Restaurant Reviews

[ckice168]

whoa... easy on Pier One... (Most people already get the picture.) The food is bad and the service is bad. But look on the bright side, someone is telling them and soon, if not now, they should be doing something about it. It can only get better right? I haven't eaten there on account everyone has told me its sooooo bad. I might just try it to see for myself.

That's what makes this thread worth the look-see-look-see once in awhile.

People, be heard and make a review!

I just had merienda at Cafe Laguna Ayala Mall Branch:

Dishes:
1. Fresh Lumpia (bamboo shoots)
2. Pandesal with Keso Puti
3. Fried Lumpia (bean sprouts)

The dishes were pretty good for a merianda, but the Kesong Puti is not worth it. Soo small for 2 cute pieces of bread with a slice of cheese 2mm thick... I would have thought for 85buck(I think or was it 80) the cheese would have been thicker. Well at least enought for me to bite into... The Fresh Lumpia is always a hit. "Secret's in the Sauce". Fried Lumpia was a bit of a let down. Too oily and it seemed a bit overcooked when I got my order.

This is not my first time eating there for merienda and I have to say, the ambiance is a lot better than the previouse location, underneath the escalator but really, food has deteriorated as of late.

Ratings:
Food = 3.5 of 5
Ambiance = 4.5 of 5 (doesn't get any better inside a shopping mall!)
Service = 4 of 5
Price = 3 of 5 (the pandesal was a let down)
Overall = 4 of 5

Would I be back: Yes!
Did I tip? Yes (27php) sukli!

I had a meal at Pino the other day also. Dinner. It was pricey! For 4 people, the bill came to a little over 3k!

Dishes: (will try to remember)

Fried Fritos (Shrimp and Squid)
Fried KangKong
Baked Scallops
Fresh Lumpia
Halaan Soup (clams)
Grilled Tuna Belly
Bisteak Filipino
Chicken Embutido (I think that was the name)
Brazo de Mercedes
Banana Turons
(i might be missing a few smal things...)

Anyway. the Fritos was ordinary. Tasted like a Camaron Rebosado to me... Not worth its price. Fried Kangkong was nice. Scallops are in my books 2nd best in Cebu. Best from Olio! (I did get a little sand in my scallop!) Fresh Lumpia was a let down. Cannot come close to Cafe Laguna. Halaan was very good. Strong ginger flavors and very fresh. Tuna Belly, Bisteak filipino and Chicken Embutido were edible but nothing special. They could be replaced with something else. The Brazo de Mercedes were surprisingly very good. Overall, the dining experience was nice. The drinks are a bit pricy but for the cost of the place, still a good deal. (It cost in the range of 20+Millions to build the place!)

Again, not my first time, but still a pleasant experience.

Ratings:
Food = 3 of 5 (the scallops are a 4.5!)
Ambiance = 5 of 5 (its the classiest Filipino Resto in Cebu. Nice Toilets!)
Service = 5 of 5
Price = 3 of 5 (mahal!)
Overall = 4 of 5 (I think the ambiance and the service made the difference)

Would I be back: Yes!
Did I tip? Yes (100php) fair amount for a fairly large bill.

[pier1 friend]

[quote=ckice168;3087151]whoa... easy on Pier One... (Most people already get the picture.) The food is bad and the service is bad. But look on the bright side, someone is telling them and soon, if not now, they should be doing something about it. It can only get better right? I haven't eaten there on account everyone has told me its sooooo bad. I might just try it to see for myself.

thanks for giving pier one the benefit of the doubt. rest assured all your reviews and comments have reached the owners of pier one. believe me, they are doing something about it. they are trying their damn hardest to improve everything -- from the food to the service. they are working hard night and day to make things right, to give customers the best food and dining experience, and they don't plan to give up. at pier one, there are no failures, just learned lessons. pier one is just 2 months old. i remember the other restaurants when they were just starting out 15-20 years ago, pangit pud ug service, but look where they are now. if you work hard for something, there is no goal that can't be reached. this august 2, they turned 2 months old pa lang, but the improvements are astounding. i'm not forcing you to believe me, just see for yourself.

update: pier one cebu launched their new menu last monday. they have the best tasting prawn dishes in cebu, with prawns harvested from their own prawn farms. nobody can beat their prawns - guaranteed. the lechon sisig, sizzling litid (beef tendon), sizzling bangus belly, beef salpicao, lamb kaldereta, chili prawns, sinigang na sugpo soup, salmon head, calamares fritos, salmon teriyaki,... are big hits with their loyal customers right now. i just ate there tonight and the service was excellent.

Quote: Originally Posted by XYZaL first visit nako sa pier one kay second day sa ila operation, then second 2 weeks later, then and 3rd was recently lang (kay gitagaan nako sila 3rd CHANCE) pero ni samot noon kay way au ila service.. kung dili lang client ako kauban mu hawa jud ko sa lamisa or istoryaon nako ila manager, kay ingnun jud nako na pirti kay way au ilang service.. Pier1 friend, ingna imu friend na tawn sad oi serbisyo pud maau, nag bayad gud ta ug tarong.. cguro retraining sa waiter and cook and change ug management..

really sorry for your bad experience. told the owners of pier one to set up a mobile number para matext ang mga complaints sa customers...

Quote: Originally Posted by usrolla hopefully service sa pier 1 would be like the one in the fort... mas grabe pa to ang tao didto compare dri but still they could cope up sa mga customers....

the fort is the first pier one branch. it's almost 8 years old. it's the biggest and best branch. pier one fort is the branch the cebu owners aspire to be like. that is their goal. and they are working very hard right now so they can improve and be like them.

[ckice168]

thanks!

here is another one for merienda I recently had at Marco Polo Plaza.

If there is anyone from Marco Polo here, please heed!

Poolside Resto, with the brick oven for pizza.

Dishes had:

Bruschetta
Pizza Marco

It was around 4pm. By that time you would expect that oven to be at least warmed up and hot. Anyway. The bruschetta came out first. It was a so-so dish. I noticed that the dough was not properly cooked. But being a bruschetta, it was still edible. Why? Because bruschetta is made with out a topping first and topping added later. So the dough was able to rise, a little and still made the impression of the dish edible. The pizza on the other hand was a sad story. Due to toppings and sauce, it was clear that the pizza was flat and all out horrid. Not to mention it was very bland. Knowing a thing or 2 about baking, I was pretty sure they cooked the pizza in a cold oven. The proper pizza should be cooked and done in less than 5minutes. That means it has to be hot to allow for the bubbles to form on the crust, which also gives its crunchyness.

I told the staff never to allow a customer to order a pizza if the oven wasn't pre-heated to the proper temperature. It just disgusted me to think that a 4star establishment could serve a pizza that way. I remember in Abaca, we ordered the pasta and the staff politely said that the fresh pasta was too thick and the Chef Hyatt refused to serve an imperfect pasta. That's quality control.

Anyway,

Food 1.5 of 5
Ambiance 4 of 5 (would have been a 5 but the pool area can get a bit noisy with kids...)
Service 5 of 5
Price 2 of 5 (it ain't cheap with the +++)
Overall 2.5 of 5 (service is still good and the ambiance still saves the day)

Would I come back: Yes (But never for pizza again!)
Tip, yes: 50php

[iryn]

Quote: Originally Posted by aGoi.. Alavars de Cebu Address: The Hangar, Salinas Drive, Lahug Cuisine: Filipino Price Range: Around 180-250++ per person Meals are priced at: P90 - P600 (but mostly 100+) Well the new Alavars de Cebu is definitely a must try. Although there is not a lot of variety on the food choices, they do have good food. I highly recommend their crispy pata, which is priced around P280 (serves 3-4) and the banana-wrapped lapu-lapu, which comes with this really good sauce. If you're a fan of seafoods, they have a seafood platter which has a lil bit of everything (like scallops, etc.). The place is also famous for their crabs (i forgot the dish name, sorry!) which is around P500+ and serves 3-4. Drinks range from P25-P70. The interiors are nice, simple yet classy. And the place has both airconditioned and non-airconditioned areas. The waiting staff is also friendly. Oh, and they serve complimentary tea! Sweet! I'm definitely going back. Rating: 8.5 out of 10 :mrgreen:

The original owners (the parent's of the current owners) are a family friend of ours bisag katong sa zamboanga pa or basta the orig alavars. Father's day last year or was it this year (i couldn't remember) my dad took us to lunch and I was excited hearing that we were having our lunch at ALAvars cause they said that ilang food didto is yummy. The place was packed but gi attend pud mi og pag-ayo sa mga waiters didto. Food was okey, not something that i would crave for. but something happened na murag na dismaya gyud ko sa restaurant.
We ordered their unlimited plain rice, naka bantay mi na dugay kaayu gi serve nila ang rice and naa na among food and since rice eaters ming tanan and murag gi gutom nasad mi ato, nag cge mi og follow up kung asa na among rice. Unlike golden cowrie na murag they carry a bucket or murag rice cooker man tingali na around then they just place it in your plate, sa alavars, they place it in a huge bowl then mau rana ilang i.refill from time to time. the table next to us were japanese or korean tourists who left a couple of their bowls for the rice na puno2x pa. few minutes after murag na irate nami cge follow up sa among rice, na tag.an na intawn mi og rice but my dad noticed na murag ang rice sa pikas table mau ang gi serve sa amu, so she called the waiter and asked for us to be given new bowl of rice then ni ana ang waiter na nahutdan daw sila and they had to cook more, gusto gyud sa akong dad a new bowl and wanted to speak to their manager, timing naa didto ang anak sa tag.iya when the waiter approached the person and saw na it was my dad, dali2x gyud siya og duol sa among table and apologized and gave us garlic rice while wala pa ang plain rice namu. then timing pud naa sa kitchen ang katong close gyud na migo sa akong dad, then ni apologize gyud sila og maayu and gave us free deserts to compensate tingali sa ilang sayup. after that murag di nako ganahan mu balik ngadto.

[mcuerquis]

My favorite restaurant....

CAFE MARCO
at the Marco Polo Plaza Cebu

Simply the BEST BUFFET IN TOWN!!!
Zee Reader's Choice Award for Best Buffet

Dishes: International (5/5)
Live stations offering Japanese, Western and Asian Cuisine. And what a dessert buffet!
In the Japanese corner, of course you can find the sushi and sashimi, tempura as well, miso soup and others. In the Asian corner, you've got to try the peding duck, and my other favorites in that corner: siomai, chicken feet, lechon!
And yes, i mentioned my favorite station - the Dessert! From fresh fruits cut in front of you, to wide array of cakes and sweets, creat your own halo-halo, ice cream station, and crepes!!
Wow, too many choices, you cant possible have a bit of everything!

Service: 5/5
Staff are truly attentive and courteous.

Ambience: 5/5
Of course, being the Marco Polo, no less! International standard.

MUST TRY!

Overall rating: 5/5

[bonjour]

ok sa review here's my personal fave ha ratings pinakataas kay 5 star okies...

taste of mandarin - 4star
golden caurie - 4 star
krua thai - 4 star

hehehe mao rana akong favourite

ug kato pud sa una nga indian restaurant dha sa may century 21 don't know nwala naman cla

[pnoize]

Please refrain from OT's. This is a Restaurant Review thread not a reaction or restaurant search.

[tuscania]

Thanks for bringing this back to resto review from Pier1 thread.

[angelfyre]

Quote: Originally Posted by d`monyita We not only ordered extra shrimps, we also ordered another large plate of fried rice. I loved the seafood hotpot. We went there again nung family ko and they loved the food! The new thing that we had was the buttered(battered yata dapat) chicken. Anton kept on eating and eating. I was texted by Wilson to go back and try the chicken with taro but malayo kasi from us lalo na if we are all coming from different places. Kinda hard to get there if no car noh? What does one ride other than taxi? VERY GOOD FOOD.

i'd have to agree, lami bitaw! i went there ganina. cheap ra and lami! did i say lami again? dats y i'm bringing my car club wid me on saturday. ako lang ika comment is dugay man na serve among orders oi. hopefully dili dugay on sat

i had pork belly wid garlic fried rice, my son has fried chicken wid fried rice, then siomai, steam rice. i ordered safe dishes lang usa to see if sa simple dishes lami gani, it warrants a return to the place. lami sya tanan, and even ilang achara ha! mo matter nako na lami ang achara

clean resto, servers were courteous, ample parking space.

Siknoy is at north recle, kilid sa cebu doc univ

4/5 coz dugay na serve, but its ok kay lami man pd.

[D40]

what resto are you talking about?

[angelfyre]

Quote: Originally Posted by D40 what resto are you talking about?

oh sorry. i was talking about Siknoy.

[likyam]

CHIKAAN SA CEBU - SM Northwing Branch


i definitely must have say on this forum. i, myself am a food lover and i would always like to experience different ways of food servings everytime i dine out.

c'mon guys, any cebuano would definitely know this restaurant. if there would be one restaurant who'll stay as a statement of cebuano ingenuity in terms of food, definitely this one would make it in the cuts. this resto is one of those place i can get my cebuano pride to boast for all other nationalities.

but enough about it. it was my "first" experience to dine in to that place. i was with my three other siblings and two cousins who are sisters and my cousin's boyfriend. we dined past seven. my cousin then was celebrating her birthday and being a "dayo" from Iligan but happily settled life here and now a certified cebuano cosmo girl, she was the one who invited us for a dinner to celebrate her birthday. she insisted that we choose the food we like. we modestly refused of course and we insisted instead she choose because it was her birthday of course, not to mention she'll be the one whose paying for all of those (hehehe).

after a few chit-chats and the "kamustahans", food were served bit by bit. in my own judgement based on my tastebuds, i'll say the food was very good. servings were okay and the ambiance was excellent. cleanlinesss was also good, except that time and time cleaners would come by and do their thing without having the courtesy of permission from other tables who were still enjoying the food.

food is served quick, service is not bad (but have to improve though), price is reasonable (but not that affordable), place is clean (and so are the lavatory and cr), ambiance is good.

rating: 3.9/5
recommendation: yes, would recommend

[KE-25]

Mizu Review ( if anyone has done one, heres my take )

I guess like most good hotel outlets you kinda get a feel of whats in store ie Food , Service, Cleanliness, and Treats. So here we were mom and I after going around town looking for an interesting restaurant ended up in Mizu. I felt like having italian, but mum wanted a light dinner so we had Japanese.

Thought id include pics for those tastebuds viewing thread hehehe , Cruel ?

We arrived around 7:20 last night and ended around 8:30ish ( took our time )





Started off with Soda Water and usual freebie (jap Potato salad)





After reviewing menu, mom and I chatted with server who was very patient and helpful ( mom and I take time going over menu, dont ask how long, your typical server wouldnt last) We decided to start with the usual Sushi ( Futomaki ) , Kani Salad and Miso Soup







I am very particular with servers knowing food on the menu, as opposed to hearing " tanan sa menu Lami" you appreciate them giving suggestions and explanation to dish, which she passed with flying colors.

So after chatting with server we went for - a light Tofu dish Agedashu Tofu ( Tofu fried with nice japanese broth)



Then we felt like fish so we decided to go with Black Cod and Terriyaki Sauce, I must say Mizu knows how to cook fish, ive been there several times and they never fail, I had Mackerel at one point, Sea bass and now the cod,they cook it perfect, not over cooked, texture was perfect, sauce not too overpowering.



Finally mom and I thought this was interesting, to break away from traditional Shrimp Tempura , we had Shrimp wrapped with beancurd wrapper and tempura sauce. At first it looked interesting, but honest opinion nothing special , initial taste, mom looked at me and said "hmmmm not that hot" hehe I agreed, but the fact that outlet tried a new thing id say thumbs up.



Overall the experience was pleasant , dazzle giving great service, with the usual thought of getting food cooked right. ( rating below )



Mom and I enjoying the night out



So here's my scorecard

Ratings:
Food = 4 of 5
Ambiance = 4.5 of 5 (very cozy)
Service = 4 of 5
Price = 3.2 of 5 (at times we need to spend for good food)
Overall = 4 of 5

Well folks here's to great eats

[nItO/pIrEnA]

ka-cute sa servings, dili proportional sa price tag...hehehe...

oh well, ila pud sa mga naay money to burn...hehehe

[KE-25]

Hello Nito,

In a nice way, we are not richie rich but when we do get some funds from our hard earned energy it pays off to enjoy at times. And in a way try new things as opposed to ones weve tried na, the hope is any son out there would want to make Mom's feel appreciated and good. Appreciate your thoughts though, thank u

update: 9/7

Suprisingly after everything, both mom and I were reallllllllly full inspight of servings. Those prawns were the Big ones