Cafe Margaritas — Restaurant in Legazpi

Having stayed in Legaspi for some time during June 2024, I was fortunate to get introduced to 'Retslov' by a friend.

Authentic Western restaurants are few and far between in Legaspi and whilst the restaurant is about 10 minutes north from the city centre, it is well worth checking out if looking for something a bit different from the repetitive chains in the same old malls.

Located above the LCC mini mart in the Rawis district of Legaspi, initially it feels a bit out of place. Yet upon entering, I felt immediately comfortable and relaxed; as if I was suddenly transported to a Western city. The interior is sleek and modern with a distinct personality that obviously transcends from the Danish owner.

The owner and his staff were friendly and helpful, showing me the balcony seating area outside with their high tech pizza oven that can flash a pizza in under 2 minutes. I'm a big fan of open kitchens, so the place already got the nod. WiFi and AC constantly running inside with a back up generator on standby....check!

After perusing their extensive menu, pizza eventually seemed the way to go as I wanted to see their oven in action. Competitively priced at 450 pesos, I opted for the chicken pesto pizza. Spurning their homemade garlic bread, I went with a side of fries and their signature garlic mayonnaise.

The pizza had a very interesting twist of honey and chopped walnuts that I thought totally worked. The fries still had those little bits of skin still on which I was totally into, combined with the mayo dip.

Upon enquiring what were the ingredients of the mayonnaise, I was told it was an in-house secret. After agreeing to bring some friends next time, I finally got it out of the boss and will keep it to myself as promised.

I went on to try several items from their menu over my weeks in that area and was never disappointed. The gourmet bacon cheeseburger is a great staple. The roast pork I ordered was cooked well, with a crispy crackling. The winner for me however, was their succulent steak with red wine reduction sauce. Seared to perfection; best I've tasted for a long time.

Their desserts were very good too. A decent Danish pastry or crepe with sliced banana, Nutella and whipped cream, will always go down well. My partner really enjoyed the milkshake, which was like a meal in itself!

I have written many restaurant reviews over several years and thought this restaurant deserved high praise. Some may consider the price points a touch higher end, but I firmly believe you get what you pay for.

After getting to know the owner during my time there, with his passion for cooking and continuously improving, I have no doubt the restaurant's success will continue to flourish. I understand they are coming up for their 1st anniversary of opening later in the year, long may it...

I had been meaning to try this place for quite a while now. Decided to finally give it a try today, and I regret not coming here sooner. I rarely leave reviews, but the food was too good, I had to come here to say something! We went for late lunch and it wasn't very busy. The interior was gorgeous and the temperature inside was perfect, not too hot, not too cold. The staff were attentive and took our order as soon as we were ready. We started off with the signature mocktail, which was perfect, not too sweet and also the caesar salad, which blew me away with the first bite. It was perfect and everything I've been searching for in a salad here in Legazpi. We then ordered the Texas BBQ chicken, which was perfectly charred and not too sweet! As an avid BBQ flavor hater, I loved it! We also ordered the cheeseburger, which came with homemade bread, to my surprise. The bread was soft, the patty was juicy - it was perfect! We ordered it with the fries, which were homemade and crunchy. The food came out way quicker than I expected and the food was served piping hot and fresh. The food was so good, we had to try something else on the menu. We opted for the chicken alfredo, which was also served within a few mins, fresh and piping hot. The flavors were SO good, and it also came with a couple slices of toasted sourdough, which also tasted great. I came in with high expectations and the food still blew me away. It's been a while since food here in Legazpi has impressed me like this, especially as someone with a passion for food, cooking and baking.

I hope this restaurant gets the praise and recognition it deserves. The passion for serving good food is clear in every dish. The food Cafe Margaritas serves is worth every penny, if not more. Will most definitely visit again when...

UPDATE: After eating here for the first time, we were able to came back few more times, we still order the same thing, burger (LOVE THEIR BURGER).

But today, we we're able to get ahold of their steak menu. My partner and I decided to get the tenderloin (for him), and ribeye (for me). Well, all I can say is that the steaks were all well-seasoned. The tenderloin is tender as expected, the ribeye was so flavorful. The first good experience with steak so far. The steak is also medium-rare as what we ordered.

Too bad our appetite isn't big enough to consume the 450g of steak in one sitting, we decided to pack the rest for to-go. Everyone is so courteous, even offered to take the wine to-go (my partner and I aren't really a fan of wine, so we aren't able to consume the glass of wine that we ordered)

Also, compliments to the owner Mr. Retslov for actually taking the effort to look for 450g steak as per request of my partner, we seriously couldn't thank you enough for being so accommodating with your customers.

After so many days of planning to eat here, we were finally able to eat here awhile ago.

And they did not disappoint. HAPPY ANNIVERSARY TO THEIR CAFE btw, we dined the very day they turned 1 year old! And the owner gave us a complimentary donut, how thoughtful of them.

For the food, wow. The smokiness of the patty was sooo good, the fries were also to die for paired with whiskey sauce. I also would like to add that their bun was so tasty as well.

The Milkshake is also very worthy. Very creamy, heavy, and milky.

The quality of their food and the affordability of their food, wow just wow.

I can say that I will be back here,...