The 11th edition-May 2012 of the Lonely Planet (page 186) reads, “a tricycle ride away is the fantastic Small Talk Cafe (51 Dona Aurora St. 11am to 10pm), which defines the notion of Bicol-fusion cooking, with dishes such its ‘Bicol express’ pasta, pinangat-filled ravioli, great salads and pili nut desserts. There’s great decoration, too, with old local photos displayed on the walls.” This short
description may have defined the character of Small Talk Cafe since it was established more than a decade ago. Established in 1999 as a Single Proprietorship, Small Talk Cafe is under the ownership of the Vicente Peralta family. It values its relations with its employees, and most of its workforce has been with Small Talk Cafe for more than ten (10) years. In fact, three (3) of its key employees are still with Small Talk Cafe when it first opened with only eight (8) tables. Today, the restaurant can serve more than sixty (60) persons during lunchtime and dinner. For its growth, credit should be given to its commitment to the value of quality, that is, a restaurant should zealously focus on a standardized recipe, proper food handling and sanitation, and never compromise on ingredients. Small Talk Cafe has not confined its food service to the four corners of the restaurant and caters to wedding feasts and luncheon meetings, like that of the Monetary Board of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas, including roundtable discussions regularly held by several companies. Small Talk Cafe has also been a showcase for the Department of Tourism, the Provincial Government of Albay and the City Government of Legazpi for its guests and official visitors. Then Tourism Secretary Durano and Robert Dean Barbers became frequent visitors of Small Talk Cafe. Other personalities that have visited includes then US Ambassador Kristie Kenney, Senators Angara, Flavier, Villar and Enrile, and several showbiz personalities like Derek Ramsay, Coco Martin, Sam Milby, Kim Chu, Sara Geronimo, and members of the APO Hiking Society. Small Talk Cafe has been featured both in print and on TV, too. This includes the Inquirer’s Sunday Biz, Cebu Pacific’s Smile, PAL’s Mabuhay, Rina Jimenez David’s column in the PDI, Christine Dayrit’s column in the Manila times, Marc Logan’s segment in TV Patrol, and Jessica Soho’s Kapuso. Recently, an online poll in Culinaria Albay’s page ranked Small Talk Cafe as no.1 in the top five restaurants “that come highly recommended by true-blue Bicolanos and foreigners.
