BINGKA, bebingka, or rice cake is part of the diet of Bacolodnons and Negrenses alike and is best eaten when it's hot, matched with a hot cup of coffee in the morning or during snacktime.
While many people have tasted so many kinds of bebingka, the authentic taste that dates back to the year 1980 belongs to the Gutierrez family under Mrs. Fermina T. Gutierrez at Burgos market.
Binks Gutierrez, the 8th of the 11 offspring of Mrs. Fermina Gutierrez, shared it was her mother who started their bebingka business and was sustained by them up to now.
"My mother started to brew native coffee for the low-income coffee drinkers way back in 1965. Then they experimented with making puto (steamed rice cake) to match the brewed coffee and in 1980, we started to make bebingka up to now," she said.
They loved to share the good taste of Gutierrez bebingka because people always have their positive comments on its taste.
She said they do not cook much because they do not want to also tire themselves but they have quite a lot of regular customers every day.
The ingredients are fresh buko shredded meat, coconut milk, and rice, among others.
All of the ingredients are sourced from the Burgos Public Market.
Now that there is the Covid-19 pandemic, they are prudent in making bebingka so that it will not go to waste when fewer people order due to travel restraint.
Binks is being assisted by her daughter Angel when making bebingka. They do not have other helpers because they want to make sure that the taste and quality are maintained.
Their food shop is located at Burgos Public Market.
Bikers and other locals flock to their tiny place just to taste the freshly baked bebingka cooked in wood-fired kiln.