Love at the Coffee Shop: How to dine-in at a café Pinoy Romcom style
What are the chances that you would find love in a coffee shop?
Coffee and romances pair well if the number of fan-favorite movies is any indication. Whether it’s a place of work, blossoming romance, or a stopover in one’s soul-searching, the café is a perfect spot to gaze into someone’s eyes, albeit through acetate shields and over physically distanced tables.
Before you head out to your favorite café with your crush, why don’t you check out some of the most memorable and quirky café moments in popular Pinoy romcoms. Who knows, maybe you can get a kilig tip or two!
Write About Love (2019) Director: Crisanto Aquino
(Image Source: TBA Studios)
While the two protagonists first met during a pitch session, rookie screenplay writer (Miles Ocampo) and veteran scribe (Rocco Nacino) formally collaborate at a café. While the two clashed on nearly every idea they had for the screenplay they were working on, it’s obvious that both writers are bonded by their passion for their craft and their love for coffee. This gives us a glimpse of the couple’s potential to go beyond their work relationship as co-writers.
“Write About Love” won several awards at the 2019 Metro Manila Film Festival including Best Screenplay, Best Supporting Actor for Joem Bascon, and Best Supporting Actress for Yeng Constantino. Watch the movie now on Netflix.
Kung Paano Siya Nawala / How She Left Me (2018) Director: Joel Ruiz
(Image Source: TBA Studios)
Meet-cute at a café sounds like a perfect scenario for love. In TV and film, a meet-cute refers to the scene where potential lovers meet for the first time under amusing circumstances. But if you’re suffering from a medical condition of prosopagnosia or face blindness, a café meet-cute might be a bit complicated. Lio (JM de Guzman) kissed a girl, Shana (Rhian Ramos) outside a bar. He then meets her again in a coffee shop where Shana works as a barista. But because he could not remember people’s faces, he was not aware he had met Shana before.
Produced by TBA Studios, “How She Left Me” is now streaming on Netflix.
That Thing Called Tadhana (2014) Director: Antoinette Jadaone
(Image Source: Cinema One)
There’s something about the intimate space of a café and the warm scent of a fresh brew that makes it a great spot to share stories about your life with a friend, a significant other, or a stranger you met at the airport on a trip up north. Mace (Angelica Panganiban) literally and figuratively carried extra baggage with her, which his new companion Anthony (JM de Guzman) was willing to take care of. Experiencing existential dread, the two went to a café in Session Road to discuss life’s unanswered questions.
The screenplay placed third at the 2014 Don Carlos Palanca Memorial Awards for Literature. The movie also won major awards at the Gawad Urian and Cinema One Originals Film Festival. You can watch “That Thing Called Tadhana” on Netflix.
English Only Please (2014) Director: Dan Villegas
(Image Source: Quantum Films)
Was there a time you had to make EDSA traffic as an excuse for being late? Then you probably could relate to language tutor Tere (Jennilyn Mercado) whose tardiness did not impress his Fil-Am client Julian (Derek Ramsay). The café is their tutoring spot for Julian, proving that coffee shops can be a great spot for study dates too.
“English Only Please” is available for on-demand viewing via Google Play.
I’m Drunk, I Love You. (2017) Director: JP Habac
(Image Source: TBA Studios)
“Ate, pa-order naman ng kape, kailangan kong kabahan,” so said Carson (Maja Salvador), who finally met her rival Pathy (Jasmine Curtis-Smith) at a café in La Union. Things may not be going smoothly for Carson and her mission to make her longtime crush Dio (Paulo Avelino) fall in love with her, but at least she has her gay best friend and some caffeine to keep her fueled.
“I’m Drunk, I Love You.” is now streaming on Netflix and TBA Studios’ YouTube channel.
Looking for a coffee place for your real-life meet-cute? Visit Cinema ‘76 Café on the second floor of Anonas LRT City Center along Aurora Boulevard in Quezon City or order via Viber at +63906 236 2365.