Food Trip | Viewsite Restaurant Tagaytay

Tagaytay has been our in-between stop whenever going home to Batangas. Traveling home is longer via this route especially considering the traffic and distance but it has lots of dining places to choose from so I normally urged BFF to use this route. In one of these trips home, I noticed Viewsite billboard and decided to try the restaurant for a new experience.

Viewsite Restaurant Tagaytay

Viewsite Restaurant used to be located along Tagaytay-Nasugbu Highway facing the Taal Lake and Volcano, hence, its name. Now, they are located on the other side of the highway with no view at all. ;) I haven't been to this restaurant before so I don't know how it looks like back then but I suppose their transfer is for the better, considering the open area parking that can accommodate a number of vehicles and the spacious dining area in the new location.

spacious dining area with high ceiling, good for events

Coming in, you'll be greeted by an all-smile staff that will help you get a seat. The place is quite huge with lots of tables so we got seated at once and placed our orders immediately. For our lunch, we ordered bulalo, crispy tawilis, sizzling squid and kinilaw na tanigue; melon juice for our drink. We were served with our food 15 minutes later, the usual waiting time in restaurants.

grilled stuffed squid: tender and tasty but pricey (300++ Php, if i remembered it right) for its size

kinilaw na tanigue (350 Php): small portion, not enough even for the nephew
crispy tawilis (200 Php): very crispy, you can eat the whole fish

bulalo (550 Php): tender meat, lots of veggies with flavorful soup

We were all hungry but I still managed to get some photos before we dig in. I tried their bulalo first because of the soup and I would say, good but not extraordinary. I now prefer Josephine's bulalo ever since I tried it. I used to like Rose and Grace's bulalo but had a change of heart since I've tasted Josepehine's. Overall, the foods were okay and the experience was good except for a not so clean restroom. We spent almost 2000 Php here including drinks, quite pricey for a 3-person meal on a budget. :P

 

Pros:

• Ample parking area
• Road trip-friendly (along the highway) 
• Spacious (good for large events) and clean dining area with high ceiling
• All-smile accommodating service staff

Cons:

• Credit card not accepted (heard from a customer inquiry)
• Comfort room is not clean with wet dirty flooring :(
• Small serving given its price

Viewsite Restaurant

Tagytay-Nasugbu Road, Tagaytay City 

(right side along the highway going to Nasugbu)

Date of Visit: May 2018

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Tagaytay | Overnight Stay at The Over Look Inn (A Review)

terrace view from The Over Look Inn

After our Mt. Batulao adventure, we went to Tagaytay to look for a place to stay overnight. It's actually our plan to stay in Tagaytay after the hike so we could explore the city's attraction that day and the next. But due to the unfortunate incident in Batulao, it took us a while hiking down 'twas already late when we reached Tagaytay. We don't have a specific place to go and just relied on google again for a nice but budget hotel to stay to overnight. One of the budget hotels we found: The Over Look Inn. It is located very near Tagaytay rotonda and is along the highway so we went there.

We inquired for a standard room for two, were told the cheapest room is 2,600 Php (complimentary breakfast for 2 included). We were tired, sweaty, grimy, soiled and all we want that time was to clean up and rest so we get the room.

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Food Trips | Where to Eat in Tagaytay

Taal Lake and Volcano - from Tagaytay Picnic Grove

Tagaytay is a favorite weekend getaway destination for families and friends from Metro Manila. And why not? It's just two hours (moderate traffic considered) from here in the Metro; its climate cooler; with lots of activities to spend time with friends/family, especially nowadays. But it's not just the cool weather and activities, of course; Tagaytay is a place for food tripping, too.

Here's the list of restaurants we've tried over time during the several road trips we've made to Tagaytay.

Mushroomburger

Mushroomburger, I guess, will always be in the list of restaurants/food joints to try in Tagaytay. It's famous for its mushroom-mixed burgers but it also has branched out its products, most of which, still mushroom-based, of course. I've tried several of their burgers in the several road trips we've made in Tagaytay but these are the only photos I have from them: mushroom sandwich with cheese and mushroom fries. I like this sandwich since its lighter compared to other burgers and the mushrooms in it tasted fresh really. Mushroom fries is okay, too; a nice variation from the usual fries that we're all familiar with. ^_^

mushroom sandwich

mushroom fries

Mushroomburger

Km. 60, Brgy. Kaybagal

Tagaytay City, Cavite

Tower Ground Bulalohan

If you've been to Tagaytay, you'll notice that most of the restaurants and eateries are lined up on the side where you have the view of the Taal Lake and Volcano. One of these restaurants and/or eateries is the Tower Ground Bulalohan. Its specialty: bulalo. But we just had bulalo from Rose and Grace the day we were there so we opted for their kare-kare and crispy tawilis instead. Kare-kare is good but it's the crispy tawilis that got me. It may not look that good but it tastes really good; it's so crispy we ate everything, even the heads, fins and scales...hehe!

crispy tawilis

kare-kare

Tower Ground Bulalohan

Tagaytay-Nasugbu Highway

Tagaytay City, Cavite

Kaye Ryan Grill

Kaye Ryan Grill is the restaurant we've tried on our very first road trip to Tagaytay. My friend and I went on a road trip without researching on where or what to eat. We just spotted it, we stopped, we ordered foods. What we had: sizzling seafood and fish sinigang. Foods tasted good but a bit pricey, even at that time, a few years back.

sizzling seafood

fish sinigang, forgot what kind of fish hehe...

Kaye Ryan Grill

Tagaytay Road

Tagaytay City, Cavite

RSM Lutong Bahay Seafood Restaurant

After our Batulao adventure, my friend and I stayed overnight at The Overlook Inn, a budget hotel in Tagaytay. On the next day, we explored some of the attractions in Tagaytay and then went to this (RSM) restaurant for lunch. My words for RSM: very expensive, slow service, lots of waiting time! The foods are just okay, at least the ones we've tried but I don't think it's worth the money. For me, RSM is an overrated restaurant. I guess it's just popular because of the nice view it has of Taal Lake and Volcano. RSM: Lutong bahay, presyong hotel! :P

stuffed tilapia, ginataang kuhol, rice and iced tea for almost 900++ Php - very expensive, right?!

RSM Lutong Bahay

Aguinaldo Highway

Tagaytay City, Cavite

Rose and Grace Bulalo Restaurant

This restaurant is actually not in Tagaytay but rather in Sta. Rosa, Laguna. It's along the highway going to Tagaytay, though, so this usually is a part of foodies' and families' destination when they go to Tagaytay. Our favorite from this restaurant: bulalo, their bestseller! Rose and Grace is my friend's favorite bulalo restaurant ever since we've tried their bulalo from their branch in Sto. Tomas, Batangas. We've been here several times because we love their food; it's great and the price is reasonable, unlike that of RSM! :P

Rose & Grace's famous bulalo!

crispy crablets

grilled tuna with mango salad

not-so-Crispy Tawilis

Rose and Grace Bulalo Restaurant
Tagaytay Road, Sta. Rosa Estates

Sta. Rosa City, Laguna

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Cavite: Baldomero Shrine | Imus Cathedral | Etc.

For the past two weeks, I've written posts about my road trips to Cavite last April 9 and June 10, the first one about the Aguinaldo Shrine in Kawit while the second post about one of the favorite summer coolers of Filipinos, halo-halo (Bacoor). Being one of the eight provinces who revolted against the Spaniards, Cavite has many interesting places worth exploring. Unfortunately, as I've mentioned in my previous post, some of the places we visited were closed during that time so we just took some photos of them. Here are some of the places we stopped by during the said road trips:

Baldomero Aguinaldo Shrine

Baldomero Aguinaldo Shrine - Kawit, Cavite

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Bacoor Food Trip: Digman's Halo-Halo

Digman's (top) & Chowking's (bottom)

A week before my visit to Aguinaldo Shrine, I happened to watch a TV program that features one of Pinoy's favorite summer coolers - halo-halo (a Pinoy dessert with sweetened fruits, shaved ice and milk). And one of the halo-halos featured on the said show was Digman's!

Although summer season had passed, temperature is still high, it felt like it still is summer, a delicious halo-halo would be a welcome treat. So after our visit to the Aguinaldo Shrine, we decided to head straight to Bacoor to try their famous halo-halo. Before we left the Shrine, we asked the locals for directions going to Digman in Bacoor. By the way, Digman is one of the barangays in Bacoor, Cavite and not the name of the owner/s of the famous halo-halo shop.

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Aguinaldo Shrine: The House of Independence

Aguinaldo Shrine - Kawit, Cavite

With nothing to do and having had a long vacation already (due to the Lenten season), my friend and I decided to have a historical trip down south last April 9. We went to Cavite and visited some historical sites there. One of the sites we visited was the Aguinaldo Shrine in Kawit, Cavite. Aguinaldo Shrine, the ancestral house of Gen. Emilio Aguinaldo, is the site of proclamation of Philippine Independence. Unfortunately for us, we were not able to enter Aguinaldo's house as it is closed every Monday, the day we were there, so we just explored and take photos around the shrine.

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Cavite | Overnight Camping at Pico de Loro

Mt. Pico de Loro - the summit

Except when I joined vibouac during my high school days, I never again experienced camping out.  It’s not because I am picky though. Camping out usually entails outdoor adventures which I am not that fond of. I am not an adventurous type of person. As I wrote in my Manalmon post, I'm more of a couch potato, hehe. But of course, I do get out of my comfort zone from time to time. :D

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