Corridor café

Barbara's Café in the old walled city of Intramuros is located in one of the wide passageways that lead from the street to the inner courtyard of the Plaza San Luis complex. Called a zaguan, it was the corridor where carruajes (horse-drawn carriages) would pass through to drop their passengers off by the entrance. The floor is paved with granite, what was and still is called piedra china (Chinese stone) because they were originally used by Chinese traders as ballast in their junks. The chairs and tables at Barbara's Café are what we call batibot chairs and tables. Batibot means 'small but strong and sturdy.' The wooden seats and tabletop are wrapped in sheet iron, and the legs and seat backs are made of bent iron rods; even the studs and rivets are made of solid iron.