For many Filipinos, Rizal Park is not only a historical park located in the heart of Manila. Commonly known as Luneta, Rizal Park has become an integral part of the Filipino society through the years, almost synonymous to family days and weekends out.
Summers spent in Luneta conjure up images of sweltering heat made bearable by the cool breeze from the Manila Bay, of colourful balloons in different shapes and sizes sold by vendors along the Rizal monument, Sunday picnics at the Japanese garden, children gathered around the cart of Mamang Sorbetero waiting for their crispy cone of sorbetes and ice cream on a bun, or eating barbecue and hotdogs from the stalls along the Quirino Grand Stand while watching the sunset of Manila Bay.
The memories of summers in the Philippines are what inspired the couple Dennis Rogacion and Rhea Topacio of Dea Chocolates to come up with a line of artisan ice cream they lovingly named after Luneta. With flavours such as ube macapuno, halo-halo, mango and buko pandan, Luneta ice cream not only whets your appetite but also reminds of the beautiful time of growing up in the Philippines.
“We want to offer everyone, Filipinos and Europeans alike, the kind of food that makes someone feel good. Our products give you that cozy feeling, whether you are having a bad day or enjoying a good time. For our Filipino customers, it gives them a sense of being home, a reminder of how home tastes like.” says Rogacion.
Staying true to the tradition of home-made products like Dea chocolates and Taartini Designer Cupcakes, they only use natural ingredients in making the base of Luneta ice cream, giving each scoop a delightfully creamy and silky texture.
“Our ice creams are made with no additional artificial emulsifiers or stabilizers. Most flavours are hard to find and some are even unique to the European palate. You could say that this is
our way of introducing the goodness of Filipino food to the Europeans albeit in a very sweet way,” says Topacio.
Current available flavours of Luneta ice cream are Buko Pandan (creamy pandan with coconut bits) Halo-halo (a mix of white and red beans, nata de coco, kaong, Jack fruit, banana and milk), Mango (made from Philippine mango, the best in the world), Ube Macapuno (purple yam with coconut sport strings) and the classic Rocky Road (with roasted nuts and marshmallows).
Luneta Home-made Ice Cream is available in selected restaurants and retail shops in Europe. They are also open to work with caterers and wholesalers upon request. For more information, visit www.lunetaicecream.com or contact them via email info@lunetaicecream.com or call +316 218 202 88.