El Cocinero — Restaurant in Nasugbu

El Cucinero: A Frustrating Night

Disappointed with my recent visit to El Cucinero at Nasugbo Batangas on April 15 2024. Arrived for dinner and despite it being a busy time, no staff member assisted us in getting seated. We found a table ourselves, but then waited for menus that never came. We ended up taking menus from near the counter because no one offered them.

Being unfamiliar with Spanish cuisine (and the lack of pictures on the menu!), we were quite confused about the dishes. Unfortunately, no staff member approached us to explain the menu or answer any questions. When we were finally ready to order, we tried to get the attention of the wait staff by raising our hands, but were completely ignored even they see us already.

After waiting for a considerable amount of time with no service, we decided to leave. If El Cucinero wants to attract customers, especially those unfamiliar with their menu, some basic hospitality and attentiveness...

I always admire Filipinos returning to the Philippines after years of working and learning skills and culture elsewhere in the world. This is another good example of that.

Chef Arnaldo a native of Nasugbu Batangas opened his own restaurant, El Cocinero after almost 14 years of learning the cuisine, culture and restaurant business in Spain.

For this visit, we were actually craving for Pinoy food and was interested to see how the culinary influences of working and living in Spain has impacted the popular local dishes. We had Adobong Pusit and Salpicao as our mains, and closed dinner with Churros con Chocolate. We enjoyed both the mains, but sadly we were dissatisfied with the dessert; although all in all it was a great meal.

Price is not very friendly for the location.

The staff were courteous and attentive. Parking slots were available in front. The ambiance was very rustic, very homey.

#PinoyFoodTrip...

We had a vacation in RSAM Cocotel Beach Resort inNasugbu, Batangas and we were not satisfied with the food in the restaurant. Glad we were able to find this restaurant 30 minutes from our hotel to celebrate my mother's birthday. We didn't expect that we would be able to find this restaurant that serves Spanish cuisine in the area.

Food was delicious and service was great. Generous serving at an affordable price.

They also have a branch inside Pamana Beach Resort which was just walking distance from our area. I just hope that they a bigger area in this branch to be able to accommodate the number or customers.

Too bad that we weren't able to try the pizza since during our visit because it was not available because of...