Getting Fat(er) and Happy(er) in Dumaguete

[bows00]

As mentioned in a previous post, there are tons of dinning choices in Bonffacio Global City, but after spending 7 days (and lots of money) nothing really stood out or impressed.  Oh yes, there are many restaurants with very elegant ambiance, but there was nothing that touched my taste buds that resulted in an instinctive "yummy" reaction from me.   Maybe it was due to my bad selections, but based on what i paid (at least 1000P per restaurant) I expected much more...

So having experienced the most modern city of this country, my expectations were really low at my current location - Dumaguete... but man, what a pleasant surprise!  I am very impressed so far,..

I started off at the Alima Cafe and had the best eggs benedict of my life (at 199P).  It's such a quaint spot to chill, surf the net and have your morning coffee.  And after walking the city, sweating like s pig and building my appetite, I headed for the Hayahay Tree House Bar.  I opted for the upstairs bar overlooking the ocean with a cool breeze and chose the Garlic Chili Crab.  With a cold San Miguel, I was in heaven.  At first, my only complaint was this meal can get quite messy and they didn't provide enough napkins, but later realized I didn't need them because I ended up licking every drop of that sauce off my fingers anyway.  It was truly a "broke the mouth" experience and I am  defilnitely going back.  For a late dinner, I decided to round out the experience by going Korean at Soban.  I have been to many Korean restaurants on Oahu and this is up to par with the best of them,  at half the price.  I decided on the Spicy Beef with Veggies... which was good in it's self but it was the condiments, which included the Korean pancake that made my meal.  

So far, the scoreboard reads Dumaguete 3, BGC 0

Any other food or restaurant recommendations from Dumaguete Expats will be greatly appriciated.

 

[RBM]

44 minutes ago, bows00 said:

As mentioned in a previous post, there are tons of dinning choices in Bonffacio Global City, but after spending 7 days (and lots of money) nothing really stood out or impressed.  Oh yes, there are many restaurants with very elegant ambiance, but there was nothing that touched my taste buds that resulted in an instinctive "yummy" reaction from me.   Maybe it was due to my bad selections, but based on what i paid (at least 1000P per restaurant) I expected much more...

So having experienced the most modern city of this country, my expectations were really low at my current location - Dumaguete... but man, what a pleasant surprise!  I am very impressed so far,..

I started off at the Alima Cafe and had the best eggs benedict of my life (at 199P).  It's such a quaint spot to chill, surf the net and have your morning coffee.  And after walking the city, sweating like s pig and building my appetite, I headed for the Hayahay Tree House Bar.  I opted for the upstairs bar overlooking the ocean with a cool breeze and chose the Garlic Chili Crab.  With a cold San Miguel, I was in heaven.  At first, my only complaint was this meal can get quite messy and they didn't provide enough napkins, but later realized I didn't need them because I ended up licking every drop of that sauce off my fingers anyway.  It was truly a "broke the mouth" experience and I am  defilnitely going back.  For a late dinner, I decided to round out the experience by going Korean at Soban.  I have been to many Korean restaurants on Oahu and this is up to par with the best of them,  at half the price.  I decided on the Spicy Beef with Veggies... which was good in it's self but it was the condiments, which included the Korean pancake that made my meal.  

So far, the scoreboard reads Dumaguete 3, BGC 0

Any other food or restaurant recommendations from Dumaguete Expats will be greatly appriciated.

 

Glad your enjoying, sure are some great spots to eat in Dumaguete, my favourite is Kri,  just need to wrap up well before entering. Ice cold inside.

This is my first trip here in about 4 months and wow has traffic deteriated, it's getting more like Cebu on a mini basis. Enjoy the delights but careful if driving or riding here.

Side note some lovely little restos up here in Valencia, especially Coffee Grove what a treat.

[sonjack2847]

Chin loong on the boulevard does nice food.I have been told Cafe racer is good and the one next to it.There is also a new Restaurant in Valencia above 711 called Spice which I have heard also is good.

[bows00]

5 hours ago, sonjack2847 said:

I have been told Cafe racer is good and the one next to it.

I believe your referring to the Lantaw - I just had their garlic butter crab and it was delicious, but a bit too rich for my taste, and the service was pretty negligent. But what caught my eye was the new condo complex being sold in the vicinity - I believe it is called the "Marina Town".  If everything goes to plan, it will be a nice community with basketball court, huge pool and a shopping complex.  Asking price for a 2 bedroom unit was just above 3 million pesos.  

[bows00]

5 hours ago, RBM said:

This is my first trip here in about 4 months and wow has traffic deteriated

Yup, this is a MAJOR downside of Dumaguete.  Air qualify is twice as bad as BGC.  There are too many vehicles spitting out black soot smoke all over the city.  Unfortunately, I love to walk and take my time to see the area during vacations, but man, walking the streets prolongs your exposure to vehicle smoke.  In Dumaguete, it's probably better for your health to catch a trike to minimize your time in the polluted streets.  Whenever possible I have found that walking the coast line where there is a nice ocean breeze helps a bit.  

 

[Dave Hounddriver]

1 hour ago, bows00 said:

Asking price for a 2 bedroom unit was just above 3 million pesos.  

That surprises me.  A quick search shows that those 2 bedroom units are 32 sq m.  The price is good but I surmise that comes as a concrete shell which will cost another half a million to flesh out.  32 sq m?  A normal bachelor pad is about 22 sq m so those 2 bedrooms are going to be small.

Still a good buy as far as brand new condos go.

[RBM]

12 hours ago, Dave Hounddriver said:

That surprises me.  A quick search shows that those 2 bedroom units are 32 sq m.  The price is good but I surmise that comes as a concrete shell which will cost another half a million to flesh out.  32 sq m?  A normal bachelor pad is about 22 sq m so those 2 bedrooms are going to be small.

Still a good buy as far as brand new condos go.

Pray tell me Mr Hounddriver how can 1 bedrooms fit into 32 Sq Meters? 

[Dave Hounddriver]

1 hour ago, RBM said:

Pray tell me Mr Hounddriver how can 1 bedrooms fit into 32 Sq Meters? 

Don't ask me, it was bows00's post and all I did was look it up and say I was surprised.  If you want to know, you have to ask the builder as they say they can fit 2 bedrooms in. 

For me, I only have 1 bedroom in a 38 sqm place.

 

[OnMyWay]

5 hours ago, Dave Hounddriver said:

Don't ask me, it was bows00's post and all I did was look it up and say I was surprised.  If you want to know, you have to ask the builder as they say they can fit 2 bedrooms in. 

For me, I only have 1 bedroom in a 38 sqm place.

 

It doesn't seem right.  Like this.  I'm looking at Air BNB and this one apartment says it is 26 sqm and 2 br.  The pictures seem like the size is ok, but the beds do fill the rooms.  By contrast, the rooms we have stayed in at Microtel MOA say they are 26 sqm.  2 queen beds fill the room up with not much leftover.

[bows00]

On 2/17/2018 at 11:54 AM, sonjack2847 said:

I have been told Cafe racer is good

Whoo man, just had their Baby Back Ribs and it was "fall off the bone" awesome.  IMHO, blows Tony Romas out of the water for only 199Pesos.  And they serve their beers SUPER cold (just above freezing - I bet they have a beer chiller).  In fact found my new favorite beer - San Miguel Super Dry.