not a lemon pie. I was not alone in this observation. Six people in my group tasted different slices of this lemon pie, and we were all dismayed. I am sure that it is not the best lemon pie I have tasted. It is not even in the top 20.
Egg Pie, P30.00 (US $0.60) per piece, P220.00 (US $4.40) per pan, at The Sagada Lemon Pie House. After the disenchanting lemon pie, the egg pie seemed okay. It was better than a lot of egg pies I have eaten.
Pure Honey, P150.00 (US $3.00) per bottle at Ganduyan Souvenirs. These belong to Virg. I bought one bottle, but I dropped it in the store next to Ganduyan Souvenirs. ☹ I decided not to buy another for fear of dropping or breaking it.
I bought a pack of bell pepper for P30.00 (US $0.60). It had around 15 pieces of bell pepper. They were so fresh and remained so after two weeks. ☺ They were perfect for sweet and sour tilapia, tuna omelette and eggplant omelette. I also procured a pack of mushrooms for P50.00 (US $1.00), which I cooked immediately. They were so yummy!!!