Diaz Cafe — Restaurant in Ketchikan

Growing up in Ketchikan, I used to eat at Mama Diaz's with my grandmother. It was a special place and for 36 years of being away from home, when I talked about Ketchikan, this was always going to be at the top of my list, as far as things to do.

Shortly after my arrival back home, I went to Diaz Cafe with my family and I must say, for as good as the food was, I was disappointed with the lumpia. They used to be a lot better, but now, it seems like they didn't change the cooking oil or something.

Other dishes like the egg foo yung and whatever else was in the family platter were pretty good. It's just the lumpia that weren't all that great.

I was amazed that the place looked exactly like it had, when I left, nearly 4 decades ago, and would not tell anyone to avoid eating here. The lumpia may not be as they were, but the food is still tasty enough.

Sadly, I only went just once in a month. Maybe I will try it...

If biased cut celery and a bit of onion is your choice for vegetables than this is the place for you. If tiny bits of pork ribs with bone and gristle is your favorite, than this place is for you. Diaz Cafe owners should disclose that they gave up, stopped caring and stopped trying to serve anything marginally better than the chow hall food I remember from my time on a US Destroyer in the late 80's. Who knows maybe the cooks they have at Diaz Cafe are those same guys. Keep up with the less than average and barely mediocre food standards, you may last another 40+ years. Though when there is very little competition you do not have...

Took a bit of time to find out about this place because I was pronouncing Diaz wrong according to the locals.

Me: “What’s your opinion of Dee-az Cafe?”

Rando: “No, you mean Dai-az Cafe?

Me: “Ha?”🤨

So I got the pork barbeque. Decent flavor just didn’t expect the dish to be prepared unbarbequed. I thought it was Inihaw na baboy, not. More like it was sauted on a skillet (adobo).

My friend got the “ginger” soup. According to her it was extremely bland. And there was one whole egg dropped in to cook in the soup. Can’t even call this a Pilipino dish.

Menu item were mostly not of...