The Queen of Onyang's Leche Flan

Leche flan is one my kids and husband's favorite dessert. I've cooked many times in the past to surprise my family but my effort always fail.  One time Rafael said, "it's kinda hard, Mom. It's more like a pudding". Julia once said, "Mom, what did you put, it doesn't taste like leche flan?". At syempre mas madami pang kwentong letse, este leche, dyan pero di ko na iisa-isahin pa sa sobrang dami. 

Today is a sweet and inspiring leche flan kind of story.   This is about Onyang's Leche Flan.  The owners are Manny and Joy Marcella.  The story of Onyang's was featured already at Jessica Soho. Sikat na para ma feature sa Jessica! 

Joy is my high school classmate at St. Francis in Novaliches. The last time we met was in 2000 for our 10th year after batch reunion.  I remember that Joy used to bring leche flan in my office at BayanTel. I'll take orders for my ex-officemates and Joy will deliver. She worked for Philhealth for 10 years, then in Canada for 2 years. I lost track of her until Gigi told me that Joy is now a successful businesswoman because of leche flan.

I've been featuring success and inspiring stories of people I just meet, e bakit naman hindi ang kaklase ko? Joy was very busy so I waited, waited and waited. After 15 years, I was able to finally meet again the Queen of Onyang's Leche Flan last Tuesday at Spatzle.

It was supposed to be a short meeting until we both decided to visit her house, Onyang's factory and Ella and Shine Halo-Halo.

Though we share the same name, I remember Joy as my exact opposite. She's lady-like, I'm boyish. She's fashionable, I'm baduday. She's ligawin (madaming nanliligaw), I'm ligawin (laging naliligaw, nawawala, nalilito sa mga daanan).

Even though Joy is now big in the food industry, she's still humble. No air at all! She treats their employees as part of the family.

Joy's love for Papemelroti is the same as my love for its products. Pareho kaming meron ng dalawang ito sa banyo.

Joy's house is amazingly fun to visit because she collects cute toys from dolls, movie characters, tin cans and a lot more!

For a long time I wanted to see Joy to write about the success story of Onyang's Leche Flan. After our whole day together, I realized it's not about her business that I wanted to write about, anyway Jessica Sojo did that already.  Joy's journey to life is an inspiring one. She may have had adversity from time to time, but she have it within her to get up, shake the dust off and try again. Why then do many of us find it difficult to achieve success and experience the joy that comes with it? Well, because many are too afraid to get hurt, to fall and to fail. But not Joy. She's one hell of a tough woman to battle all those trials to get to where she is now.  Salute to you, tukayo!

At inihatid pa nya ko pauwi sa aking bahay. It was a joyful reunion of two Joys after 15 long years! 

 "To create an extraordinary joyful life, one must share abundance of love,  a generous heart and extremely sufficient laughter".
-Joy Mendiola
February 4, 2015