A legend in the baking
There are five love languages commonly known to man. On top of service, touch, gifts, affirmation and time, it seems the pandemic might have unleashed a sixth food as many locked down at home turned to the kitchen to learn to cook or bake for themselves or their loved ones.
Just like these two exceptional gents, neighbors in the south of Metro Manila, who came together in the kitchen to concoct their own sweet desserts, which has now become a steadily growing home business.
In less than a year, buzz has been spreading about Crack.Ph’s own recipe for its crack pies, big, fat, New York style chocolate chip cookies, and even off-the-menu offerings like bacon pepperoni focaccia pizza and truffle macaroni and cheese with foie gras.
While still a side hustle for public relations executive Mark Christian Parlade and former airline pilot Gabriel Antonio Mendoza, the two are proud of Crack.Ph’s continued growth, especially as a business born out of the pandemic.
“Many food and beverage businesses closed because they had to face constantly changing dining regulations,” said Parlade. “The silver lining is that people are tired of cooking at home, so more are looking to have food delivered than ever before. The more different, more novel the cuisine, the better, because people are looking for something new.”
The steady stream of inquiries and orders on their Instagram account bears this out.
Love is all you knead
Between the business partners, it is Mendoza who is the creative kitchen whiz. When the former second officer found himself flying less and less because of the pandemic, he started baking and offering private dining experiences for friends. The most popular offering was his version of the crack pie from New York, a rich, ooey-gooey concoction that sparks joy with every bite.
“I’m a really shy guy but I’ve found that connect better with people through food,” Mendoza says. “When I first made the pie for my friends to taste, I was addicted to how they reacted. I’ve aspired to draw out that same reaction with everything we make now.”
Lately, he has been busy perfecting the recipe for a new pie offering for Christmas, the grasshopper mint crack pie. The new variant is a take on a popular pie with three layers: a mint cream-cheese bottom, a thick, rich fudge center, topped with a chocolate chip marshmallow barrier providing a surprising change in texture.
With its use of the oat-buttery crust that set their original crack pie apart, the grasshopper pie is an entire Christmas experience while staying true to the flagship pie. It is now available for pre-order via @Crack.Ph on Instagram.
Batter late than never
Getting creative in the kitchen is a new skill set for Parlade, the public relations director at award-winning agency Stratworks who trades in his stories and strategies for spatulas during the evenings and weekends.
“What I love about public relations is the exact opposite of what I enjoy in baking,” he says. “You have to plan around so many variables in PR since you deal mostly with people, you learn to anticipate things beyond your control. Baking is an exact science. What you put in, how much you put in will deliver the exact flavor or texture it is always meant to.”
It was only during the pandemic and with Mendoza that he learned to cook and bake, but he always enjoys the reaction or feedback people give about their products.
“It’s very fulfilling every time our customers profess their love for our products,” he adds. “It’s addicting and this inspires us to make the business grow by getting more and more people to love our products.”
Recently, SM Aura invited the pair, along with other startups, to sell at a bazaar called Farmer’s Produce organized by Resto PH director Spanky Enriquez. They can’t decide which fact they are more upbeat about: the fact that they got to meet their customers for the first time some even driving from far away just to buy the pies in person or the fact that their pies sold out.
“Mark and I share that same drive to be thoughtful,” Mendoza says. “We are firm believers in a good experience, and that every food should give people a good story. Hearing the feedback we’ve been getting since we started this year encourage us to keep coming up with new products hence our Off The Menu items while continuously promoting the crack pie that started it all for us. Food is our love language, and we’re all about giving people that perfect bite.”
To order or know more, follow @crack.ph on Instagram and Facebook.
