Good taste, good health

MANILA, Philippines - Mention Baguio and you think of vegetables. But of late many also want to confirm if their Baguio vegetables are organic or natural. There now are organic groups from Baguio who label their vegetables as organically grown, much to the delight of healthy eaters.

So when you’re in Baguio, where can you go for healthy choices?

An enterprising young man has made this his business plan. He put up a simple restaurant whose main purpose is to provide affordable but healthier choices to Baguio visitors and residents. He calls his restaurant a “restore-ant” as he would like to help you restore your health. He named it Health 100, inspired by a health plan in a job he previously held.

But Health 100 became very successful so just two years later, he opened a branch in La Trinidad and called it Health 101. Logically the third one on General Luna Street in downtown Baguio is called Health 102.

Elmer Macalingay was only 29 when he started his first store. Having been an insurance salesman, he knew many people were starting to worry about their health and needed insurance coverage. He thought to himself: “If everyone ate like I did, they would not worry much about their health.”

Elmer is vegetarian and is a fit and tall Igorot lad. Indeed, if everyone ate like he did, there would be less people who would buy life insurance. So in 2009 he dropped his agent’s briefcase and plunged into the healthy food business.

Today, he is a successful entrepreneur with three stores that are all paid for, no loans from the bank or from anyone, and on the way to tie the knot to start a family.

What’s his secret? He shared what he ate and drank with people. Fresh organic vegetables, meat alternatives and lots of fresh organic juices – carrot, cucumber and guyabano, to name a few.

Further, he learned how to bake his own bread and started a bakery section. As most visitors to Baguio like presents to take home, his bakeshop now turns out cinnamon rolls, raisin bread and other baked goods that you can take away or eat in his restaurants.

Coffee? One of the best in Baguio – 100 percent Benguet Arabica expertly roasted by Cafe Maleng-ag of the Abellons. He invested in a real coffee brewer, and his coffee just got better. His customers know the taste – consistently good brewed coffee.

His most popular restaurant feature? A counter full of lunch choices – fresh vegetables cooked in a variety of ways. And every visit offers a new experience of what is in season – asparagus, mushrooms, french haricot vert or green beans. The last time I visited, I had vegetables simmered with some garlic and tofu cubes. Very tasty. Very healthy. And I am sure these vegetables are organic.

Another feature of his restaurants is a small corner for fresh eggs, fruits and vegetables. You can take home some of the goodness he offers – organic produce from farmers and coops known to him.

When asked how business is doing, he says “I have nothing to complain about.”

“I have grown this business organically (pun intended) and continue to look for ways to expand so I can share good eating habits with Baguio residents, most specially the young,” he says. No food and restaurant educational background, no MBA under his belt, just the passion and drive to grow this business.

Vegetables make Baguio and where else can you sample the Cordillera’s treasures? Elmer has it, at Health 100, 101 or 102. You’ve got affordable salads, vegetables dishes and maybe some fish and chicken for the kids who are only at Vegetable 101. Hopefully, with Elmer’s plans for expansion, Baguio residents will not find it difficult to eat healthy meals in their own city. And the tourists will surely like this as well.

I look forward to having a meal and coffee at Health 100 every time I visit. It’s like a place where the community meets and breaks bread because they know Elmer will only offer what he himself will eat and enjoy.

So when in Baguio, check him out along Magsaysay Road (the original Health 100) or in General Luna St. (Health 102). In La Trinidad, he is right across Benguet State University (Health 101).

We wish Elmer a lot more Health stores and restaurants, in this place where vegetables were born. It’s time we ate them there rather than just bringing them home. Thanks to Elmer and his passion for health, we now have this choice. Here’s to health!