Located in Alhibé Farm in Brgy. Sac-on, Carmen, Cebu. The Cafe has a limited capacity of only 44 diners to preserve the farm's serene and relaxing atmosphere. The term Agwas comes from the Visayan term which means a water system source. This is in respect and appreciation to the Farm's existing spring water source that has provided clean drinking water for generations to the surrounding mountain communities. This is also in connection to the Farm's name ALHIBE, which is also a Visayan term for Water reservoir. So now our ALHIBE has now an AGWAS attached to it.

When hippie souls like us plan on a trip, our first choice would always be up in the mountains, or anywhere surrounded with trees and being close to nature. So when this space was created, we poured out that dreamy vision into this place. Meticulously planned to scoot over those tiny spaces in between trees and steep terrain, one can sit literally under the built bamboo leaf lounge and look up to the transparent roof showcasing tree canopies above.

This bamboo café, which we considered slow and sustainable, is designed under our boutique firm M+S Studio Co , made from locally sourced bamboo and handcrafted by Alhibé Farm inhouse and local team in the Farm. A testament to the amazing things you can create with such humble and forgiving natural material.

From conceptualizing Agwas Café bamboo architecture, to sourcing of materials to the build phase to the food that we serve, we, M+S Studio Co are hands-on in every detail, reflecting our passion and love to offer that complete natural experience. We always want to keep our Guests' experience close to nature and make that trip worthwhile from the space we create to the food menu that we curate, with some of the ingredients coming from what we've planted on our farm's backyard garden itself, while the rest are sourced out from what's locally and easily available in the town's market and local suppliers. 

"We have always had a great affinity to bamboo. It is embedded in our culture. Since we were young, we’ve seen bamboo being used for simple house construction and basic everyday use. However, we lacked the technical bamboo building knowledge and expertise. For this reason, I was inspired to join Bamboo U." -Marvin

When we worked on this project, we felt we went beyond satisfying our desire to achieve a certain aesthetic. For us, it's become an expression of our interconnectedness with nature and what we, as designers can do for its conservation.

We feel we have this responsibility to design such experiential spaces that help satisfy the user's innate desire to connect with nature.

"Connection to nature" is frequently used to describe our enduring relationship with nature, including emotions, attitudes and behaviour. Research shows that people with a greater connection are more likely to behave positively towards the environment, which may be critical for future nature conservation."

This is the very first bamboo villa completed for WOOLOO located in Garing, Consolacion Cebu. Our very first client who trusted us to design for them their sustainable bamboo developments. We collaborated with their in house bamboo construction team to translate our designs to life!