Kapebaluan, the city government-run, hip coffee place, began serving on June 9 iced tea and shake made from kamias.

This was shared by Executive Assistant IV Reina Manuel, who added that kamias is locally grown in her backyard, as well as from the backyards of First District Congressman Carmelo “Jon” Lazatin II and Chief Adviser IC Calaguas.

Manuel said that the idea of using kamias in iced tea started from a mini-kwentuhan with Mayor Carmelo “Pogi” Lazatin Jr. and Angeles City Economic Development Investment and Promotions Officer-in-Charge Irish Bonus-Llego, since the produce can be found in her backyard.

“Nag-start lang po sa ‘what if’. What if kaya i-try natin kung pwede tayong gumawa ng drinks na gamit ang kamias. Hanggang ‘yong nabuong idea, nagawa namin, na-achieve namin. Very supportive po si Mayor Lazatin sa initiative,” Manuel said.

Fortunately, Cong. Lazatin also did not know what to do with the kamias in his backyard, which just fall off and get scattered.

“During our visit at the home of Cong. Lazatin with Calaguas and Bonus-Llego, napansin din po namin na maraming kamias sa backyard niya. We then asked him if he is willing to donate these fruits to our city cafe, since we’ve come up with the idea of making kamias as the base of the newest variant of drinks to be offered in Kapebaluan,” Manuel added.

Calaguas meanwhile shared that kamias has its own health benefits, being anti-diabetic and anti-bacterial.
“When they told me the idea, na-realize namin na pwede, especially that kamias is very healthy. It can prevent cough, fever and inflammation, beriberi, scurvy, and fight cholesterol,” Calaguas said.

According to Bonus-Llego, they conducted different trials before coming up with the perfect mix for the drinks— the iced tea and the shake, which are now offered at an affordable price of P150 per regular serving.

“We are happy to share that these creative ideas are now a reality. Thank you to Ms. Manuel, Ms. IC, Mayor Lazatin, and Cong. Jon for assisting Kapebaluan, exhausting all efforts and resources for the betterment of the cafe,” Bonus-Llego mentioned.

Aside from the kamias iced tea, the Kapebaluan is serving four other varieties of drinks such as coffee (kape), non-coffee (alang kape), signature (tatak), and barista.

The Kapebaluan, a project of Mayor Carmelo “Pogi” Lazatin, Jr., showcases Angeleño produced coffee and tea, to assist local farmers. It is located at the ground floor of the City Library in Barangay Sto. Rosario.