When I go to Tacloban, I never miss the change to dine at Ocho Seafood and Grill.  At first, it was just a small seafood restaurant along Senator EnageStreet.  Because they server the freshest catch of the day, coupled with an excellent service and a superb taste of the food, they have grown to be one of the most successful restaurant in Tacloban. 

Inside Ocho Seafood and Grill

What I like about Ocho Seafood and Grill is the constant improvement of their restaurant and the consistency of the taste of the food they serve. When I started to go there even during the time that I lived in Tacloban, they have always gave me dishes with the same quality and same consistency of the flavor.  Hear are my “must have” in Ocho:

Spicy Sarad

Sarad is a huge brown lookingmussels.  I use to have it grilled when I cooked it a home.  The spicy version of Ocho is a must have. It is truly delicious.

Seaweeds with calamansi

Just a plain seaweed with chilis mixed with calamansi is already a very good starter.

Halaan Soup

I have tried their sinigang soup and tinola which I also appreciated but this halaan soup for me is the best.  Why? Because the fresh spring onions, ginger and onions combined with the shell made a distinct taste of freshness and soothing feeling. 

Grilled Tasik Belly

What more can I ask for when I have the grilled trasik Belly on my table?  This is a must have in ocho. The tenderness and taste will really knock you out.  That is the same reason why I always order for these dishes in Ocho.

Ocho Seafood and Grill

When in Tacloban, never miss the opportunity to drop by Ocho Seafood and Gril and try my recommendation. Happy eating.

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Maasin at the Port Area

It was a good feeling to be back in Maasin. The last time I went to this Southern tip of Eastern Visayas was two years ago.  Now, it has progressed but still remained the southern charm that it have. 

Its been a long time since last visited and it has always fascinated me to roam around in this lovely city. My favorite part, the port area.

View from Kinamot sa Abgao

In Maasin, there is this great restaurant that is known for its great food and warm accommodation.  The first time that I went there was around 2006.  The name is Kinamot sa Abgao.  It has improved.  Now, they have a hotel beside the restaurant.

Kinamot sa Abgao

Going inside Kinamot

Kinamot is a word in Visayas to “eat using your bare hands”.  We Filipinos are familiar with this way of eating and there is a proper etiquette in doing so.  You may either use your left or right but you have to make sure that your other hand is not used.  There are exemptions like eating shrimps, crabs and shells but as much as possible, it is avoided.  In eating using your hands, you have to make sure that the food that you take is just enough to enter your mouth and must be very clean afterwards. 

Going back to the restaurant, it is situated just beside the breakwaters. You will experience a cool breeze of the sea.  We even saw fishermen catching fish while we were dinning.

Inside Kinamot sa Abgao

Here are the foods that are must have:

Kinilaw

One of the best tasting kinilaw that I ever had.  The combination of sweetness and the tang our sourness plus the freshness of the fish has made this a fantastic dish.  This is highly recommended.

Inihaw Platter

Inihaw platter is a combination of grilled fish, squid, pork bacon, beef and chicken.  At first we thought at this is just a small dish good for two.  But then it came, we were three and still we had a hard time finishing it.  This complimented the kinilaw.  The grilled squid was cooked just right leaving it very soft.

San Miguel Pale Pilsen

The kinilaw and the inihaw platter were great with with a bottle of San Miguel Pale Pilsen.  The combination of grill and kinilaw is the perfect match here in Kinamot.  They also have a hotel beside the resto named Villa Romana Hotel.  When you go to Maasin Southern Leyte, never miss this opportunity to eat beside the bay with one of the best kinilaw and gilled that I tasted.  Bare in mind, Kinamot sa Abgao.

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There is this special place that I never miss whenever I go to Tacloban. The name is Rafael farms and it is situated in the town of Babatngon. It is already outside of Tacloban city but is still near. You will pass by the way to Samar which is connected by the famous San Juancio Bridge. You will reach Rafael Farms without going to Babatngon proper. It is situated to the left. I suggest you must be vigilant in looking since there is no familiar landmark that will indicate you are at the place. However, the entrance is very visible and you may ask the people around and almost all are familiar with it.

Pathwat going to the Resto

Here is the entrance going to the farm. The vines created a tunnel with a path way. From there, you will feel that it is more of a nature adventure than a casual dining experience. Never the less, the walk is just fine since what you will see, is the beauty of the place.

Going to the Restaurant

It is a huge place with a tropical setting. The nipa roof combined with wood and beautiful plants setting made it a place to relax and enjoy. But before we dine, we went to the manmade lagoon. It was designed in such a way that visitors can also do boat ridding.

Lagoon at Rafael Farms

Way to the Lagoon

at the side of the restaurant

When you are in the garden, you will see that they have an outdoor accent that will catch your attention. They have combined it well with the vegetation and it came out to things that are pleasant to ones eye. It gave a feeling of relaxation.

Outdoor Accent

Full of Green Plants

The position of the banga or clay jar caught my attention. It is situated at the pond surrounding the restaurant with live tilapia swimming around. It was neatly placed and it created a cool ambiance around the restaurant.

Another Outdoor Accent

Here is a pathway going the comfort room. It is made of hard wood combined with stones.

Floor Accent

Now, if you want to refresh yourself, you will be welcomed by their bright, clean and refreshing ambiance of the comfort room.

Rafael's Comfort Room

Now, let go to the main entrance. There you will find, 2 jars that is big enough for an adult to go inside and hide. Unfortunately, that is not allowed. It just serves as an accent. What really caught my attention were the beautiful carvings on the wooden wall upon entering. It is really a piece of art.

Front of the Resto

Once you enter, you will see the great combination of wood and antiques combined very well with the modern amenities without sacrificing the space.

Inside the Resto

The ceiling is high and that gives some space of overhead fans and nostalgic chandeliers.

Ceiling Accent

When we were inside, the tables were prepared but the food we still not served. I guess they did that in purpose, just to make sure that the food we were about to eat are steamingly hot and fresh from the kitchen.

table setting

Here is their beautiful table setting with old lamps.

at the dining area

Just to kill time waiting for the food, some of us went drinking juices, some read some books, some had a short chat, others went back to the garden to have their photos taken, while I was busy reviewing my photo shots. It took us just a while around 15 minutes when the entourage of the food arrived.

Tinolang Native na Manok

First to arrive was the soup. It was tinolang native na manok or native Chicken broth. It was delicious. They added lemon grass that enhanced the taste. The meat was just tender. I ate this from my previous travel but I always experience hard meat of the chicken. I understand that is because native chicken roam around thus it creates strong muscles in compare with the domesticated caged chicken.

Green Salad with Balsamic Vinaigrette

Next was the vegetable salad with vinaigrette. The crush peanuts and the crunchy vegetable was the thing that made me say “ wow”. The vinaigrette’s sourness made it more delicious.

After which, all of the remaining food came and we had the feast. Here are the foods that we ate.

Baked Scallops

I made these baked scallops as my side dish. It was indeed delicious but I prefer eating it without rice.

Kinilaw

This kilawin or raw fish salad was different from what I tasted. They used slices of mangoes to sweeten it and its combination with the vinegar blended very well.

Now came the other main dishes

Grilled Blue Marlin

Grilled Pork Chops

Here is my shot when all of the foods were in place.

The Feast

After eating the main course, next is the dessert. They serve a modified turon or banana roll with chocolate and peanuts bits. They served it right after we finished eating. It was served still hot. For us Filipinos, eating turon is best if it is freshly cooked and that’s what they did.

Hot Turon with Chocolate Syrup

After the sumptuous feast, it was again for relaxation. Rafael Farms is really a great place to relax and eat delicious food. No wonder even if it is far from down town Tacloban, many still go there because it gives a rustic ambiance with a modern amenities and good food. This is also coupled with an excellent customer service. I will surely go back to this wonderful place when my itinerary says “ Leyte”.

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Binagol from Dagami

Going to Leyte is not complete if you are not going to taste their native delicacies.  These delicacies are served during fiesta and sometimes, or whenever you have a craving for it.  For me, it is always fiesta time everytime I go to the Tacloban and it is always my time for Leyte’s famous native delicacies. 

Binagol Again

One of them is Binagol. It is made of a sweet taro with nuts added placed, eggs, butter, coconut milk, placed in a coconut shell and steamed. I really appreciate the soft pudding of the outer part with an oozing inner part jam like. It is truly a heaven sent delicacy.

moron con tsokolate

My next favorite is the morón con chocolate.  It is more like a suman like but it is much tastier and sweeter. It is made of sticky rice, coconut milk, chocolate, cheese, muscovado sugar wrapped in a banana leaf and steamed. It was very soft and gooey. I never leave Tacloban without this. It is because, my family will always ask for it.

Suman Latik

Now, here is my nostalgic delicacy that I first had in Leyte. It is Suman Latik. It is a rice based delicacy same as the suman in Luzon but it is wrapped triangularly and you have to put the sweet sauce on top of it.  The sweet sauce is called Latik. Latik is made of sugar and coconut milk. I prefer eating it while having a cup of coffee. That was my first experience of this Suman Latik with a perfect rainy day setting while I was reading a book.  I never thought I was able to finished a dozen afterwards.

Suman Latik Feast

Where to buy, Dagami is famous for the Binagol and Abuyog is famous of its morón.  For the suman latik, I don’t know what place is famous in producing it. I guess, it is the whole of Leyte and Samar. J

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When I hear Palompon Leyte, the first thing that registers to my mind is “Imbao”.  That is a shell fish that has an “almost spherical shaped meat”.  The taste is superb.  It goes very well with  a condiment made of calamansi and chilis. It was one of the best shell fish that I like. Not only because of its meatiness, but also the taste will tantalize you. It is a little bit sweet and salty. What we had was cooked by just soaking it in hot water.  I also tasted it as a clam soup. Likewise, it still tasted great.  

In this region ( Eastern Visayas), I was told that you can only have it in Palompon and Babatngon. I haven’t check it with other areas in Leyte and Samar. I also tasted some in Davao.  We brought some more when we returned to Tacloban. When we arrive there, we prepared it as an appetizer and it went very well with their tuba.  Rapsa ang imbao!!!

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There is this place that I always pay a visit every time I go back to Tacloban,. That is Calle Z. Why?  It is like going back to the memory lane where bars has the classic atmosphere and where you can talk to your friend comfortably without being overwhelmed by the music.  Not to mention that the variety of music they piped-in are well picked. That is enough reason to go back and relax. Another thing is that they never fail to serve good food.  Last week, I tasted their Sisig na Bangus as recommended by my friend.  It did not fail my expectation. No fishy after taste and it carried the softness and flavorsome of the bagus (milk fish).  It went very well with sizzling plate and plenty of hot sauce. It was a smack down with ice cold beer, blended with the cool ambiance and stirred by the good music.  Total Chill mga pre!!!

Calle Z Cafe or Calle Zaragozza is located at along Independencia st., Poblacion, Tacloban City, Leyte. Even though there are new establishments in Tacloban, CalleZ has made its landmark as culinary and place to be at night with friends.  Never leave Tacloban without experiencing Calle Z.

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Samar has always been the place where I can gather the freshest and the best sea food experience in Eastern Visayas. First, it goes with the availability of the catch of the day. Second is the local drink that is Bahalina from Palo, Leyte and third is the company of good friends to whom you will share the food and drinks.  

Every time I’m in Samar, this is the experience that awaits me. During my last visit, my friend Melvin Labro prepared this special pulutan for us. It is his version of Spicy Garlic Scallops. 

Here is the recipe 

1/2 kilo scallops (removed from the shell) 

1 Tablespoon Kikoman Soy sauce 

2 Tablespoon of Oyster Sauce 

1 teaspoon of Sesame Oil 

1 onion chopped 

1 red bell pepper ( sliced linearly)  

3 teaspoon of fried minced garlic 

½ cup olive oil 

3 pieces of minced siling labuyo 

Direction 

Sautee the onions with olive oil and mix the scallops after 3 minutes. Make sure that you will not burn the onion. After the scallops turn a little-bit brown you may add all of the spices.  Add additional soy sauce and oyster sauce depending to your desired saltiness. Add the red bell pepper, siling labuyo and minced garlic.  When the bell pepper is half-cooked you may place all of the ingredients to a presentable plate and serve it right-away.   

Thanks to my good friend Melvin Labro who cooked this delectable dish for us. It was supposedly a pulutan but we cannot help it to request for rice. It was indeed a good viand too. We had a wonderful food tripping and drinking weekend at Catbalogan Samar. It was truly another rapsa moment.       

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