My relatives invited us to go sand surfing at Paoay Sand Dunes and then we headed to Laoag City Ilocos Norte to search for a place to eat our dinner.  La Preciosa is just by the roadside so it's easy to spot along with other popular restaurants.  But, parking by the roadside is a bit of a challenge especially during peak hours. 

We were intrigued by the long lines at La Presciosa and decided to join in.  We had to wait around 30 minutes before we were called in.  It's a good thing that they have a seated waiting area outside so we were able to order in advance comfortably.  Moreover, the owner was there too and she shared the history of La Preciosa to my aunt.


According to proprietress Pam Aragoza, the restaurant was named in honor of her mother Preciosa Palma who first started Peppermint Café back in 1994.  Back then, they catered mostly to local residents because tourism was not so prominent.  When her mother passed away, they decided to move to a bigger location and La Preciosa was born.


La Preciousa is actually a old-style residential home turned restaurant.  It's a two story house with a terrace which they use as an al fresco buffet area.

Buffet (250 php)

For those who are not willing to wait, they suggest to them their buffet selections for only 250 php.  I went up and took a peek at their selections.  I saw the eggplant omelette (poqui-poqui) and the chicken pepian among them but somehow buffet didn't appeal much to us since we want to have full control of our options.

Soon enough, we were called in.  We passed by their small shop section where they sold local delicacies including coffee beans and their cake display.

Tiramisu (900 php/whole cake)

Banoffee Cake (90 php/slice)

As I passed by the kitchen area going to the rest room, I noticed that a lot of customers order the cakes by whole for take out. 

Food
My dear aunt, who hosted our dinner, was in-charge of ordering.  Showing utmost hospitality to fellow Tsinoy Foodie Kurt who she came to know is a first timer in Ilocos, she selected the recommendable Ilocano dishes for him to try out.  

P.S. Pardon our crappy photos, we were really hungry and eager to eat after the tiring activity and the wait.

Vegetables

Eggplant Omelette (110 php)

The Eggplant Omelette or locally known in Ilocano as poqui-poqui is eggplant cooked with egg and tomatoes.  This is fairly good but we both agree that the one we had at Kusina Felicitas is better in terms of texture and taste.


Ilocano Dishes

♥ Insarabasab (160 php)

The Insarabasab is grilled pork and liver in papaitan sauce.  Although I've been to Ilocos countless of times, this dish is a first time for me too.  We all loved this!  The mild chewiness of the grilled pork and liver countered by the crunchiness of the onions makes this pleasurable to eat.  The sourness is also in an appetizing level.
 

♥ Crispy Dinardaraan (160 php)

The Crispy Dinardaraan is the Ilocano version of dinuguan with an added crispy twist.  This was perfectly executed!  We all enjoyed this.

♥ Chicken Pepian (160 php)

The Chicken Pepian is chicken kare-kare cooked in Ilocano style.  This was suggested by the server as their specialty dish so we took her advise.  I'm glad we did.  In fact, we ordered two of this because we loved it so much.
 

Sinanglao (165 php)

Their version of Sinanglao is not too sour and has a bit ginger and peppery taste.  The meat is tender enough.  Somehow, it was pale in comparison to Kusina Felicitas version.


Beverages

Bottomless Iced Tea (55 php)

We asked the server if the Bottomless Iced Tea is house blend.  He told us yes but it turned out to be Nestea.  We didn't mind though since all of us were so thirsty after our day activity under the sun.  We just wished calling for refill could have been easier.


Cakes & Desserts

♥ Carrot Cake (240 php/Whole Mini Cake)

When we asked for their signature cake, the waiter suggested the Carrot Cake.   However, he soon came back and informed us that no more slices for the Carrot Cake were available so we had no choice but to order the whole mini cake. It's a good thing we did because it was delicious!  It was served warm, soft and moist.  The texture and sweetness of the buttercream icing is just right too. 

Tiramisu (90 php/slice)

Another best-seller is their Tiramisu so we also had to try it.  The Tiramisu was a bit sweet with light coffee taste and a crunchy broas at the side.  It didn't stand out as much as the Carrot Cake for us. 


Tsinoy Foodies Verdict
La Preciosa offers delicious Ilocano dishes with fine dining yet local and homey feel.  This is definitely an excellent choice when you're opting for authentic Ilocano food in Laoag.  Despite it being fine dining, the food is quite affordable.  Although Kurt is not usually adventurous in terms of food, I could safely declare that he enjoyed this one.  However, our experience would have been better if the service is a bit faster.  Although the servers are friendly, we could see them scrambling to accommodate the high demands of diners as well as those ordering for take out.   Oh, and don't worry about the attire because we managed to get in wearing shorts and sandy flip flops during our visit.