Went there just this June to try it out since we had a few business to attend to in the town of Ternate.
From what I gathered, this is a recently opened restaurant, the ambiance that they were going for is tropical in which they nailed quite nicely given the location and the decorations of the place.
Right at the entrance, you are greeted by rows upon rows of plants that flanks both side leading to the air-conditioned part to the right if you continue ahead there is an alfresco dining which can be converted into a events place. When we ask about the capacity we they said that the venue could accommodate around 200 persons.
By the way, the plants on said entrance are for sale and you could buy one and take one home if you so wished.
The service was nice and the servers were attentive to your needs. Staff greets you when upon entering the restaurant and will lead you to your seating. Tables were mise-en-place when we got there.
As for the food, we ordered the Beef Caldereta. They have a selection of either beef or pork but on the day that they only have beef, which is nice because that was coincidentally what I was going to order. The caldereta was nice, and by nice I mean that the meat was tender and not rubbery. There is a fine line between too tender meat and too soft. They nailed it and the beef was right at the middle. As with the sauce and vegetables, the sauce was not overpowering and it complements well with the beef. The vegetables are aldente and cooked just right.
The sisig was a novel approach rarely seen outside of Pampanga - Kapangpangan region. There are substancial medium chunks of fat and meat of equal proportions. One serving is more for one person and can be shared. If there is any room for improvement I would wish to see a more "hot plate" coming from the sisig. Although it is served in a iron hot plate a little bit more time in the fire would do wonders to bring out the crispiness of the already flavour packed sisig. Maillard reaction on meat does indeed do wonders to it.
Chinese fried rice, it is a typical fried rice done right. As do any proper fried rice, the rice itself is the star of the dish and the other ingredients must be complementary to the rice. This dish balances it out and you could tell that they use good long grain rice for it. A pleasant light dish.
Lastly, the dessert. We ordered the German Chocolate cake (I think this is the name but need to confirm it when we get back)
This, is the part where the restaurant most stands out of. The food is good by all accounts but the chocolate cake was a tier above. I believe praline was the filling which is also the one at the top. The cake was moist and the chocolate was not overpowering nor was it sickly sweet. This was definitely a must try.
To sum it all up:
It is a good place to eat especially if you are passing via the the Ternate-Nasugbu High-way via Kaybiang Tunnel. Also worth checking out if you are going to the echo-trail around Maragondon as both towns are linked and close to each other.
Group meals. I would recommend eating in groups of 4 and above as a good number of the dishes are group size. We limit ourselves with single serving plates since we were just 2 when we tried this out.
Ambiance. The tropical vibe is evident throughout the restaurant. It gives off a cool and relaxing vibe which is not out of place given the location. Although June being an in between Summer and Monsoon season there are noticeable critters up and about. The management does address this via insect mitigation.
TL:DR
Service - 4.5
Food - 4.5
Dessert -...
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