BAGUIO, Philippines – It wasn’t the first choice, even. The first restaurant frequented by Baguio media was Session Café, at the corner of Diego Silang and Session Road. I was too young to visit that.
By the 1980s, Dainty Restaurant had taken over as the informal media headquarters. Its tables were big enough to seat a dozen, which meant you rarely chose your companions as you simply inherited them. There was a small coffee bar for those who preferred to drink in solitude, but even solitude felt public there. Nick Joaquin was said to have nursed his little green bottles anonymously. So did Recah Trinidad and the sportswriters of that era.
Dainty had its own internal language. Fried chicken meant bread rolls. Hollow blocks meant pineapple tarts.
On Sunday mornings, it was said that after then-governor Ben Palispis finished his coffee, everyone in Dainty would somehow find themselves included in his bill.
The second floor was the real territory of Baguio media gatherings, though it closed early at 8 pm.
