Maguro Sushi

Maguro (Tuna) Sushi

Do you like Japanese Food? Cavite has a wide assortment of Japanese restaurants that serves usual favorites such as sushi, sashimi, katsu dishes, and so much more! This sushi dish is made with fresh and raw Tuna or Maguro in Japanese, and is served over small portions of rice. It is then enjoyed with traditional condiments like soy sauce, wasabi, and gari (pickled ginger). You can enjoy this dish at Tat Saku in general Trias, near the EPZA Export Processing Zone.

Tat Saku Restaurant

EPZA Diversion Road

Bacao II

General Trias, Cavite

+63 46 454 6514

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This post is part of Our World Tuesday. Click on the photo and be taken to beautiful views around the world!

Hot Chocolate, Anyone?

Tsokolateria's Hot Chocolate, Tagaytay City

Another specialty from one of my favorite restaurants in the province, tsokolateria, is their hot chocolate. What sets their hot chocolate from the usual is that these babies are made from tablea which are strong cacao chips that are made from big tablets (Tablea is a Spanish word for Tablet) but nowadays are made in balls or disks form. These "tablets" are then placed in boiling water or milk and a special wooden whisk called the "batirol", also came from the Spanish word batidor, is used to mix it and make it frothy and creamy.

Their hot chocolates are available in regular, dark, or like this one above which is their tsoko-nut variant, which is mixed with delicious Filipino favorite "Choc-Nut" which are small chocolate bars made of chocolate and ground peanuts (see bar on the bottom right). They are so good, take my word for it!

Tsokolateria

45 Aguinaldo Highway

Silang Crossing East

Tagaytay City

+63 46 4131698

Calamansi Pancake Souffle

Tsokolateria, Tagaytay City

Calamansi is the native version of the Lime but it has this distinct sweet quality that blends in its natural tangy sourness. These fruits are usually small and green but grows on shrubs with strong and thick trunks. Usually used as a condiment to stir fried and noodle dishes, Tsokolateria used it as a flavor base for one of their pancake souffle recipes. The sweet and fluffy texture of their pancake souffle was given a kick of tangy goodness that makes you close your eyes and take you to a land of dreams for a couple of seconds.

Tsokolateria

45 Aguinaldo Highway

Silang Crossing East

Tagaytay City

+63 46 4131698

Spam Musubi

Some people love Japanese food so much, and some people are self-confessed SPAM Monsters. But what if you both a Japanese food lover and a SPAM monster? This restaurant in Tagaytay City has got you covered! A sliced SPAM sandwiched over and under by steamed white rice, then wrapped by seafood nori wrapper is a dream! But that doesn't end there, cover it all up by Japanese breadcrumbs then deep fried to perfection makes it extra special. Served with Teriyaki sauce and mayonnaise, this is the new definition of comfort food.  

And may I please talk about the plating, it's just super cute and served with a cool can of one of our best friends in the kitchen! The question is why would you need a fork in there, right? I won't mind keeping my fingers oily as long as I can munch on that as soon as possible! You can enjoy this delicious plate with a stunning view of the Taal caldera at The Original Hawaiian BBQ in Tagaytay City.

The Original Hawaiian BBQ

45 Aguinaldo Highway

Silang Crossing East

Tagaytay City

+63 46 4131698

Oyster Sisig of Malen's

Malen's Oyster Sisig

Sisig is a very popular dish in the Philippines. It's rather new I must say and not a recipe that we can call colonial from the Spanish and American eras. Usually made of pork meat, but can also be made using beef, chicken, or tuna, sisig is made my slicing meat into very small blocks and then seasoned with soy sauce and calamansi (native lime), then sauteed with onions, garlic, chili peppers, and liver. It creates an explosion of delicious tastes that come together - sweet, sour, salty, spicy - mixed together in a beautiful dish.

Malen's Restaurant in Noveleta took it a notch higher by using one of coastal Cavite's famous products, oysters. In this dish, the oysters are sliced and cooked in the sisig style and then scooped back to its cute little shells and served and plated in a bed of salt. Sisig and this particular oyster variant is best enjoyed with steamed white rice. You can enjoy native Caviteño and other Filipino and Fusion cuisine in Malen's Restaurant in the town of Noveleta. They are also known for their cakes and pastries.

Malen's Restaurant

Magdiwang Hwy, Santa Rosa, 

Noveleta, Cavite

+63 46 438 1634

https://www.malensrestaurant.com/

Lechon Kawali - Another Favorite

Cafe 506's "Pritchon"

With the Caviteños extensive love for eating and cooking, one of the staple favorites in every local restaurant is a dish called Lechon Kawali. Half an inch thick slab of juicy pork belly, salted or marinated and then deep fried into crispy perfection. Very simple to do right? But this requires practice to perfect it's taste and texture. It is best served with hot garlic rice and a sunny side up egg just like the one pictured above.

Kawit's Cafe 506 serves delicious fusion dishes from sandwiches to pastas and to these Pinoy favorites that will surely leave you smiling on your way to your next destination.

Have you tasted Lechon Kawali before? Or do you have something similar in your country that is also as good as this one?

Pancit Palabok

Cafe 506's Pancit Palabok

One of Cavite's most famous breakfast which can also be a good idea any time of the day is the Pancit Palabok. This is a traditional Filipino noodle dish made with a pork and shrimp broth based sauce over vermicelli. The sauce's golden yellow color is made possible by annatto seeds which gives it a vibrant and appetizing appearance.

What makes Palabok a cultural display is the fusion between Chinese and Spanish cuisines on a single dish that is truly Filipino. The thin noodles (or some uses thicker variants) represents its Asian side, while the rich sauce and the use of annatto is a product of Spanish influence in the Filipino cuisine which brought these seeds from their colonies in Latin America.

Visually and tastefully curated by a variety of tasty toppings which includes a boiled egg, chicharon (deep fried pork rinds), tinapa (smoked fish) flakes, spring onions, and a lot more, the Palabok is truly a dish that any Caviteno will be proud of, and any person would truly enjoy!

Pasta con Huevos de Pescao

Pasta con Huevos de Pescao - Asiong's

The richness of fish roe, (Tuna to be exact as I asked Sonny Lua, owner of Asiong's of Cavite), is the star of this dish. There's this hidden sweetness in the saltiness of the roe. Crazy but that sweetness under saltiness does exist, well for me I guess. You would have to mix it very well before you grab a forkful so that you can enjoy the perfect amounts of everything- roe, sauce, herbs - and it will definitely be a delight to your tastebuds! Aside from this preparation, they also serve this dish in spicy and in negra or with black squid ink.

Asiong's of Cavite

4455 Buenavista Ave.,

Bo. Bucal, Silang, Cavite

Metro Tagaytay, Philippines

for Reservations: 

0918 565 2691

(046) 686 1048

Lola's Christmas Special - Morcon

Each and Every Christmas season, My Grandma, Lola Bebang, prepares and cooks her specialty, the Morcon. Morcon is a Festive Dish only served during Christmas, Fiestas and very special occasions due to its complexity and ingredients. It is made up of long and lean slices of beef rolled with celery, scrambled eggs, liver, sausages, Chorizo de Bilbao, Chinese Chorizo and Pork Fat then tied and cooked for a long period of time.

This has always been a specialty of my Grandma and I cannot argue with it, nor be biased, because I have tasted so many Morcons but my Grandma's THE BEST! 2 Days To Go! Merry Christmas Everyone!

Muffins and Donuts

I am so into breads like most Filipinos are. We like it sweet and tasty and these are usually part of our snacks because our meals are mostly of rice. These donuts and our own version of the muffin from a local Bakery, the Kababayan, is truly a delicacy because of its sweet and moist texture which is very good especially when hot. But even if it's not, we still love our Kababayan and this will always be a great merienda.

Lechon Kawali

Lechon Kawali is another Filipino Favorite. Made up of deep fried Pork Belly, which makes it very delicious as it is yet very very high in Cholesterol. This is different from the Philippine National Food, Lechon which is Roasted Whole Pig because this one is usually made from just the Belly of the Pork and it is Deep-Pan Fried.

Dipping Lechon Kawali in a Special Commercialized Gravy Brand Mag Tomas will make any Lechon Kawali a Kitchen Wonder. This one is also by Lola Idang's Pancit Malabon Restaurant at Dasmariñas.

Lumpiang Shanghai

The Lumpiang Shanghai or Spring Rolls in English is a Filipino Delicacy that came from the Chinese. It is made up of ground pork, carrots, onions, leeks and all other yummy ingredients rolled into very thin pastry and then deep fried into perfection. It can be dipped in a variety of sauces such as Ketchup, Mayo and Sweet Chili Sauce, just like the ones shown above.

If you would like to know, the Lumpiang Shanghai is truly one of my Favorite foods Ever! Filipinos like me enjoy it over rice for dinner and some would even have them as is. The Lumpia above is served at Lola Idang's at Dasmariñas

Pancit Malabon

Pancit Malabon is one of the Philippine Delicacies that is truly a favorite in every Event and Celebration. As it signifies Long Life in the Chinese and Filipino culture, the Pancit or Noodles are truly a magnificent symbol in any occasion.

Pancit Malabon is composed of thick noodles with a thick spread of shrimp paste sauce. Filled with yummy treats like squid, shrimps, leafy greens and boiled eggs. But my favorite part of it is when you pinch the Calamansi (Native Citrus) as it gives a soury, tangy goodness in every spoonful. This was taken from one of the Best Pancit Malabon Makers I have ever tasted, Lola Idang's Pancit Malabon in Dasmariñas City, Cavite

This is my first Food Post in a long time since my first food posts are not that successful, that is why I asked my cousin Caren first if this was a good shot and she said Yes. Hope you guys like it as well and then I'll bring you more filling treats from Cavite!

Cafe Amadeo

Amadeo, Cavite is famous for its Wonderful Coffee Industry and is even hailed as the Coffee Capital of the Philippines. It is Home to the Cafe Amadeo, a Barako Variant Coffee which is very strong yet it has this fruity hint in every brew. These coffees sold in these cute little rag sacks are made from locally grown coffee beans which are truly the pride not just of Amadeo but the whole Province of Cavite.

The Pahimis Festival is an Annual event which gives tribute to the bountiful coffee industry of Amadeo wherein free Coffee are brewed to everyone who likes to take a cup and savor the freshness of the cool, Mountain weather of Amadeo.