One pint at a time
The warmest welcomes often begin in the kitchen. Before the first greeting, before a glass of water is offered, there is already the comforting sense that someone has been preparing for you.
In Filipino homes, that welcome has always had a familiar aroma. Champorado on a rainy morning. Ginataang bilo-bilo on a Sunday afternoon. Inutak slowly caramelizing over a wood fire. Today, these iconic flavors are finding new expressions in an unexpected place: a pint of premium, handcrafted ice cream.
Trading the track for the kitchen
Marcelo’s Microcreamery is redefining premium Filipino ice cream by transforming beloved regional desserts into refined, small-batch creations. Every pint offers a contemporary way to experience flavors long part of the Filipino table.
Founded by John Marcelo, a former professional race car driver who represented the Philippines in Formula 3 and other international motorsport competitions, the creamery grew from a realization that arrived far from the racetrack. Because no matter where racing took him around the world, Marcelo made it a point to seek out the best local ice cream and gelato shops between races and vacations.
What began as a childhood sweet tooth then became a lifelong curiosity about how different cultures expressed themselves through frozen desserts. While standing before a supermarket freezer one day, he noticed that while international flavors filled the shelves, very little reflected the richness and diversity of Filipino desserts.
“Every athlete eventually has to pivot, and when it was my time, I decided to chase this lifelong passion. I just traded the track for the kitchen,” he says.
“Now that I’ve stopped racing, promoting our culture through ice cream gives me the same sense of pride I felt when I was representing the Philippines on the track. Creating these unmistakably Filipino flavors is just my new way of raising that same flag.”
That same commitment has earned Marcelo’s Microcreamery a Katha Award from the Center for International Trade Expositions and Missions, recognizing its craftsmanship and potential to bring Filipino flavors to the global stage.
From regional desserts to premium Filipino ice cream
Each Marcelo’s Microcreamery recipe begins with a beloved regional dessert, thoughtfully refined through research, ingredient sourcing, and countless rounds of tasting to capture its essence in ice cream form.
Produced in small batches using simple, recognizable ingredients and proudly halal-certified, every pint reflects the precision, care, and creativity that define a true microcreamery.
Take Inutak, where smoked ube rice pudding is folded into creamy coconut ice cream then finished off with caramelized custard. Inspired by the Malabon delicacy, it transforms a regional favorite into something elegant and unexpected while preserving the smokiness achieved through traditional cooking over fire.
Then there is Latik-Latik, where toasted coconut curds are suspended in rich coconut ice cream. The unmistakable aroma of slowly caramelized coconut is reimagined in a scoop that is both comforting and luxurious.
Mangga’t Suman pairs bright mango sorbet with chewy rice, capturing the familiar pleasure of one of the country’s simplest yet most beloved combinations, while Chocolate Champorado transforms heritage Philippine tablea into a frozen dessert that feels both nostalgic and contemporary.
Even the playful Bilo-Bilo—filled with macapuno mochi, saba, and jackfruit—recreates the delight of finding your favorite ingredient in every spoonful.
Ube Macapuno Champorado recalls celebrations shared around the family table, while Pistachio Kunafa—created with chef Nouel Catis, the Filipino pastry chef behind the original Dubai chocolate—demonstrates how Filipino craftsmanship can confidently engage with global culinary influences while remaining rooted in its own identity.
Flavors that connect us
Behind every pint is an entire community of Filipino producers—from farmers who cultivate ube, coconuts, mangoes, and cacao to the artisans who transform those ingredients into ice cream. Marcelo’s commitment to local sourcing reflects a belief that extraordinary flavors begin long before they reach the freezer.
One pint at a time, these distinctly Filipino creations are finding a place in family freezers, on dining tables, and on menus beyond our shores—not simply as nostalgic favorites but as contemporary expressions of the country’s rich and evolving culinary identity.
Through Marcelo’s Microcreamery, a new generation is rediscovering familiar connections while setting a new course for Filipino ice cream. In doing so, it proves that the country’s most cherished flavors are not only worth preserving—they are ready to be reimagined for generations to come.
Marcelo’s Microcreamery is available at: Landers, The Marketplace, Shopwise, Robinsons, Metro Retail, Hey Day Philippines, One World Deli, Likhang Filipino Exhibit
