Category Archives: Restaurants

Food Trip: Tawi-Tawi

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Tawi-tawi is the Philippines southernmost province. Due to its relative inaccessibility as well as concerns about the peace and order situation in the surrounding areas, it hasn’t been attracting as many travelers and tourists as other provinces. I was fortunate however to visit it last week to see some of its beautiful sights, and sample its food.

Since it’s an island province, I presumed that seafood would be plentiful. I also knew that pork would not be available, as it’s predominantly Muslim. I found out that most of the inns/hotels in Bongao, the capital town, have their own restaurants which serve regular Pinoy fare (mostly beef, chicken and seafood dishes). There are also a lot of carinderias (small eateries) and cafes if you want to try local specialties. If you’re planning a trip to Tawi-tawi, here are some of the dishes you can try out.

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Binondo Food Trip with Ford

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I normally hate driving to some areas in Manila. Binondo, in particular, with its mad traffic  and congested alleys is pretty hard to drive around. If I have to go here, I’d rather commute or take my scooter instead of the car. It doesn’t help that I drive a secondhand manual car with a really hard clutch that has conked out on the road more than once. But a few days before Chinese New Year, I found myself driving through Binondo’s streets and actually enjoying it.

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Rock & Ride Biker Music Bar in Antipolo

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There’s a new biker bar in town!

Rock and Ride Biker Music Bar in Antipolo opened just last December 21, 2012, in time for the “end of the world” according to owner Jowel Rubio Yauder, an artist and motorcycle enthusiast. Jowel, who started working on the place since February last year, has been riding since his early high school days.

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Food Trip: Sagada

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In recent years, Sagada has gotten a reputation for having lots of great eating places. If you’ve been there, you can probably agree that the cool crisp mountain air and all that walking around surely works up an appetite. Thankfully, there are lots of great restaurants to try out. For those who like to plan where to eat in advance, here’s a list of some of the restaurants we sampled during our five-day trip there, with accessibility ratings and distance on foot from the town center (with the hospital as the starting point).

MISTY LODGE & CAFÉ

  • Accessibility: Medium
  • Distance from town center: 10-15 minutes 
  • Bonus points: Great food selection, hands-on service, WiFi

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Food Trip: Capiz

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Capiz is known as the seafood capital of the Philippines. You can enjoy a variety of fresh seafood here like prawns, crabs, catfish, and oysters cooked in a variety of ways – grilled, steamed, stew, fried, dried smoked or even raw – take your pick! I really enjoyed our food-tripping experience and got to try some unique dishes for the first time. Here are some of the memorable meals I had in Capiz.

Puyoy (grilled eel): At first glance, this barbecue dish looks like something out of Fear Factor. The street-food resembles tiny snakes skewered isaw-style and grilled. I’ve tasted types of eel before in soups and stews, but this was the first time that I tried it barbecue style. It really helps if you don’t look at it directly or think about it too much when you eat because the heads are intact and you can see the open mouth of the eel through the stick. It tasted like grilled fish, only slightly slimier with tiny crunchy bones (like those of sardines). I think it would have tasted better if it were dipped in vinegar.

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Craft Beers in the Philippines

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Despite our love for drinking, the craft beer scene here in the Philippines is still quite young compared to other countries. The good thing is that this means there’s plenty of room for growth. While guzzling down 99 bottles of beer for a self-imposed sidequest, I was glad to come across some great craft beers which are brewed right here in the country. If you’re a beer enthusiast or you just want to try mixing up your usual Friday drinking sessions, here are some alternatives to the usual bucket of San Mig.

Bogsbrew and Primo

  • ABV: 5.0%
  • Price: P78/bottle (purchased at Penpen’s, Cubao X)

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A Taste of Baguio an Hour Away

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From the wide windows of the main restaurant, the grove of pine trees and the rolling hills in the distance looked almost Baguio-like. In one corner of the rustic building made of wood and bricks, was a rocking chair in front of a fireplace. The sound of crickets chirping mingled with the tinkling of wooden chimes swaying with the mountain breeze.

It’s hard to believe that Paseo Rizal Mayagay in Tanay, Rizal is just an hour and half’s drive from Manila. Before we left, I was sweltering in the heat of Quezon City. That same afternoon and evening, I regretted not bringing a jacket.

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Food Trip: Zamboanga City

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The last time I visited Zamboanga City was a few years ago and only for a quick stopover from Jolo, Sulu. This year, for the coverage of the La Hermosa Festival, I got to try a lot of different eating places and was pleasantly surprised at the range of great food and places to eat. From popular seafood dishes to a wide array of local specialties with “a touch of Spanish, American and Asian influences,” visitors are in for a culinary treat. Here’s my pick of what and where to eat in Zamboanga City.

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Solo Tripping in Surigao City

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It feels strange to be sitting still in front of the computer back in Manila after several days of being constantly on the move. During a very unplanned solo trip last week, I found myself hopping from plane to jeep to boat to van to bus to habal-habal with no clear itinerary, making decisions on the fly, encountering very helpful people on the road, and ending up in places both weird and wonderful.

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Food Trip: Catanduanes

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Aside from the great surf and host of nature and outdoor adventures, the province of Catanduanes in the Bicol region boasts of some of the best food. Bicolano cuisine is known for its generous use of gata (coconut milk) and spicy ingredients. Mix that with the natural abundance of seafood in the island-province, and you’ve got a perfect match. Here’s a food diary of the most memorable meals from my trip there.

Lobster: This delicious dish of steamed lobster was served for lunch in Majestics Beach Resort in Puraran Beach, a major surfing and tourist destination in the province. The meat of the lobster tasted tender and a bit sweeter than crab meat. Since the flavor was a bit mild, this went really well with calamansi and soy sauce.

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