"Baker Geleen Abenoja uses her grandmother’s recipe to make ube halaya, a Filipino jam of mashed purple yams, which then becomes the star ingredient of Abenoja’s ube crinkle cookies. The royal purple-hued, cakey-textured cookies get a dusting of powdered sugar before landing in Shop Halo Halo’s pastry case." - Rebecca Roland
"Shop Halo Halo, open Thursday through Sunday within the combination bakery and plant store Botanical Bakeshop, is an inventive exploration of Filipino pastries and flavors, with an ever-changing menu of things like bibingka, cassava cake, ube cupcakes, and lavender calamansi shortbread. Those seeking the shop’s namesake treat will find that here, as well, incorporating owner Geleen Abenoja’s house-made ube halaya." - Michelle Lopez
"Geleen Abenoja opened Botanical Bakeshop, a combination plant shop and bakery, with florist Daphne Peters; to the left, Abenoja’s Shop Halo Halo serves ube crinkle cookies and the sticky-sweet rice dish biko, while Peters operates Daphne’s Botanicals to the right. Treats in the pastry case change with relative regularity, which means some visits may involve dramatic towers of sans rival, the Pinoy take on the dacquoise with Swiss meringue buttercream and salted roasted cashews, while others may involve luscious blueberry-calamansi cheesecake. Many of the bakery’s treats accommodate vegan or gluten-free diners." - Krista Garcia, Eater Staff
"Baker Geleen Abenoja uses her grandmother’s recipe to make ube halaya, a Filipino jam of mashed purple yams, which then becomes the star ingredient of Abenoja’s ube crinkle cookies. The royal purple-hued, cakey-textured cookies get a dusting of powdered sugar before landing in Shop Halo Halo’s pastry case." - Kara Stokes, Janey Wong
"Geleen Abenoja is offering Filipino desserts at her bake shop, from treats like ube cheesecake, buko pie, and peach mango cobbler to gluten-free delights like cassava cake, leche flan, and bibingka. Orders close Saturday, November 18 at 5 p.m. or when sold out and will be available for pickup on November 22 or 23." - Janey Wong