Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Photo from www.weddingsinthephilippines.com

Over the past six years, Cafe Antonio has changed locations, names, personnel, menu items, and tag lines, causing confusion to our beloved clients. Here's a convenient article about the establishment's most pressing questions (and I guess we will add more in the future).

1. How many Cafe Antonios are there?

* Our full official and legal company name is Cafe Antonio Small Town Coffee Brewers Inc. There is only one cafe under this company.

2. Is Antonio's Grill in Tagaytay, Antonio's Cafe in SM Calamba, and Cafe Antonio one company?

* No. And we are not Cafe San Antonio. San Antonio is the name of the barangay next to our barangay called Maahas (because there used to be lots of snakes in this part of town).

3. Are you related to Cafe Antonio in Dumaguete? And who is Antonio?

* Yes. Cafe Antonio in Dumaguete was established in 2006. Two years later, we branched out to start Cafe Antonio - Los Banos under the company called Cafe Antonio Coffee Corp. Just recently, Cafe Antonio - Los Banos decided to start their own independent company and hence the name, Cafe Antonio Small Town Coffee Brewers Inc. 

* Antonio is the name of the father of the owner of The Spanish Heritage Building--the building where Cafe Antonio - Dumaguete is located. 

4. Is Cafe Antonio and Arla Diner one establishment only?

* The location of present-day Cafe Antonio is where Arla Diner used to be. When the chefs/owners (Jeff Aquino and PJ Lamigo-Aquino) of Arla Diner migrated to Australia in 2012, Cafe Antonio bought the rights to Arla's recipes and menu, absorbed the staff, and purchased all the equipment. However, the Lamigo family still owns the land and we are renting the place from them. Arla Diner still exists in the form of Arla Center--the function room/activities area located right across the cafe. 

5. Are you open everyday?

* No. We used to have our day-off on Monday but we MOVED it to Wednesday since many clients requested that we open on Monday instead.

6. What time do you open and close?

* We open at 11 AM on Mondays to Saturdays. On Sundays we open at 1 PM so we can go to church with our families in the morning. We close at 10 PM on Mondays to Saturdays...and Sundays.

7. Do you do deliveries?

* Not yet.

8. Do you accept credit and debit cards?

* Now we do. Since March 18, 2014.

9. Do you accept solicitations?

* Yes. But we have a limited budget for that. Please accept what we can give.

10. Are you franchising?

* No. Maybe after 20 years.

11. Who owns Cafe Antonio?

* Cafe Antonio is owned by a group of people hence the "Inc." Jabez is the mascot since he's been with the company since the beginning. 

12. Why is my call diverted on Thursdays?

* The cafe's public relations officer is Jabez. He works as an organic farmer at a local farm on Thursdays and comes back to the cafe on Friday afternoons. He diverts your calls on Thursdays to the cafe's bar manager, Elmer, for a quicker response. Because Jabez usually wears gloves or has muddy hands on Thursdays so he can't grab his phone. 

13. Does the cafe serve organic food?

* Not all of the cafe's food are organic yet. As of now we're trying our best to source some of our main ingredients (like lettuce, tomato, cucumber) from local and organic farms. Right now we're still looking for organic sources of coffee. 

14. Does the cafe serve alcohol?

* No. But you can bring wine for a minimal corkage fee of 100 pesos per bottle. Beer and other kinds of alcohol are not allowed.

15. Do you accept reservations?

* Yes. Reservations are not required but we recommend that you make a reservation a day before so we can guarantee you a table. Our place is very small.

16. Do you do catering of food to special events?

* Yes. We have a special bulk order and take out menu for our catering. We also have a service fee for our on-site and off-site catering services. Please refer to the side bar located on the left side of this website for more details.

17. What is Coffee Unplugged?

* Coffee Unplugged is our coffee catering service. We use a manual pour-over brewer to brew coffees on the spot for special occasions.

18. Do you only serve coffee?

* No. We have lots of excellent food to try. We bake our own pizza crusts and breads.

19. What is your cuisine?

* There's no particular genre that we follow but we have pastas, pizzas, paninis and burgers, salads, and specialty dishes that are Filipino and Asian-inspired.

20. Is there a dress code at the cafe?

* No. Casual clothes will do. This is Los Banos, you can wear anything that's comfortable since it can get very warm in this town. Though we have air-conditioning.

21. What is CAnton?

* CAnton was the nickname given to us by our customers back in 2008. It has stuck ever since. Oldskool customers still call us CAnton to this day. 

22. Do you have WiFi?
* Yes, finally! But for a long period, our slogan used to be "We SatiFi with No WiFi." Other slogans were: Your Coffee, Our Passion; Groove to a Different Bean; Coffee will Save the Day; and now, "Specialty Coffee and Hearty Meals."

23. What's up with the new logo?
* That's a manual drip coffee brewer placed on top of a ceramic cup. It symbolizes our emphasis on low-input yet high quality, hand-crafted, made-to-order coffee brewing.

24. Why are there so many owls in the cafe? And who is Owltonio?
* The "owl craze" started in 2011 when a customer brought a stuffed white owl to the cafe. Jabez blurted out "Owltonio" at the site of the plushie and Ian (one of our former baristas) "borrowed" it from the customer. We called the owl, "Owltonio," made it our mascot and named our house blend coffee after it. Since then we kinda stuck with the "nocturnal coffee-drinkin' owl" concept and people started giving us owls of all shapes and sizes as a sign of true and lasting friendship. 

25. What is a CAntoneer?
* Cafe Antonio survived on student volunteers for quite some time. We called them CAntoneers and we call on them to help during special events.