Comments on: This is Marketmanila’s 3,500th Post!

By: Rj Tolentino

Rj Tolentino — Sat, 16 Mar 2013 10:04:46 +0000

Congratulations Market Man! I always have a blast reading your interesting posts. May I recommend Mesa Restaurant in station 2 for superb Filipino foods, great ambiance also. I’m sure your guests will enjoy trying our food.

By: N

Tue, 12 Mar 2013 09:50:36 +0000

Having just gotten back to Manila after living in Boracay for 8 months, I reckon I do have a less romantic view on the island. They are going crazy building stuff left and right. i fear for what the island will be in a decade! But it still has its nice points. Sunsets are best caught in Spider House’s bar all the way up in Diniwid :) tasty drinks, billiards and a beautiful view of the sunset. Red Pirates’ pub is also a nice place to kick back and you can rent their boat for a barbecue/sunset sail. For people looking for reasonably priced, tasty food I recommend Smokes’. It’s got 2 branches in station 2 and they serve up good bulalo and tortang talong . Not sure if that’s up your alley though MM. Real Coffee is a nice place for brekky/brunch!
Be careful of the eat-all-you can buffets lined up by the pathway, keep in mind that’s seafood sitting out for a few hours. Check out the dampa so you can choose quality seafood (please please haggle!) and get them cooked in the nearby restaurants :D
Enjoy your vacation!

By: Marketman

Marketman — Tue, 12 Mar 2013 07:45:22 +0000

teddy, darned, just got back a few days ago, would have liked to visit the out of the way restaurants. The district was perfect for the teens in tow, right in the heart of the action. We tried to book Asya Premier but they didn’t have enough rooms. And the Shangrila was just too far from the center of town though I hear it is very nice indeed.

By: teddy

teddy — Tue, 12 Mar 2013 03:54:18 +0000

District is one of the newest places to stay in on the island. It’s owned by former Ilocos Sur congressman Ronald Singson (who was caught with coke when he landed in HK a few years back but was released on good behavior or something like that), and his dad Chavit. Very nice place indeed. But to REALLY get a taste of sumptuous luxury, for me, even better than Shangri-la, stay at Choy Cojuangco’s ASYA PREMIERE at the southern tip of the island – which is closest to Caticlan. That smashing infinity pool and the oversized rooms are SOMETHING else.. you REALLY are in the lap of luxury, and because Choy’s wife, Marissa is Ilonggo, expect that distinct kind of service which seem peculiar only to Ilonggos, from the service staff. The only thing is its really set off from the rest of the island. I’m not sure about the food, but it shouldn’t be too bad. But you really must visit Dos Mestizos for very good traditional Filipino Spanish cuisine.

By the way, someone named Dee up there made a comment saying the kalamansi muffins at Real Lemon is good.. not unless the owners Nadine and Lee (daughter and mom, Americans who’ve been living on the island for maybe some three decades now) changed the name, but I believe she is referring to REAL COFFEE, where I like the overstuffed sandwiches and the omelets aren’t bad too!

By: teddy

teddy — Tue, 12 Mar 2013 03:43:31 +0000

Drop by Binggoy Remedios’ Dos Mestizos, still, for me, one of the best restaurants to go to on the island. And they’ve opened Gustos y Gustos deli in the same place, the place I go to for a quick breakfast of home-baked whole wheat bread, Swiss cheese, ham, omelet and the like. Ask for Paul and ask Paul also for directions to Paupatri, an off the road oasis of a restaurant in Boracay owned by a scion of one of the island’s oldest families, Jun Sacapano. Sacapano belongs to Boracay “royalty” but this unassuming man and his wife, Marites work the kitchen like ordinary restaurant crew. Very refreshing. For me, the BEST places are where the owners, the chef/patron (like Binggoy Remedios) are IN the kitchen working, as is the case with Paupatri and Dos. Enjoy Boracay!

By: Colette

Colette — Tue, 12 Mar 2013 01:57:28 +0000

I know Boracay has become very commercial but one can look at the commercialization as giving people a wider range of choices. There are Filipino, Mexican, Italian, Greek and Morrocan restaurants around. You could visit the Talipapa, buy the fresh catch of the day, and have them cook it they way you like it just like the “Dampa” in Manila.

When in Boracay, try out different water activities like paraw sailing, para sailing, and snorkeling.

What I enjoy in Boracay is the early morning walk along the white sand while the whole thing is empty and at night, sitting by the shore at night, looking at the stars enjoying a nice cold alcoholic drink.

By: Elaine Shih

Elaine Shih — Mon, 11 Mar 2013 08:06:06 +0000

Just got back from Boracay last Saturday for a 4 day trip. The first 2 days were very malumot near the beach, at around 4 feet deep water level. The last 2 days, were a bit more cloudy and windy and less malumot.
I guess that’s how the waters are during this summer time.

By: Mrs Froggie

Mrs Froggie — Mon, 11 Mar 2013 06:18:03 +0000

Congratulations, MM, on your 3500th post !!! Gosh, has it been that much? I love going back and forth in your archives and I can not imagine not being able to read your posts, in fact, I feel sad when I go into Market Manila. com and you haven’t posted any new ones yet. I get anxious, so keep your posts coming, please. God bless and thank you. This is the best blog ever!!! As for Boracay, I have not been yet. I hope to read YOUR recommendations so I can know where and what ..in Boracay. Enjoy your vacation with Mrs. MM, the TEEN, and her friends. Have fun and have a safe trip.

By: kristin

kristin — Mon, 11 Mar 2013 00:11:37 +0000

congrats on the 3,500th post! more! more! more! :)

By: karina

karina — Sun, 10 Mar 2013 08:40:12 +0000

Congratulations Mr. M! I am an avid fan, but just lurks around. Since you said that you are going to Boracay, do try to go there via Kalibo ( I am a proud native of the place) and try out some interesting things the town has to offer:

1) the Kalibo Lechon — I must declare that the Kalibo lechon is still the best (better, I am afraid than the Zubochon which I have tried from my brother’s). Email me when you plan to come so I might be able to send you some as a welcome gift, if I happen to be in town. We run a small school there that you pass on your way to Caticlan from the airport so no hassle really.

2) the Kalibo suman called “latik” —- available at stalls in front of the arrival area. Look for Barang, my favorite vendor. It is suman topped with grated coconut cooked in moscuvado.

3) if you have time, visit the pina weaving centers in Bgry. New Buswang — the dela Cruz House of Pina or the La Herminia Pina Weaving Center.

4) If you have more time, you might be able to visit the Bakhawan Eco-park and walk among the mangroves in a man-made mangrove forest.

5) In Boracay — I tend to agree with many regarding the over-development of the island. But really, just stay in the resorts near Station 1 (a resort called Sur is reasonably priced) and imagine that the other parts of the island do not exist. Take your meals at nearby Fridays or maybe Discovery. Seawind offers buffet dinners sometimes. Many have recommended Aria, but what’s the point, they are in the Fort, aren’t they? If you must, visit Station 3 and look for Dos Mestizos. I still like the paella. Besides the One Mestizo proprietor (The Other One I think has left) is a nice guy with lots of stories. Or, the “paluto” in the Talipapa is an okay alternative.

6) and oh, on your way back, check out if the Lagatik River Cruise in New Washington town has a scheduled trip. The last time I joined them, they had a buffet lunch in an island and we had fat oysters raised in the Buyoc farm. I heard you can also order the oysters to bring home.

Have fun!!