GENERAL SANTOS CITY (MindaNews / 24 August) — A social media post about a newly opened café in General Santos City stirred more than just coffee – a debate over how much residents are willing to pay for quality and what it means for the city’s evolving consumer culture.
The Facebook post on August 21 on GenSan DEV, a page that features developments in the city, introduced Downtown Café and its menu, which includes specialty coffee and imported Japanese matcha.
Signature items such as the Sausage Platter (₱530) and Fish n’ Chips (₱550), ceremonial matcha (₱295), and specialty coffee (up to ₱240) drew attention, and the post went viral with many netizens debating over its prices.
As of Sunday, the post has garnered over 1,400 shares and more than 800 reactions.
Some netizens called it “too expensive,” while others welcomed the idea of cafés setting higher standards in General Santos.
Food blogger Ric Sherwin Verzosa, who has reviewed cafés across Davao, Cebu, Manila, and General Santos, offered a balanced perspective.
“Most of the cafés here in Gensan are struggling because of the rising costs of milk, beans, and other ingredients. Yet, for the past three years, many of them have kept their prices steady, even if it means their profit margins are now very small,” he wrote in a Facebook post on August 22.
He noted that while he had mixed feelings about the café’s drink sizes and pricing, he respected its commitment to quality.
Inside the establishment, staff like Gwyneth Carno emphasized the experience beyond trends.
“Here, we don’t just serve drinks for the ‘gram. We serve Yardstick coffee and authentic Japanese matcha with care, using premium equipment that brings out their true flavors,” she said, commenting on Verzosa’s earlier post.
For some locals, the prices reflect the city’s evolving consumer culture and are part of a larger shift in the its lifestyle scene.
Ivy Rhea Cabuslay, a longtime resident, shared online that she found the prices acceptable as the café’s rates account for rental, labor, and imported ingredients, targeting middle- to upper-class earners.
“If they don’t recoup their investment through product prices, the café can’t sustain itself. No need to reklamo kung dili masabtan ang root of costs’ ani,” she wrote. (No need to complain if you can’t understand the root of costs.)
Event organizer Michael Andrew Carbon shared his perspective on the reactions to the post, stating that “GenSan is a hard-to-please market segment of consumers.”
He told MindaNews that not all residents share this view. In a separate post, he noted that while many ask for high-quality brands and restaurants, some immediately complain about prices.
“Hindi kayo ang target market. Valid yun. But wag naman nating icareer ang ganitong mindset. Investors are raising the bar for Gensan. It comes with birth pains lalo na sa profile ng consumers natin,” he wrote. (You’re not the target market. That’s valid. But let’s not make a big deal out of this mindset. Investors are raising the bar for GenSan, and these ‘birth pains’ are part of the process, especially given the profile of our consumers.)
He added that attracting more developments, even if most people aren’t the target market, would ultimately benefit the local economy and create more jobs.
With retail giants like S&R set to open soon, he wondered how residents would respond when confronted with another round of premium pricing.
As more premium establishments open, it remains to be seen how ready General Santos residents are to engage with higher-priced offerings. (Guia A. Rebollido/MindaNews)
