Herencia Restaurant | Paoay

Herencia Restaurant is a little eating place located just across the Paoay Church. It is known for their delicious meals and original creations such as the Pinakbet Pizza. The restaurant has a very homey and romantic feel and we were welcomed by their staff like we were royal guests.

We've ordered two dishes from their menu, one of which is the Crispy Dinuguan.

Herencia Restaurant's Crispy Dinuguan has to be the most delicious dinuguan that I've tasted. Dinuguan is pork blood stew, and yes, it is made from pig's blood. It was seasoned just right and true to its name, the pork cuts were served crisp. Crispy Dinuguan is P170.00.

We also had Pinakbet, sauteed vegetables consisting of string beans, okra, squash, ampalaya, tomatoes and a little pork. I had to request the chef to remove the eggplants because I'm allergic to it. Pinakbet costs P130.00.

Filled and satisfied, we went out of Herencia Restaurant like we're happy toddlers. We're ready to go to Paoay Church but it was still raining. The little desserts and drinks stand, Ilocos Coolers, a few steps away from Herencia Restaurant gave us a refuge from the irate weather. And of course, we could not leave Ilocos Coolers without sampling their Special Halo-Halo.

Can you believe that this Special Halo-Halo only costs P45? Yes, it is very affordable! And Ilocos Coolers has the best view of Paoay Church!

I will definitely recommend Herencia Restaurant to anyone who would be visiting Paoay. This restaurant offers tummy-filling meals at reasonable prices, and their service is impeccable. You can also buy some pasalubong at Herencia Restaurant. Leave some room for dessert and walk a few steps towards Ilocos Coolers for a taste of their Special Halo-Halo.

You can read Day 3 of our Ilocos Tour here.

Spice-up Your Kitchen with Heavenly Heat Sauce

Habits are incredibly easy to start and not so easy to break. If you are the primary cook in your household, you may have gotten into a recipe rut. This could happen because you generally prepare meals in a hurry and you know which ones you can prepare within your time frame. No doubt, you know which recipes your family likes and those are the ones you tend to return to time and time again. If you entertain, you probably have certain recipes that people usually expect to see on your table. While all of those are good reasons to continually prepare meals from the same recipes, you might find it more exciting to add a little punch to some of those recipes in order to get out of your recipe rut.

A simple way to change up some of your standard recipes is to browse around a place such as Heavenly Heat Sauce to discover the amazing variety of sauces that are available. Adding something like cayenne hot sauce or garlic hot sauce to your basic meatloaf or chili bean recipe can definitely change its flavor. Adding some spicy condiments and a new assortment of seasonings to your collection of flavorings will enable you to add some diversity to some of your standard recipes.

At your next party, you could surprise your guest by having a new selection of salsa and hot and spicy snacks available. Be sure to warn them that you've stepped out of your recipe rut.

Partoza Durian Farms

Partoza Durian Farms is located at Brgy. Biao Escuela, Tugbok District, Davao City. It was more than an hour's drive from downtown Davao and finding the place is kind of tricky. For you not to get lost, Partoza Durian Farms has strategically placed some signage pointing to the farm and a very good landmark for you to look for is the Biao Escuela National High School. Once you've found Biao Escuela National High School, take the dirt road and you'll be at Partoza Durian Farms in less than one minute.

It was a refreshing site to see lots of beautiful garden flowers upon arriving at the Partoza Durian Farms. It didn't look like a farm to me, it was more of a rest house that offers relaxation and retreat from the hustle and bustle of city living. Don't get confused, Partoza Durian Farms is still within the City of Davao but it is located in the serene countryside.

The owners envision to make Partoza Durian Farms to be a haven of joy and peace. During our stay, we were treated to a 30-minute tour around the farm which introduced us not only to a lot of fruits such as durian and banana, but also gave us a chance to get to know some spices at the herb garden. It was both exciting and scary at the goat and vermiculture interaction center but most of us enjoyed the experience, and we also learned a lot of information about Durian inside the Remedios House. The tour is not complete without a hefty dinner served at the Malaya House.

Partoza Durian Farms now accepts guests who would like to visit there. You can contact them at http://www.facebook.com/PartozaDurianFarms.

Kangaroo Jack

I was just looking for a restaurant and I don't even know which mall I was in (later during the making of this post, I realized I was in SM North Edsa). I was in UP Diliman for a number of days to attend the MCLE and I felt like going out on my first night. So, I boarded a jeepney with a "Trinoma" on its signboard. I did not alight in Trinoma because there was heavy traffic and I got confused. It was my first time to go there via jeepney, and also my first time to go there alone. I know I've been to Trinoma 3 years ago but I had companions at that time.

Alas! We've come to a full stop and we were at the jeepney terminal of SM North Edsa, it's time to alight, I have no choice. I was already hungry at that time and I honestly did not want to eat at a restaurant that's already in Davao.

When I passed by Kangaroo Jack, I dismissed the idea of eating there, it was crowded. It was past 7 in the evening when I passed by this restaurant and it's full of people. I decided to find another restaurant but after 15 minutes of walking inside the mall, I found myself in front of Kangaroo Jack and I was lucky to have found an empty table. So, Kangaroo Jack, it is.

Kangaroo Jack is an Australian Restaurant known for its Steak. So, I wanted to try their steak and I got this:

Though I ordered steak, I did not expect my order to come out like this, I expected a big chunk of meat. Nonetheless, I did not complain, did not even ask a single question if I got the right food, I was so hungry so my only option was to eat!

Meat was tender and yummy, the mashed potato was okay.

My dinner was actually uneventful. I was eating alone and enjoying my steak and mashed potato but I did not find anything exceptional with them. What I loved, though, is that the staff of Kangaroo Jack are very accommodating and are very quick to respond to their customers. I felt like I did not have to call their attention because their eyes are already on the table and they're sensitive enough to approach their customers even before you call them. I loved their service.

I'd definitely go back to Kangaroo Jack and next time, I should make sure I get a juicy piece of steak, not that kind drenched in gravy. Medium well, please!

Hanoi Vietnamese Cuisine at Abreeza Mall

Do you want to try Vietnamese cuisine? 

Vietnamese cuisine encompasses the foods and beverages of Vietnam, and features a combination of five fundamental taste elements (Vietnamese: ngũ vị) in the overall meal. Each Vietnamese dish has a distinctive flavor which reflects one or more of these elements. Common ingredients include fish sauce, shrimp paste, soy sauce, rice, fresh herbs, and fruits and vegetables. Vietnamese recipes use lemongrass, ginger, mint, Vietnamese mint, long coriander, Saigon cinnamon, bird's eye chili, lime, and basil leaves. Traditional Vietnamese cooking is greatly admired for its fresh ingredients, minimal use of oil, and reliance on herbs and vegetables. With the balance between fresh herbs and meats and a selective use of spices to reach a fine taste, Vietnamese food is considered one of the healthiest cuisines worldwide. Source: Wikipedia.

Here in Davao City, your cravings will be satisfied by Hanoi Vietnamese Cuisine located at Abreeza Mall. Here are some photos we took during our lunch at Hanoi:

Pho is a known Vietnamese dish that means noodle soup with beef, chicken, or seafood.

Pho Tai - P250

Pho Tai is basically a noodle soup with slices of semi-cooked beef and topped with spring onions. The beef is cooked from boiling broth of spices. Hanoi Vietnamese Cuisine serves Pho Tai with bean sprouts and basil leaves, this is a confirmation from the Wikipedia article quoted above. The noodle soup is a little sweet.

Here's also one of my favorite dishes from this restaurant:

Suon Ram Man- P220

Suon Ram Man is caramelized pork. I love this dish, it's sweet but it's still perfect to be paired with a cup of rice. The meat is so tender and juicy and delicious.

And of course, to conclude our lunch is this Vietnamese Brewed Coffee....

Vietnamese Brewed Coffee - P90.00

If you're wondering where the coffee is, it's in that white cup. The thing on top of the cup is a percolator. Basically, your coffee is being brewed right at the cup. Just add sweetened milk to your desired taste.

De Boerderij

De Boerderij Burger Cafe and Music Bistro is the place to go when you just want to chill and enjoy shots of Bailey's. You won't get lost while looking for this little bar because of its unique facade: it's that little bar with a cow on the roof.

De Boerderij means farm or farm house. They have a great selection of imported beers on their menu but I haven't tried any of them since I'm not a beer person. But I actually do enjoy my shots of Bailey's at their porch. There is a small porch just before entrance of the bar and it can accommodate around 4 or 5 persons.

The last time I checked, Bailey's is at P90 per shot. (--,)

Welcome to Bahay ni Tuding

Bahay ni Tuding is located at 160 San Pedro Street, Davao City. If you think you haven't seen Bahay ni Tuding while walking along San Pedro Street, then you might just have missed it. It's located behind Mercury Drugstore so you have to take the alley to access Bahay ni Tuding.

One July night, Davao Bloggers were invited by Ms. Mel, the General Manager of Bahay ni Tuding. It was such a fun experience! Ms. Mel and the staff were very accommodating and they treated us to an exclusive party at Bahay ni Tuding.

Bahay ni Tuding Inn and Resto has 12 rooms. It's a small inn so they take pride that they can personalize their services. Below are snapshots of their rooms....

Room Rates as of July 2013:

Single Standard - P775.00

Single Deluxe - P875.00

Double Standard - P1,160.00

Double Superior - P1,288.00

Family for 3 - P1,650.00

Family for 4 - P1,854.00

*Room rates include FREE Continental Breakfast

What I like about Bahay ni Tuding is that it's located right in the heart of downtown Davao but it is exclusive enough to be away from the noise of the city streets. Bahay ni Tuding also has an ample parking space that is almost always difficult to find in San Pedro Street.

Chef Nice of Bahay ni Tuding served us with delectable treats: Salad with Tinapa for appetizer, Pork Humba, Buko Sherbet, Fried Chicken with Aligue Rice for our main course, and Banana Tchuron for dessert. 

It's nice to know that Bahay ni Tuding makes their own strawberry vinaigrette for the Salad. It's actually my first time to encounter Salad with Tinapa. The tinapa was actually a good addition to the vegetable salad, it somehow balances the fusion of taste of the dish.

The pork humba was heavenly! The meat was tender and the taste was perfect. The Buko Sherbet that Bahay ni Tuding served us was not in their menu. It definitely cleared our palates after eating the salad and humba, which prepared us for another heartwarming dish: the Fried Chicken with Aligue Rice.

 The highlight of our dinner was this Fried Chicken with Aligue Rice. A simple fried chicken was made extra special, it was very delicious, cooked just right! I am very skeptic with the way fried chicken is cooked because it has to be cooked perfectly: no more blood (meaning, I should not see any red particle specially near the bone), but it must not be overcooked. I think I tasted the best fried chicken at Bahay ni Tuding, and what's more special is that it was paired with no other than the very tasty Aligue Rice.

To conclude our dinner, we were served with Banana Tchuron which is not your usual turon. Banana Tchuron is made with extra love because it comes with a chocolate dip made from cacao. The dip actually reminded me a lot of sikwate.

Bahay ni Tuding also boasts of a Filipino menu with value meals consisting of one viand and one cup of rice for only P85.00. Like them on Facebook:

Karlyn's Food Station

Although I have been to Karlyn's Food Station 100 times, I haven't written a single post about this little restaurant located in Doñs Luisa Village, Ecoland, Davao City. And I only have one reason for failing to feature them on my humble blog: I always consume the food first before actually thinking about taking snapshots. This one lucky night, I was able to capture the delectable food at Karlyn's.

Beef Caldereta P60.00

Beef Caldereta is everybody's favorite. You can bite into the tender beef chunks and be greeted with a sweet and delicious fusion of flavors in your mouth. It's topped with grated cheese and who puts cheese on their caldereta, maybe only Karlyn's. I'm pretty sure that every plate of caldereta served to their customers would always be simu't sarap!

Bulalo P150.00

A big bowl of Bulalo only costs P150.00 and I declare that it is good for 4 persons. If you just want the Bulalo soup, it's free and you can even ask for refills. This is a good dish to warm your body during cool nights, but weather aside, it's perfect for any occasion, even sipping a cup of this Bulalo would complement your already steaming lunch time noon break. 

Chicken with Corn and Tomato P60.00

We're not done eating, yet. This Chicken dish with corn and tomato might discourage you at first sight considering that it's sitting on grease. I did mind the oil but it did not prevent me from having a bite. Forget about my chicken allergies, this dish is really good and I did not even expect something great from chicken. I love this, and my sister liked this so much that she did not let me have any more bites.

What I love most about Karlyn's aside from their delicious food is that their menu is easy on the pocket. As you can see from the prices posted above, you can get very delicious and highly nutritious meals for around P80 if you order one viand and one rice. A cup of rice costs P18.00. And on top of that delicious meal, Karlyn's Food Station offers all of their customers a serving of FREE minatamis na saging as the concluding piece of every meal.

Karlyn's has two branches: Ecoland and Maa. The Ecoland branch is open for lunch and dinner with official restaurant hours from 10:30AM to 2:00PM and 5:30PM to 9:30PM. Meanwhile, the Maa branch is open from 9:00AM to 9:00PM. 

Contact Numbers:
Karlyn's Ecoland 3032752

Karlyn's Maa 3107219 

Cafe Andessa

Tired of the old noisy bars in the city? Then drive up North toward Cabantian and discover a quiet place to dine at Cafe Andessa. The restaurant is small and could accommodate a few small groups but don't underestimate this restaurant because they have wide choices in their menu ready to satiate even the most picky eater.

Pork Spare Ribs - P175.00

This Pork Spare Ribs has this special sweet sauce that left me licking my fingers. The serving is generous. These pieces of pork spare ribs has left my date ordering his second cup of rice. The meat is well cooked, tender, and delicious.

Garlic Pork Chops - P170.00

I love garlic and I love pork, and this Garlic Pork Chop is a good combination! The taste? Delicious, though I was kind of looking for the garlicky taste to be prominent. There isn't much but a faint trace of garlic so this dish is still safe for those who are not a fan of the pungent bulb.

Laing - P95.00

This Filipino favorite, Laing, is made mainly from gabi leaves and coconut milk which we locally call as gata.  Some versions of laing may have bulad (tuyo in Tagalog) and other versions have pieces of pork. Other traditional versions stick only to the gabi leaves and coconut milk tandem. I forgot to ask whether they used the traditional gata (the one where you squeeze out milk from shredded coconut meat), or use the canned coconut cream/milk. Either way, the Laing is delicious and had the right amount of spiciness, it was a perfect pair to our pork dishes.

You can visit Cafe Andessa at Cabantian Road. Call them at 3029314.

Chef Lu: a Taste of Hongkong now in Davao City

Who is Chef Lu? Chef Lu is a Hong Kong-trained master chef. He has been teaching cooking lessons for the past 40 years in Manila. If you're familiar with Mandarin Tea Garden here in Davao, then you'd be glad to know that Chef Lu was actually the one who brought it in Davao.

What makes Chef Lu different from other Chinese restaurants in Davao City? Chinese, and lovers of Chinese food, would actually appreciate Chef Lu's authentic Chinese cooking. Food served in Chef Lu are those which are not offered in the other Chinese restaurants in Davao City.

Last June 16, 2013, Davao Bloggers and the other delegates of the Davao Food Appreciation Tour 2013 (DFAT 2013) were served with unique and delicious Chinese food from Chef Lu. It was a great way to introduce the restaurant who opened a new and bigger branch in the downtown area. The first branch of Chef Lu was established in Lapu-Lapu Street, Agdao, Davao City. This year, Chef Lu opened a restaurant at CM Recto Street, in between RCBC and Veterans Bank.

Opening this new branch has made authentic Chinese food more accessible to Davaoeños. Let's take a look at what's inside their menu....

Here's what's on my plate:

Clockwise: Vegetarian Spring Roll, Bean Curd Roll, Salted Dumpling, Mom's Hopia, and the Noodles with Spicy Meat Sauce

Let's get to know these dishes one by one:

Bean Curd Roll or Oyster Sauce Fresh Bamboo Roll, it is wrapped in Bean Curd Skin. It contains bamboo shoots, lean meat, roasted pork or asado, and some mushrooms. This may be a simple dish but the ingredients of this Bean Curd Roll are really great in cooling the body and reducing spasms caused in the gall bladder.

Vegetarian Spring Roll is, you guessed it, made purely from vegetables. It has carrots, black fungus, mushroom, bean yam (singkamas), pressed bean curd (tokwa), bamboo shoots, and bean sprouts (togue).  It comes with its special sauce. 

Salted Dumplings. If you're familiar with tikoy then you will surely think of that sweet sticky dessert when you're eating Chef Lu's salted dumplings. The outer shell is made of glutinous rice flour but what's different about it is that it's a bit crunchy on the outside but soft and chewy on the inside. The filling is made up of pork, mushroom, shrimps, preserved radish, and spring onions, all shredded into pieces and salted to perfection. This is my favorite dish at Chef Lu's and its affordable at P75 for 3 pieces.

Cantonese Mom's Hopia is also one of my favorites. It's sized just right and costs P15 a piece. It is made from wintermelon and is a great dessert after a full meal. This is also a great pasalubong for the kids at home. It's both delicious and healthy.

Noodles with Spicy Meat Sauce. It has ground peanuts, spring onions. They say that this is the Chinese version of the famous Spaghetti. The noodle actually reminds me a lot of the wanton noodles back in Mandarin Tea Garden.Sauce contains shallots, dried shrimps, preserved black bean, salted yellow beans, fried pigs skin, ground pork and sizzled with spices to taste. The noodle used is called “Egg noodles” .These noodles are made of wheat flour, egg and water.

What's also great about Chef Lu is that they have this special concoction of different fruit concentrates like cherry, strawberry, mango and orange, which has now become their House Blend Iced Tea. This iced tea is so refreshing and guarantees NO AFTER TASTE. You can get bottomless servings of this iced tea for only P45. A glass costs P25.

By the way, Chef Lu is proud of their moon cakes. Customers are actually saying that Chef Lu Moon Cakes are better and tastier than any other moon cake on the market. The Mid-Autumn Festival, also known as the Moon Cake Festival, is going to be held on September 19, 2013 and Chef Lu is all set and ready for the coming festival. Their Moon Cakes are 100% hand made and guaranteed with more than 35 years of superior craftsmanship, taste, and quality at the most reasonable price and mostly imported ingredients. They normally sell 2,000 boxes of these Moon Cakes and Davao is so fortunate that for 3 years now, these Moon Cakes are being freshly made in Davao.

Other food that might interest you in Chef Lu are Lechon Kawali (Lechon Macau, which is actually a healthier pork dish) and the Peking Duck. One of Chef Lu's plans is to serve Premium Beef Steaks at the second floor of the restaurant. Chef Lu also serves Rice Toppings with prices ranging from P65 to P85.

Swexie joined Davao Food Appreciation Tour 2013

Davao Bloggers, together with 3 bloggers from Luzon, namely: Fitz, Rina, and Don, toured Davao City, Davao del Sur, and Davao Occidental for a gastronomic exploration. Here's a glimpse of what happened during the DFAT2013.

Bistro Rosario Brownie Ice Cream Cake

Are you looking for a dessert station to satisfy your sweet cravings? Not all people know this but famous cake shop in Torres has already opened a branch in Ecoland, near SM City Davao.

Bistro Rosario is now accessible to the people of South Davao. It's a short walk away from SM Annex and although their little shop can just accommodate a few customers, their famous cakes such as Mango Charlotte and Blueberry Charlotte are on stock ready for take out.

The photos on this post are that of Bistro Rosario's Brownie Ice Cream Cake. A slice costs P70. Now let's take a closer look....

This brownie ice cream cake is, of course, sweet. It's made up of alternate piles of ice cream and brownies with a cake as its base. There are chocolate chips and some more chunky sweets on top. I honestly could not finish one slice alone so it's best to share this brownie ice cream cake with a friend or loved one.

Sweet!

Hearty Breakfast at Raku Hokkaido Ramen House

It was 9AM and I was hungrily roaming at the 4th floor of Ninoy Aquino Internationa Airport Terminal 3 to look for a place to eat. As usual, Jollibee is full-packed with no vacant seats so I had to move on and stop thinking about the breakfast that was running through my mind.

A few steps away from Jollibee is a Japanese Ramen House, Raku. I haven't tried this restaurant before but the tarpaulin advertising a hearty breakfast of rice porridge at only P79 is enticing. There were a still a handful of empty seats so I gladly positioned on one of their comfortable chairs.

And then this is how the Okayu (Japanese Arroz Caldo) was served:

Okayu Japanese Arroz Caldo P79.00

Let's take a closer look at the ingredients of Okayu

There's meat, egg, spring onions, nori, and fried garlic.

It is best eaten hot so I did not lose any moment in finishing my meal. It was a heavy breakfast.

While I was at Raku, I noticed that they only serve this Okayu for breakfast and that the staff of Raku kept the tarpaulin for the Okayu inside their stall at around 10AM. I also tried Raku's coconut-lychee shake but I honestly did not like it though it was the normal taste for a coconut mixed with lychee, maybe I just did not expect the coconut to taste too strong for that drink.

Overall, my experience with Raku is great. The staff were nice and the food was served clean and at a reasonable time. You can expect me to go back to Raku in one of my trips to Manila. And if you'd ask me where to eat at NAIA Terminal 3, I would gladly recommend Raku.

Enjoy Speculoos Cookie Butter with Gonuts Donuts!

I've heard about Speculoos being the current craze in bread spread category but haven't really thought about nurturing that little voice telling me to find a jar of Speculoos cookie butter because I know that it's not locally available in Davao City.

 

However, the heavens have been so kid because although my cravings have already died down for that mysterious cookie butter spread, Go Nuts Donuts awakened and satisfied my cravings by releasing the newest member of the GONUTS DONUTS family: COOKIE BUTTER DONUTS!

Cookie Butter sitting pretty on top of a glazed donut

At first I didn't know that these Cookie Butter Donuts were made from the famous Speculoos. I only learned about it recently when I googled it, and why did I google it? Because I always wake up thinking about Gonuts Donuts Cookie Butter Donuts! I am craving for it any time of the day. I like that it's not too sweet, and it is really delicious. I got my one dozen Gonuts Donuts Cookie Butter Donuts courtesy of Gonuts Donuts Gaisano Mall of Davao, and I was hooked! I want to have at least one donut a day.

This is my dream donut!

Chocolate Bowl | Win a Cake!

Would you like to win a cake from Chocolate Bowl? Then read on until the end of this post and you might be one of the lucky people who could take home cakes, cupcakes, and other sweet treats from our friends at Chocolate Bowl!

Chocolate Bowl is a brainchild of twin sisters Charisse and Charmaine Cariño. These twin sisters are close to my heart because they're my high school classmates. I could exactly remember the first sweet treat that I tasted from them: chocolate crinkles! They baked it back in high school and I was just so amazed at how these twin sisters could bake such chocolatey and chewey crinkles way better than the bakeshop near our school. And at the age of 11 or 12, they are very very good!

No wonder why Charisse and Charmaine eventually found themselves at the food business. I'm one of their avid fans and I'm also one of their loyal customers. Now that the twin sisters are running a giveaway on Facebook, I can't help but share them to you, my dear readers, so that you can have a chance in tasting the delectable cakes and other desserts from Chocolate Bowl!

How to enter? Just follow these steps:

1. LIKE Chocolate Bow's Page. You can do it below: 
2. LIKE this post (be sure to click the link) and share it to your friends and family. Put a comment of your favorite dessert (ex. I love Cupcakes!) and thats it!  Chocolate Bowl will randomly select 3 winners using the online raffle machine. Announcement of WINNERS will be on June 3, 2013.

Prizes: --Absolutely FREE--

(1) A 6" fondant theme Cake (For Pick-up, Davao and Manila residents only)
(2) A box of Chocolate Bowl's Ultimate Fudge Brownie and Chocolate Chip Cookies. (May be shipped anywhere in the Philippines.)
(3) 1 dozen Cupcakes with these 2 amazing flavors: Chocolate Moist with chocolate ganache & Tahitian vanilla Bean with white chocolate Ganache. (For Pick-up, Davao and Manila residents only)

Good luck, everyone!

Note: This giveaway is on Facebook and not on this website.

Poolside at Park Inn by Radisson Davao in Photos

Sherbet

Mojito P200