Good Restaurants In Cebu City

[Mr Lee]

I have to agree with Scianna that we all have different likes and dislikes and are used to different foods. I think that the Terraces at Ayala pretty much can satisfy most taste and price ranges and they are even going to open a Casa Verde on March 25th and the manager said that the prices at Ayala location will be the same as the other locations. I know that I will be eating there a lot while here in Cebu.I just remembered a few other places, Makado all you can eat sushi and other Asian foods, of course there is the great food at the Marco Polo buffet for that special occasion or if you are rich and can afford to eat there more often. The French something or other at Robinsons on the main floor is a pretty good place for breakfast and small meals. Next is the regular buffet at Waterfront Hotel which was pretty good at p650 a person but no where as good as Marco Polo but about one fourth the price.More to come.

[Jollygoodfellow]

Slightly off topic here but once I was staying at the Midtown hotel,the restaurant there was nothing special but convenient and we ate there about 4 times,anyway one night my wife and I went to Shakeys and I bought some pasta to take back to the hotel to eat in our room. When we got back to the room and me being hungry and grumpy which happens when I'm hungry discovered that there was nothing in the take out bag for me to eat it with,no fork or spoon. I decided to go to the hotel front desk where I explained my problem and asked to borrow a fork and knife,to my horror the girl said that I would have to pay for the price of a meal for her to give me what I wanted. I asked for the manager who said the same thing until I threaten never to return,he got what I wanted but I thought to myself, what a way of doing things.

[Mr Lee]

I am not done living here in Cebu yet this trip and that will mean a lot more restaurants to cover.Shakey's pizza in the Ayala Terraces, the pizza is just OK but they have some other pretty good food there for a pizza joint, such as the Mojo Fries, I like them and will be back to try some other foods there again.Then there was Le Mason, I am not sure of the spelling but it is also in Ayala Terraces and I was there with James and Jon and of course my wife and the food all looked pretty good and reasonable and we will be eating there again too.Next the Desert Factory in the Ayala Terraces was about the same as in SM and Ayala and the is nothing special but tasted good and was reasonably priced.OK, more to come but I think everyone gets the idea, that there is plenty of places to eat here and plenty of choices that do not cost an arm and a leg but Casa Verde is still my favorite reasonably priced place to eat so far.

[Mr Lee]

OK, here is another place that was pretty good and reasonable....... My wife and I went into Sunburst in SM mall today and we had also been there one time before about a year ago......... We ordered the sizzling squid and some chicken asparagus soup and last time we had some other meals and both times were good and the food was prepared correctly IMO........ Now the mens restroom could have used a good cleaning, but that seems to be the usual in most regular grade restaurants here in the Philippines.

[ancienrocka]

I agree with BobNChe - the Golden Cowrie is, for my taste, the best value restaurant in Cebu.But then to put my opinion into some sort of perspective, I quite like the food at Badgers!! - especially the Aussie pies.Question: how come a chain that serves such woeful food as Jolibee can become so successful???

[Mr Lee]

Paul I guess JoliBee is successful because it is fast food and cheap compared to real restaurants. But who can understand much that happens here in the Phil, surely not I. :SugarwareZ-034: OK, now for another report from the great conisewer for a pretty good restaurant. The wife and I went out to Maxim, not to be confused with Max's. Maxim is in the Maxwell Hotel located on N. Escario Street, Cebu City right across the street from the Shell station and McDonalds which is near Winland Tower. Finally a place we can walk to and have a pretty decent meal.The wife and I had some Birthday Pancit, they also had a few other types, and some Adobo Pork and some Thai fried rice. All were good and the rice was a little dry but still good......... One comment here that needs to be made by me, there is no truth in advertising in the Philippines and therefore the rice did not look anything like the picture they had in the menu that made me order it in the first place.......In the picture they showed pretty good sized shrimp and other items and in reality the items are small or diced in small pieces but it still tasted good and all the prices were fair.......For all that and the wife had a can of soda and I had ice tea, it came to p495. They also have a breakfast buffet which starts at 6 am and runs until 11 am and I am sure that as soon as we have company again and once we get back from our trip to CDO and Mindanao, we will try it and report back, but how bad can it be for P150 for all you can eat.......They also had a pretty extensive menu and serve all kinds of drinks including all types of alcohol types.Try it, I am pretty sure you will like it and the hotel Maxwell looks pretty nice and a friend stayed there and said it was great, clean and modern and free wifi too.......

[Mr Lee]

OK here we go again, the wife and I went out and wanted to eat at Family Choice or try Maxim again if they were open, but both were closed and of course McDonalds was open as we drove by in the taxi, but as we got to Family Choice off Escario, I saw that Neo Neo was open, so we tried it. It had to be better than McDo.The food was decent and the prices were very reasonable. I had brocoli and beef, garlic rice and a coke zero and the wife had squid with sauce and garlic rice and a sprite. My beef was chewy, so I would not recommend that but the meal overall was good and the price was right at p415 including a 10% service charge for eating in the enclosed A/C room, which they warned us up front that it would cost us, but I did it anyway because I did not feel like having flies flying around my food for only 10% extra and besides the A/C felt good after a taxi ride without a working A/C.Good for average food.

[Mr Lee]

We had a great meal buffet last night at Marco Polo with Lars and his lovely wife. It was a little expensive to do every night for us, but once in a while the wife and I can splurge and hit an expensive place. I think it is a must do for tourists and definitely a pretty good place for locals to at least try once or on special occasions. It now cost p1120.50 per person and that is without drinks, so the bill for two was about $50 or p2600 including 2 beers for myself and a frozen banana daiquiri for the wife.They also had a wine deal in the lounge for those who are big wine drinkers. It was all you can drink of different groups of wines starting out at p350 for the lower price wines and I think p550 for the better price wines and again, that was all you can drink, so it sounds like a pretty good deal to me. If only they had all you can drink beer, some of us could clean their clocks for sure. :23_11_60[2]:

[Markham]

We had a great meal buffet last night at Marco Polo with Lars and his lovely wife. It was a little expensive to do every night for us, but once in a while the wife and I can splurge and hit an expensive place. I think it is a must do for tourists and definitely a pretty good place for locals to at least try once or on special occasions.

I also ate at the Marco Polo last night but I tend to choose the outdoor El Viento restaurant by the pool. I had their liver , bacon and onions (a favourite of mine) which is served with a red wine and port reduction, potatoes and grilled mixed vegetables. Absolutely delicious and well-worth the 700 Pesos (which included a Campari and Soda and fresh-brewed Cappuccino). I know the Chef there and he always makes sure I eat well even though it can be a bit embarrasing when other guests stare at you simply because they've noticed that the Chef personally cooks and serves my meal and that I always get better service.

It now cost p1120.50 per person and that is without drinks, so the bill for two was about $50 or p2600 including 2 beers for myself and a frozen banana daiquiri for the wife.

The buffet price you quoted does include 20% Service Charge and VAT. The base price is 850 for the dinner buffet including (unlimited) iced tea (and certain other non-alcoholic beverages) during the High Season. Had you gone to the Shangri-La, you would have paid at least double and had less choice.

They also had a wine deal in the lounge for those who are big wine drinkers. It was all you can drink of different groups of wines starting out at p350 for the lower price wines and I think p550 for the better price wines and again, that was all you can drink, so it sounds like a pretty good deal to me. If only they had all you can drink beer, some of us could clean their clocks for sure. :23_11_60[2]:

You can also get specialist deserts served in the Lounge and I can highly recommend their Crepes Suzette which are prepared and flambed in front of you. A little pricey but the amount is good for two persons (or one very hungry/greedy one!).Mark

[Mr Lee]

I just reread my post and it seems I forgot La Maison in the Ayala Terraces and next to Moon Cafe. They had pretty good steaks, but the prices were not inexpensive, but a decent piece of meat is always expensive in the Philippines from what I have seen.