Inn Review: Keni Po Tagaytay

If you're looking for a decent yet affordable place to stay in Tagaytay, I highly recommend Keni Po. Although the name of this little inn sounds funny, they take themselves seriously.

eye catching bright yellow facade

Located beside the Ina ng Saklolo Church just a few minutes before Picnic Grove and on the main road, it is easily accessible by car or public transportation. There are ample slots for parking. A room costs P1,200 per night. No breakfast, though.

Make a reservation by phone. If there is an available slot, they would text you for the bank details so you could deposit 50% of the room fee at BPI.

back view of the lot

Their room, like the inn, is small, clean and no fuss. What I like about it is the mattress is super thick and firm. The also provide 4 fluffy pillows. Aircon was strong.

basic toiletries included

small table on the side

mini fridge, vanity table and small TV

There are a couple of hooks beside the vanity table but it was so flimsy that all I can hang is my bag. Unfortunately, they didn't think of putting some in the bathroom so you just put your towel and clothes at the edge of the sink and pray it won't slide to the floor. 

They offer DVD for free. Just browse through their list, ask for it at the reception and watch away. English and Tagalog movies available.  

The only disappointing thing in the room is the rest room. There is a tub but it didn't look too clean. There was no hooks to put your towel or clothes. 

Very good pictures of Keni Po from 18stones here.

The first day we were there, it was a bit early and our room was not yet available. So we decided to eat brunch at their veranda overlooking the pool. 

Tocino

Corned Beef

Surprisingly affordable. I spent P160 for the two dishes. The corned beef tasted like Purefood and was easily good for two. Same with the Tocino (which thankfully didn't taste like Mekeni). Did not regret not eating at Jollibee :D

Speaking of food, the second night it was raining and we decided to stay at our room and just watch DVDs. Around 10pm, we ordered room service. Trolling the other blogs, someone said Keni Po's Ribs was really good. Really? I was a bit doubtful since ribs would be the last thing I would order from an inn. But what's the use of looking for recommendations from others if I won't follow it, eh? 

Chopsuey 

Keni Po Ribs

Food was delivered after 30 minutes. 

Yes, the Ribs was really good. Just the way I like it; not too saucy with a good caramelization, sweet and the meat was very tender. The serving, like breakfast, can be good enough for two. The best part? Dinner only cost P170. Talk about a good deal. 

Final Verdict

Although they do no have any view of Taal, the rooms are clean and very nice, the food is great, and best of all affordable. They have a small pool (not heated) and 4 tables in the garden where it's nice to hang around. Most of their rooms are for 2 people but they do have 2 cottages good for 4-6 persons. 

Overall, one of the best budget accommodations in Tagaytay.

Keni PO

110 Calamba Rd.

Sungay West, Tagaytay City. 

046-4830977 

0910-7824444 for Smart & Talk & Text networks; or

0915-4765555 for Globe; or

0932-1847555 for Sun

Buon Giorno?

If you feel like going somewhere quiet in Tagaytay with a great view of Taal yet easily accessible, head towards Cliff House. It's a small compound of eating establishments located along Aguinaldo highway beside the more known restaurants such as Leslie's or Max's.

Cliff House - good view of Taal, plenty of space so not too crowded, pretty garden

One of the more popular places to eat here is Buon Giorno. My friend and I always wanted to try this place out but there's always a long line of people waiting for a table.

perfect - no customers yet

Last month, we finally decided to phone in our reservation for early lunch on a Saturday.

Buon Giorno's mix of best salad ingredient drizzled with the
well revered house dressing P218

We started with the Buon Giorno Salad - Tagaytay greens with fruits in season accompanied by their well "revered" salad dressing. The dressing had plenty of flavor (sour/sweet combination) but would have preferred they lightly tossed it with the salad instead of putting gobs of it on top.

Prosciutto Funghi Pizza - deep flavors of ham, mushroom and oregano (about P249)

The Prosciutto Funghi Pizza is about 10' inches with a thin, crispy crust. The prosciutto, a fancy name for thinly sliced ham, had a subtle taste. Mushrooms were plenty as were the mozarella.  Overall, the pizza looks impressive with every space filled with toppings and cheese but there weren't any real "deep" flavors. Thank the culinary gods for chili oil!

Lasagne Al Forne - alternate layes of spinach pasta, ragu and cheese P280

The Lasagne Al Forne looked delicious with its bubbling tomato and cheese sauce. The flavors were deep and rich. However, after a couple of bites, we began to wonder, where's the pasta? The ragu was more meat than tomato sauce and they packed so much in between the layers than it completely obliterated the thin delicate spinach pasta. It tasted like we were eating just pure ground beef. Not a good feeling.

Servings were good for 1-2 person.

Chocolate Pistacho Sansrival P207

Unlike their other dishes, the Chocolate Pistacho Sansrival was really really small.  One bite and all we can say is, "Wow! Butter!" I like butter but not that much. The person who assembled the sansrival must be the same one who did the lasagna because the icing layers were so heavy that the wafers in between were just flattened out. Saying that, kudos for using a generous serving of pistachios.

ready to eat

Service

Service was really really weirdly bad. When they showed us to our table, there were a lot of bugs, spider and ants on the banquette seating. When we pointed this out to our waitress, she just looked at us and said, "wala po kaming magagawa". No effort at all to sweep it away. After just standing there and the waitress looking at us blankly, we decided to take matters in our own hand and just sat at another table.

Waiters were inattentive and borderline rude. Service was slow and you have to call their attention repeatedly to request anything. They would talk to each other about personal matters even though they were just standing beside us. One waiter was singing (off key!)  in a normal voice despite another song being played over the speakers. Honestly, the owners should seriously consider teaching the waitstaff some manners.

Final Verdict

The food prices are not that bad and except for dessert, the food can be shared by two. Expect to shell out P400-P500/person. The food is very pretty to look at and except for the pizza, their dishes has strong flavors. However, any enjoyment you derive from the food and the peaceful surrounding is destroyed by very bad service. You might want to avoid the aggravation and try the other restaurants at Cliff House instead.

Buon Giorno

4 Cliff House
Aguinaldo Highway
Tagaytay 
(beside Yellow Cab Pizza House)

Tel 046-4832102

Antonio's: Breakfast with a View

In my opinion, there are only two things worth going to Tagaytay for: the spectacular view and good food. Better if you can combine the two together. That was what we were hoping for, at least, when my friends Gladys, Adrian and I decided to have breakfast at Antonio's.

bright sunshiny day

Breakfast at Antonio's is one of the more high end food place in Tagaytay. Normally, I'd be perfectly content to have pancakes at Pancake House (cheaper too) but we decided to try this place out since everyone has been raving about it.  

busy Sunday morning

No need for reservations. We came in on a Sunday morning but was able to snag a table with no problem. First thing you noticed is that the dining hall was open and airy. The big Veranda windows not only lets you see the unobstructed view of the famous Taal volcano but it also allows a fair amount of the cool Tagaytay air in. Too bad all the tables near the window were already occupied when we arrived. 

Devil's Delight P260
Chocolate Pancake with Strawberries, Cream, Chocolate Ice Cream
and Drizzled with Chocolate Sauce

Of course, we chose the most sinfully described pancake in the menu named Devil's Delight which, unfortunately, wasn't as delightful as it sounded. The pancakes were a bit dense, unlike the fluffy ones at Pancake House and wasn't as chocolaty as I would have liked. I thought there'd be fresh strawberries but it came out in a form of a jam. Nevertheless, the jam was good - not too sweet and had a fair amount of strawberry chunks. I think the best part is the ice cream which my friend swore tasted like the one sold by Magnolia.

Eggs Benedict P400
2 Poached Egg, Smoked Ham on English Muffin Topped
with Hollandaise Sauce

The Eggs Benedict were surprisingly small. The size of the english muffin is comparable to your ordinary pandesal. The eggs were soft but not too runny. Ham was good (not your typical grocery ham) but really couldn't taste the "smoke" effect. The hollandaise sauce was a disappointment. I was expecting this rich, smooth and creamy sauce but instead got a thick, almost dry, bland sauce that did not add anything to the dish. Worst, they put mustard on the bread which overpowered the taste of the egg and ham. 

Fresh Corned Beef with Swiss Cheese and Russian Dressing Frittata P400
Slices of Corned Beef and Swiss Cheese, Sauerkraut, Onions and Parsely
with Horseradish, Mustard and Russian Dressing on top of a 3 Egg Frittata
with Hash Brown, Panini Bread drizzled with Sundried Tomato Pesto (whew!) ..
with a small cup of baked beans

The title itself is a mouthful! Among all the things we ordered, I had low expectations for the Frittata since I am not a fan of corned beef or Sauerkraut or Horseradish or ... you get the drift. Also, it didn't look too appetizing and I thought that the black thing on top was bagoong (fermented fish/shrimp paste). Turned out it was the sundried tomato pesto (oops!) :p 

Surprisingly, this was actually good. The corned beef is homemade and not your typical canned variety. It was very tender, flaky, and just plain mmmmmmmm .... delicious! All the things I mentioned I was not a fan of really melded well together and complimented the creamy eggs. Even the baked beans was good. I really liked this dish and was more to my expectations of what was served at Antonio's.

Hot Chocolate Grande P230

I don't drink coffee much so I usually order hot chocolate. The one at Antonio's was good but I had better ones at Cafe Adriatico.  

with food buddy, Adrian

The place is along Aguinaldo Highway and easily accessible by car or public transportation. To go there, turn right at Tagaytay Rotanda going towards Nasugbu, Batangas. Go past Taal Vista and Bag of Beans. Once you reach the turn for Puzzle Mansion (you won't miss it since you will see a sign for this every few meters), start looking to your left. After about 5 minutes, you will see a white building with white picket fences - this is Antonio's. If you see Residence Inn, you have already passed the restaurant. Ample parking space.

The Verdict? 

Expensive for breakfast, a few misses and a hit. The menu doesn't have pictures so you just pick based on how the item is described. The waiters were attentive and patient. Some of the food items were good, others were just too hyped up. The place is simple but very elegant. Too busy, thought, for one to have a leisurely and quiet breakfast. Try to hold out for a table beside the window. Personally, I would think twice before spending P500-P600 for breakfast. If you got money to spend, good for you! There are some items on the menu worth exploring further.

Breakfast at Antonio's

Brgy Bagong Tubig
Tagaytay City, Batangas
Tel (046) 413-0738

Bawai's: Great Expectations

The thing with expectations is that if you set it too low, you tend to expect the worst. Set it too high and you might get disappointed. Well, definitely I had high expectations for Bawai's Vietnamese Kitchen touted as one of the best restaurants in Tagaytay.

Dining hall is located above their garage with large open windows to let the breeze in.
There's limited parking spaces in the garage so be prepared to park on the street.

Bawai's is only open during the weekend (Friday - Sunday) for lunch (11am- 2pm) and dinner (5pm - 9pm). I highly recommend making reservations beforehand. Once they confirm the reservation,  they will text you their menu and suggest you pre-order the food at least 6 hours before coming. The text will include the name of dishes, description and price.

We made our reservation the day before and luckily we were told that they can accommodate us for late lunch at 1:30 pm.

had to ring the bell a couple of times before being let in

The place is simple but very elegant. The servers wore a more casual version of the Ao Dai, the dining room was very clean with good quality tables and chairs, the thin, white, muslim cloth used as a window treatment added a romantic touch. The place is small and could probably only accommodate about 30 people.

Tamarind Juice P 95, Pandan Ice Tea P65

Once we were seated, the server confirmed our pre-order food dishes before taking our drink orders. My friend had their Tamarind Juice. We know there was real tamarind in it because there were a lot of cooked, sweet tamarind bits at the bottom. Oddly, they served this hot. Maybe if they serve it cold, the tamarind mixture won't mix properly? I chose Pandan Ice Tea. It was a bit bland even if I stirred in the sugar syrup.

Cha Gio - buttered chicken, pork, herb fried roll 5 pcs P180

Next the appetizers. The Cha Gio were nicely fried (not too oily), neatly rolled but were small - just a bit longer than the length of my thumb. Unfortunately, I could not taste the buttered chicken. Everything was mixed up so I don't really taste the difference. It was a nice lumpia (fried spring roll) but not that spectacular.

Goi Cuon - glazed pork and shrimp with veggies fresh roll 3 pcs P195

The Goi Cuon looked really really nice and perfectly wrapped. The big fat shrimp is positioned just so that you can see it through the thin rice paper. The taste was clean, veggie fresh and the shrimp was big. Each roll had some sliced pork but I didn't taste any glaze. They served this with a thick peanut sauce with real peanut bits. The sauce could have used a bit more flavor. Nevertheless, it complimented the Goi Cuon.

Bo Kho - 12 spice slow cooked beef stew w/ steamed noodle P325

We ordered 2 main dishes.  The first, Bo Kho, was served in this shallow bowl so it looked like the serving was not that much. However, when we put aside the vegetables, we were pleasantly surprised that the meat could easily be shared by 2-3 persons. The beef was very very tender and tasted good with the right amount of fat. Although the broth had good flavor, I don't taste much of the 12 spice.

Tom Rang Me - spicy tamarind prawns with chives and
steamed rice 300 grams  P395

Now the Tom Rang Me was different and a very pleasant surprise. Based on the description I was envisioning this as more of Sinigang with Shrimp dish. What we got instead is about 6 decent size prawns with an amazing spicy-salt-sour sauce combination. I thought: this is more like it! It was so good that even when there were no more prawns, I still use the sauce to finish of the rice. I would definitely go back to Bawai for this.

sarap!

View from the second floor

Location, Location, Location

Bawai is located on Lagusan Drive. They are fairly isolated and not easily accessible by public transportation. If you're coming from Tagaytay Rotonda, drive towards People's Park. Just before reaching the intersection for Sta Rosa Exit, you will see a big green sign indicating "to Manila" and "Dominican House of Prayer". Turn left then just go straight. Follow the signs for Chateau Hestia, another restaurant. Once you see the final sign for Chateau Hestia, stop. Bawai is just a lot or two before it.

The Verdict? 

The location is a problem because it's a little bit inaccessible. The setting was very nice and elegant perfect for a romantic lunch/dinner. The food was simple, tasted fresh and clean, well executed but aside from Tong Rang Me, lacked that final oomph. Definitely better than the food I have tasted in Vietnam but I feel they could have pushed the taste a bit further. Saying that, I am still intrigued and won't mind going back again to try their other dishes.

Bawai's Vietnamese Kitchen
Hernandez St.
Purok 5
Bucal, Silang
Cavite

Tel 0920 972 2924

Food Tripping Tagaytay - Last Part (Promise!)

After our big lunch at Sonya's and the dessert detour at Chateau Hestia, we decided to get down to business and look at some furnitures. But before that, we had to stop by Rowena's for pasalubong.

One for the Road

The place is about 5 minutes from Tagaytay road via Sta Rosa exit. The place is very small but the stores' pink awning and numerous cars/vans in front is an indication that you have the right place. Although Rowena's buko tart is very good, I don't think it's that great.The buko strips they use are very young and soft but the I feel the custard needs to be creamier and sweeter.

different kinds of tarts - love the pink package

blueberry cheese tart

I normally buy their Sylvanna or their Kesong Puti (P80) because my mom loves those.

neatly packaged and just the right size

Rowena's Tagaytay Contact Information:

Tel: (+46) 860 2481
Mobile: +63920 9080318
E-mail: rowenas_tarts@yahoo.com.ph
Official Website: http://rowenas-tarts-tagaytay.com

Seriously, Gutom pa Kayo?!!!

It was already late afternoon, the sun was setting down, the shops were closing when we decided to  start going back to Manila. We were about to ride away from the last shop when something caught my eye.

famous pancit of the north? color me interested!

I thought my mom would appreciate tasting the "original pansit cabagan" - whatever that is. Luckily, the store was open 24 hours. The restaurant was very small with about 5 small tables and no customer. I wasn't expecting much but the prices seems reasonable.

bagnet ..... mmmgood

I was ordering one for take out when my friends decided they wanted one to eat right then and there. Seriously, gutom pa kayo?!!!

pancit cabagan P70

We only waited for about 5-7 minutes before we were given this medium-sized bowl of pancit cabagan. Right off the bat I really liked it. The pancit was very hot and you could tell it was cooked minutes before. The toppings were plentiful : quail eggs, vegetables, bbq flavored strips of pork AND plenty of crispy lechon kawali (be still my heart). The "sauce" was almost soup-like but thick and flavorful. The noodles were not like those you use for mami but more like the ones used by Lucky Me Pancit Canton (my favorite too). It looks like pancit on steroid but in a good way.

We were pretty satisfied and munching away when suddenly we were served something really unusual.

ano po ito, kuya?

It smelled like mild vinegar with some chilis and chopped onions. My face must have reflected a wth? expression because the cook/waiter told us that we should put some in our pancit. Although we were very very skeptical, we did as he instructed and guess what? It was amazing with the pancit! I couldn't even taste the vinegar but it really enhanced the flavor. The chili also added a good zing.

Definitely this pancit cabagan have my gold stamp of approval. I loved it because it's something unexpected, simple but very flavorful. Sayang lang that they don't have any branches in Manila.

Unfortunately, there are really no specific landmark that I can use to point us again to this restaurant. All I remember that it was about 20 minutes away going down from Rowena's on the right side towards Sta Rosa exit.

I'll definitely look out for this once we go back :D

FYI: The take out version was not as good. I think it's best eaten hot and right off the pan.

Food Tripping in Tagaytay - Part 2

We were still pretty much full after our big lunch at Sonya's Garden but I convinced my friends that we should try this place that my friend, Tintin, recommended. I think the word "dessert" was all my friends needed to hear to agree with the slight detour.

Middle of Nowhere 

Going to Chateau Hestia is very easy IF you know where to look and you have a car. Coming from Sta Rosa, it's about 5 minutes before Tagaytay Road. Look for Rowena's pasalubong center on your left. Once you've seen this, turn right at the next street corner which is Lagusan Drive. The restaurant is very far from the main road and, like Sonya's Garden, is almost at the end of a fairly isolated road. Just follow the signs until you think you're lost and then you'll find it :D

restaurant was almost hidden because of all the plants

My first impression was that the place was a bit dark and gloomy. I liked it because there was only 1 other group (it was already 2 pm) and felt like we had the place to ourselves. The tables and chairs were mismatched, there were a lot of knicknacks, the restaurant overlooks a small but cute garden and at the end was a small nook where their deli was. Admittedly, it has a certain charm to it but I wouldn't want to stay overnight (too scared).

Leave Room for Dessert 

Chateau Hestia had a very extensive European menu with most of the items I'm not familiar with. The price is expensive (for me, at least) but very interesting. However, we were there for only 1 thing: dessert!

Love Triangle : mousse a chocolat, mango napoleon and panna cota P450 

Absolutely fell in love with Panna Cota at first taste. I don't normally like Panna Cota. For me, it's just a wussy man's version of leche flan and often tastes like a slightly milkier version of my mom's gelatin. But Chateau Hestia's version with passion fruit jam was very good (although it looked a bit weird). The slight sour taste of the passion fruit gave way to this very creamy Panna Cota - a surprisingly excellent combination. By this dessert alone, I could have declared our trip out there a success but of course there were other desserts I had to try.

The Mousse a Chocolat was basically like a pot de creme; rich, very chocolaty and smooth. I wish this were on top of a chocolate cake. Good to the last scrapping of the spoon. Too bad the serving was so small - in a shot glass and not even full, for goodness sake.

The weakest dessert of the trio was the Mango Napoleon which I thought tasted like the one you make at home with graham cracker, nestle cream and mangoes. Nothing special really.

Pate de Sable P175

Since the servings were tiny, we ordered one more dessert - Pate de Sable. Its chocolate wafer, espresso ice cream and toffee glaze frozen as ice cream. Sounds sosyal, no? But basically its ice cream cake and not really a good one at that. I didn't get much of the toffee part and the ice cream tasted like Nestle. My money is still with TGIF Mocha Mudpie, sorry.

I wish this was all mine :( but I had to share 

gigantic German doughnuts with apricot filing - almost as
big as the cash register :  P95

The verdict?

It looks promising and there are some items that piqued my interest but it is expensive and serving size is only good for one. Might be worth going back to if you have money. You will definitely need a car.

Chateau Hestia
Purok 5 Brgy Bukal
Silang, Cavite
Tel 0929-7113289
Email info@chateauhestia.com

open Wednesdays - Sundays