Do you know Snackee? He was McDo and Jobee's genetic mixture.

How Snackee has withstood the drastic economic demands and ‘diverse taste’ of Binalbaganons.

Foremost this is a long overdue commentary about my hometown, Binalbagan. I left this town for almost a decade to study in Bacolod (capital), and only went home for New Year’s eve since 2004. Not until 2015 when I resigned from my job as a nurse, and so I had lots of flashbacks of this placed dubbed as “Banwang Panganay” (the first town to have been established by spaniards eons ago). Well, take a look at this picture below. Hello rich kids, that is Snackee. He just happen to have lived a low profile life, while the entire world was busy collecting happy meals and eating chicken joy. In our small town, Binalbagan, much of my childhood memories were contributed by Snackee. He does not only offer snacks, rather, meals and a lot of space to play. Okay, it seems to be a copycat of the famous Mc Do Lacson branch with huge play place in the center. (I wonder where the heck did they dump those colorful plastic tunnels). 

Look at Snackee’s face, his hair and nose looks like Ronald’s and his eyes and physique is that of the happy bee, Jollibee. He is happy.

For more than two decades, Snackee is still operational here in Binalbagan. Not that I wonder if who were those patronizing it, but I am glad on how far it has endured Binalbagan’s drastic economic demands. Most of the restaurants here close, or re settle into another place after about 3-5 years of operation. But then, Snackee remained in its place for almost 20 years. Now, we have here: Mila’s (a branch of the Hinigaran renowned buko pie) and also Melting Pot (and I remembered a shooting incident that occurred at Melting Pot beside RMCI, 5 years ago) to name a few. Nevertheless, I am happy of the many more fastfood stores and cafes that sprout around the corners of the town. Indeed, I think Binalbagan has established its silent and resilient mark in the province, amidst all trials it’s economy has faced.


Snackee for me is a symbol of resilience. Amidst may competitors in the fastfood business, it has remained operational, discreet and true to its purpose--to provide affordable food. Binalbaganons for me are resilient too, amidst all the trials we encountered, we have kept our faith in God and trust to our individual families.
Come and visit Binalbagan, 6107. It's just an hour and a half trip from Bacolod City through the popular Ceres bus, or merely an hour using a private car. Our fiesta is on May 15th, celebrated with an annual Balbagan Festival, and our patron saint is St. Isidore / 'San Isidro Labrador' (the parish church is located just accross the town hall).

Snackee's FB fanpage: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Snackee-gusto-Ko-Happy-Ka-Binalbagan-Negros-Occidental/220347111439725