This was our stop on the way home from Caliraya, Laguna. Having scrimped on just a kilo of chicken and pork chop for 16 people (can you imagine that?!), we were craving for a complete meal that shall leave our stomachs full.
E had brought me to this place before when we visited several places at Laguna. The restaurant offers Filipino cuisine – the menu is not that extensive as the grills that we have here in Manila but the basic dishes are there. When E and I had our lunch there, we ordered inihaw na tilapia cooked in gata, ginatang kuhol and steamed okra. With the food tasting good and the surroundings homey and serene, I just had to convince my friends that we have lunch there.
Kamayan occupies an extensive space – the first part of the restaurant is the covered section. At the center are the nipa huts floating on the palaisdaan. At the back part are even more dining tables on a covered section. The place is still being constructed (or improved) so one might find a few construction on some parts. At lunch time, the place is quite packed so the nipa huts are already filled with people eating. At a much later time, it is easier to spot a vacant nipa hut to eat at. Our group occupied two nipa huts.
At our table, we had sinigang na tuna belly, pata tim, sisig, steamed okra (I ordered it again!) and several servings of halo-halo and buko juice.
The food was all yummy!!
sinigang na tuna belly
I specifically love the combination of the steamed okra and bagoong isda – simple cooking, not doing that much to the dish yet creating the tastiest effect!
The sisig was good and not at all dry which some grills here tend to do. There’s not much oil or fat to it either, something I like.
The surprise of all was the pata tim. They had bell peppers and other veggies at their version of the pata tim. I don’t put anything at mine when I cook that dish – just soy sauce, vinegar, bay leaf and banana blossom. But then it was sooo succulent and full of flavor. The meat was soft that it must have been slow cooked.
The surprise of all was the pata tim. They had bell peppers and other veggies at their version of the pata tim. I don’t put anything at mine when I cook that dish – just soy sauce, vinegar, bay leaf and banana blossom. But then it was sooo succulent and full of flavor. The meat was soft that it must have been slow cooked.
The halo-halo though didn’t have much ‘sahog’ as one would usually have at Chowking so my friends weren’t satisfied with that.
The only negative part about our whole experience was the inefficient customer service. The other table was only served drinks and appetizers and then the food just stop coming. We were already halfway through our people yet there was still no waiter in sight carrying a food to their table. Already irritated, one of my friends approached the Kitchen to inquire and learned that they are still waiting for the rice to be cooked. If that was the case, they should have admitted it from the start, informed the table or even offered something while waiting. My friends from the other table just had to cancel all their orders because it really was futile to wait that long for food. If their staffs are not trained that well, perhaps they might think it over if they want to expand the business elsewhere. I would not even blame it on catching them on a bad day. There are no excuses for that.
Good food. Dreadful service. But I would still say, that if you are on that area, try the place. Dining there is surely unique!
Let’s see if I’ll eat there again on my next visit to Laguna (next week?)
2 comments:
Of all those delicious-looking dishes, I like the steamed okra best! Simple lang pero so flavorful!
wow! i was salivating over the sinigang! its been ages since i've had any. mmm!
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