Lots of new restaurants have sprouted in Cebu in recent years. You see them in malls, hotels and even quaint places. The numbers are rather large, which make the task of choosing where to dine sometimes daunting.
But if your taste buds are craving for Asian-Filipino cuisine, three restaurants come to mind: Mesa, Chika-an and Oyster Bay.
Mesa, Filipino Moderne at Ayala Terraces, offers Asian fusion with a touch of authentic Filipino taste. It provides a new and exciting dining experience, not only because of the unique interior design, which is a combination of modern and indigenous materials, but also because of the way dishes are presented and served. House specialties such as duck and ostrich are done the Filipino way.
Mesa was conceptualized and realized by partners Senator Francis Pangilinan and restaurateur Rikki Dee and brought to Cebu by their friends, in the persons of Ato and Gigi Alvarez, Gabby and Lia Cruz, Edwin and Monet Ortiz and Nonoy and Alice Ty.
Down the road on Salinas Drive is Chika-an Sa Cebu, a veritable melting pot for professionals and families who get together in pursuit of good food and great times.
The service is brisk without being obtrusive and extremely affable. There is an extensive a la carte menu created by executive chef Alex Derek Dytian, who continuously experiments on dishes, giving them a unique twist in flavor and presentation.
Ever-helpful mom Loreta does the daily marketing for fresh ingredients while sister Lorraine, a talented baker, whips up desserts like no other.
In Mandaue City, Ed Alegrado and son Dominic recently opened Oyster Bay Restaurant at Bridges Tower Square. Large aquariums feature a wide variety of live seafood such as groupers, rock lobsters, angel-wing clams, sea bass, mud crabs, and a lot more.
These dining places only cover a small cross-section of Cebu’s Filipino restaurants, but they certainly confirm the reasons for their instant acceptance. The food is excellent, quality consistent, the portions generous, the service polished, and the location central.