Restaurant Reviews

[pnoize]

Since we all love to eat and Cebu has a lot of restos maybe we can help out members in picking where to eat. here's how it works. Write a review of the restaurant, taking note of how clean the place is, the taste of the food, presentation, price and of course service. At the bottom of your post score them from 1 to 5, 5 being the highest.

Have fun!

[pnoize]

Tokyo Joe's

So wifey and I were out to have lunch. We opted to try out the new Japanese fastfood restaurant Tokyo Joes at SM City. She ordered the Tempura and Beef Bento and I got the Salmon and Mayo Genku and Beef Ramen with Red Iced Tea to quench our thirst.

The bento came with two pieces of Ebi Tempura, some sauteed bean sprouts, beef teriyaki and a good measure of rice. We started gorging on the bean sprouts when my wife suddenly told me to stop eating. She then pointed out the hair in the bean sprouts. She immediately called the attention of the waitress near our table and was told that it would be replaced, however, my wife opted to call for the supervisor. The supervisor came, probably already briefed by the waitress with the situation, he told wifey that it will be replaced. Hearing stories of how some chefs and servers treat complaining customers, wifey asked that the previous plate remain until the new one is served.

Luckily, my Salmon and Mayo Genku arrived. I love sushi and can gorge on loads of sashimi. However, I don't like being served sushi that is bigger than a bite size and this genku was as such. The ramen was not good either. The broth was obviously new as the flavor of the beef has not embedded itself in the broth (yes, I am one of those that believe that a good ramen must have good broth), but what can you expect from a fastfood resto.

rating: 2/5

[Gwynhuever]

@pnoize...i like the way you did your review....kewl ayo imong narrative style...so i will try to follow it if i can...

NONKI'S (japanese Restaurant at AS Fortuna)

I went to Nonki's with 3 guy friends....the food was really really good. I have lived in Japan for 7 years and I believe I can now at least eliminate the mediocre from the authentic ...anyway the presentation of the food (very important in Japanese cuisine) was good and the sashimi very fresh. The servers try to speak a little Japanese (mostly greetings) and were very cute in their Japanese inspired uniforms.

However, inspite of the steep price they still charged us with the ICE we used for the drinks. My friends drink beer with ice (don't ask me why he he he) ...we tried to explain to them that our bill will be very high (had the imported beef etc etc) can they not consider giving the ice for free...kulang sa diskarte...they stuck to their rule of charging for the ice....if i was the supervisor i would readily give the ice for free...seeing i have in front of me good customers who can possibly tell others about my restaurant....my friend tried to explain it is not about the price of the ice...it is about giving your customers unexpected quality of service....etc etc etc...kabalo namo sa mga istorya kon hubog na...

anyway....i would still recommend the restaurant if we talk about ambiance, food and cleanliness...but not for general principles...

i would rate NONKI 3.5/5

[Orange77]

I have loved food all my life and ever since I can remember, I have always enjoyed dressing up and trying out different restaurants...from "pungko-pungko" outside Redemptorist Church to swanky restaurants in NYC and Las Vegas. Good food, good friends and a smiling attendant....now, that's the good life.

La Tegola, Banilad
Cusine: Italian
Price: expect to pay around P300++ per person.
Service: Good (most of the time) American service

When you enter, you are met by a Captain Waiter who is attentive and energetic. Seats you well and endorses you to an order taker who is quite knowledgeable (most of the time, unless you get relegated to a practicumer! If that happens, be careful). Menu is long (not very entertaining), but is mostly pasta, pizza and carni. Instead of the usual bread, they will serve you their famous bruschetta...memorable indeed. Its crisp with olive oil based salsa and w/ just a tinge of herbs. However, they will charge you an additional P30 if you order another plate If you love tomato, try the tomato soup for starters (aahh...heaven) simple, straightforward and heartwarming. For main course, try the Ale Vongole (pasta with clams in white wine) but if you crave pizza, try the 4 Cheese Pizza (Quatro de Formaggi) --- its not on the menu, but they will make it for you if you request for it. Make sure the crust is thin so you can really savor the cheese. However, if your not fond of gargonzola, never mind. hehehe For dessert, well..i dont really have a sweet tooth, but go ahead and gorge. They dont have a fancy line up, but my favorite will always be mint ice cream with some choco syrup.

I would recommend it.
Over all rating: 3.5 / 5

[iryn]

BENTO CAFE
St. Patricks Square (Don Ramon Aboitiz, Across Stc Redem area)
Food starts at 50 pesos to 500 pesos.

Great friendly staff, affordable bento meals, sushi and maki's are very affordable
Gotta love their Torikatsu and their side dish na bean sprouts. hehe
Nice ambiance; very relaxing

Rating: 4/5

[iryn]

Fine Cuisine

St. Patricks square (don ramon aboitiz, across STC redem area)
25 PESOS to a thousand

Affordable Fine dining, the place is great, the staff is very friendly (some very good looking)
They serve steaks (but i havent tried them, im not a fan)
I love their pasta which has chicken and free drinks for a price range of 118 for carbonara til 200 for marinara
Fresh ingredients

Great for dates since its quiet and exclusive
Food is served fast and the place is clean (even their restroom is clean and smells good!)
No problem for parking

[Orange77]

Gwyn,

Ive been planning to go to Nonki...thats the one in AS fortuna with the high tech bathroom right? hahaha
My friend was entertained by the toilet that had japanese instructions and I promised Id try it out.

[Gwynhuever]

OT: @orange - yes ...go to nonki if you love japanese food...i tried the others as well but nonki gets my vote...also i am a great pasta lover myself (started a thread All About Pasta sa Food and Dining dire sa forum) and I agree to your review of La Tegola...

never tried Iryn's recommendations but they sure sound interesting ...will check them out next time!

@pnoize - this is a great thread...i hope we get more reviews from other istoryans!

[Orange77]

@gwyn: If you LOVE pasta, then you should go to Plantation Bay's Italian Restaurant..Palermo. Im a fan. They make their pasta
fresh everytime. Its to die for...like the fettucine con gamberi, farfalloni alla carbonara (the real italian carbonarra ha, not
the american creamy type) and my all time favorite...the linguine alle vongole.

Pasta price: P300 for starters (which actually is a good size already for Filipino appetites) an entree size is about P500 or so.
Price for the other ala carte items....ranging from P300 to P1500.

Happy eating!

[pnoize]

STK 'ta bai

In seach of good food, my wife and I again ventured in trying out this house that was transformed in to a restaurant. STK 'ta bai is along orchid street and from what I was told, is one of the original house/restaurants in that area. Thai soup, baked scallops and inihaw na blue marlin jaw were the choices for tonights food tryst with an old highschool classmate of mine and her hubby.

Delicious, juicy and tender were the words that came out of our mouths still filled with the sumptous feast brought to us. The place is clean and the food is well prepared. The food attendant are always on the look-out and waiting to be beckoned by the hungry customers. While presentation is not as classy as those you'd see in fancy restaurants, the taste makes up for it. Really affordable meal for a delectable dinner.

rating: 9/10

[pnoize]

Carlito's Way

It was our wedding anniversary and we agreed to try Carlito's Way along A.S. Fortuna. A small place, fits about 20 people or so decorated with about 4 or so posters of one of my favorite actors, Al Pacino (actually, I was expecting more. After all, this place was named after one of his movies.) As soon as we sat down, we were greeted by a waitress who was eagerly awaiting our orders.

I got the Rib Eye while my wife got the Lengua and Mushroom soup for our appetizer. The soup was served, coupled with what I believe were Skyflakes. Surprisingly, the Lengua came with a whole lot of garlic, sauce and mushrooms. Not your usual Lengua but it still tastes good, recommended to be eaten with rice.

The Rib Eye was tender and juicy, cooked to how I like it, medium rare. The gravy isn't your usual mushroom gravy but it has a hint of mint.

The place is clean and prices are ok. Get ready to spend around P 800.00 or so if you're on a date. However, my only complaint would be the parking space.

rating: 8/10

[d`monyita]

Quote: Originally Posted by Gwynhuever NONKI'S (japanese Restaurant at AS Fortuna) anyway....i would still recommend the restaurant if we talk about ambiance, food and cleanliness...but not for general principles... i would rate NONKI 3.5/5

I feel ningning that I missed this topic da. October pa ni? When did u go to Nonki's sis? Last year?

Anyways.... here is my uhhh report:

JOSH AND MATTHEW CAFE

Fulfulling the requirements of starting a new biz would inevtably bring one DOWNTOWN...sa DTI... ngayon mo... super gutom na.. so where does one eat near the pier 1? Kung takot ka na eat anywhere lang... it was either AA bbq or Josh and Matthew. Aircon man ang latter so there kami.

I had the blue marlin with thai sauce and iced tea and my cousin had the spaghetti. Ang blue marlin masarap sya... KAKAIBA ang luto. The spaghetti was lami sad. Halatang tadtad sa butter sa pag-sautee pa lang. hehehehe. The iced tea was kakaiba rin the taste...but lami.

A couple of weeks later I went there again with my sis this time and my son and I had the baby backs and my sis had the fried chicken. Both were also good. What we REALLY REALLY LIKED was this choco drink they have. Made from choco blocks daw... as in not the hershey syrup. It was really yummy!!!

Ambiance was relaxing and one could not tell that it was just a few hundred meters from the pier area. Mga kasama mo kumain dun are usually lawyers, bank officers, and mga tao na tulad kong maarte. hahahahahaha. Di bitaw oi... Im not..... scary na man to eat just anywhere gyud.

Oh and man... the CR IS VERY CLEAN!!!! Big points yan gyud kay sa downtown susme..where kaya ikaw kakita ng clean na CR......?

Pricing: Entrees vary from 80-130p. The fried chicken was 90p, the ribs were 110-nish if I remember correctly. The spaghetti was somewhere 60p and the blue marlin was 100p thereabouts. Iced tea was 40p. The choco drink na yum yum? Dont ask me the price of that one hehehehe kay the owner gave it to my son lang because it was his bday the following day and they were so lingaw with him they wanted to give him something.

Parking: No problem kay aside from the slots fronting the cafe, there is a big parking lot at the side ang entrance...sa mj cuenco(?)

I highly recommend it. I wanna have coffee there naman one of these days. Malayo lang gyud from Banawa kung yan lang ang tuyo mo hehehehehe...what with starbucks just 5 minutes away.

The score? (four "eat" out of a possible five)

[fritzhanzel8]

Guiseppe in Banilad (entry road to Ma. Luisa)

Italian restaurant

My wife and I have been there probably 10 times already. Even went there with visitors from overseas and never had a bad experience, always pleased. The service is no rush, fast, attentive and foremost neutral. It doesn't matter what you order or how you behave or are dressed, it's always a perfect neutral and attentive, friendly service. Try the seafood salad and compare it to La Tegola just down the road and you know what I mean. Pizza is good for 2, generous size portions. The prices are a bit on the steep side but still fine as long as you don't order the specials. SML is 60 pesos, pizza around 400, pasta around 350 to 400.

[iryn]

Quote: Originally Posted by d`monyita JOSH AND MATTHEW CAFE

wow reading from the review you made, i wanna try eating in that restaurant sad!
where is it located? im not familiar with the pier 1 area, although i know where AA's is, thats just accross plasa independencia dba?
i hope you can put the directions. thanks

[Junpei]

OT:
hello guys. anybody could do a review on big mao? I haven't been to alot of restos yet so I can't really compare and describe the place (I also forgot the menu). but if I were to rate it. its a 3/5. foods great. first time I tasted a different line of cuisine since I'm more of a fastfood person or the one that usually cooks at home.hehe. 12 people around 2k-2.5k. still have food left. I think.(I really don't know if this is expensive or not)

very nice thread. now I can get a glimpse of different restos here in the city