We’ve been hearing about a smoochingly good café somewhere around UP campus for quite some time. We’ve always wanted to check it out but due to some reasons, it always doesn’t push thru. And as with such circumstances, the best thing to do is to not plan at all. And sure enough, we found ourselves taking an ikot jeep along UP campus’ shaded avenues one Thursday afternoon looking for the Chocolate Kiss Café.

I am not that familiar with UP and finding it was not easy. We knew that it was located somewhere along the university’s Bahay ng Alumni so we simply asked our manong driver to drop us near that area. After a few questions for directions, we finally found the famed café at the building’s ground floor.

Maroon parasols replete with students dot the café’s patio. We chose a table near a corner and waited for a waiter to take our orders. It took a few minutes before we were able to flag one down as they seemed too busy chatting with each other.

Glasses of Bottomless Iced Tea (Php70.00) were quickly served while waiting for our late lunch. Unlike most food places serving teas, Chocolate Kiss’ version are freshly brewed making it one of the most popular items on their menu. I like the fact that they included a small pitcher of honey to sweeten our drinks to preference.

I was having a hard time choosing my meal from their menu as there were so many dishes that look appetizing. I eventually settled for their Chili Prawns (Php285.00), the words large and hot certainly got my attention.

Considering the complexity of the dish (at least I think it ain’t that easy to cook), it was surprising that it was served quickly. The spicy sauce mixed with garlic and ginger was so good, I could’ve done away without the prawns which were a bit of a disappointment. Judging by the consistency and color of the meat, it absolutely wasn’t fresh at all. I think it has been sitting too long on the fridge.

Good thing the Chicken Kiev (240.00) lived up to its place as a house specialty. The roulade of tender chicken breast is deliciously filled with butter, cream cheese and some herbs unknown to us non-cooks. It was served with mashed potato which wasn’t that bad.

For desserts, we were deciding between their Classic Chocolate Cake (Php103.00) and Sans Rival (Php135.00). Availability made us choose the latter since the chocolate cake is already out of stock. The cashew-topped dessert was as good as sans rivals get. Excellent, but nothing too different to write home about.

If you’re not gonna consider the price of the fares we ordered, I would say that our impromptu lunch at UP Diliman’s Chocolate Kiss Café was a success. Unfortunately, I can’t accept a Php285.00 dish with a stale ingredient—the main one at that. Add the super inattentive waiters and my score gets lower. It wasn’t all that bad, the café also got their good points but I don’t think I’ll be wanting another chocolatey kiss anytime soon again.

The Chocolate Kiss Café
Address: Bahay ng Alumni, R. Magsaysay Street, UP Campus, Diliman, Quezon City
Telephone: (02) 921-8663 | (02) 921-8659
Open Hours: 7AM to 10PM Daily
Menu: Click Here
Other Branches: Roces Avenue, Quezon City
GPS Coordinates: 14.658267,121.066493
View on Google Maps: Click Here