There is certainly no shortage of eateries within the Subic Bay Freeport (SBF) Zone. Here are some of the ones that I have tried, giving you a review of the food that they serve.
The Pancake House, situated at the corner of Sampson Road and Dewey Avenue, is quite a pleasant restaurant/cafe. The brightly coloured walls and transparent glass, give the place a very warm casual and tropical feel.
We went there for breakfast, and tried the Spanish Omelette and the Pan Chicken Special Set. Both were good and value for money. The omelette, filled with smoked ham, tomato and pepper slices, was cooked just right without being burnt. The friend chicken was coated with flour and came with a dip which tasted good.
We finished with the Sunrise Orange Pancake Stack, which looked better in the menu photo than the actual serving. However, the pancakes were soft and thick and layered with cream cheese and whipped cream. The syrup was not too sweet and tinged with a tangy orange flavour which made the pancakes very palatable. Enjoyable meal.
The Xtremely Xpresso Cafe at the junction of Sta Rita Road and Dewey Avenue is another very pleasant restaurant which is open from 6am to midnight. Excellent place to visit if you need to have an early breakfast.
The Good Morning Breakfast came with a foot-long meat sausage, ham, bacon and 2 eggs which can be done in different ways. My friend ordered one egg scrambled and the other sunny side up. Very filling breakfast indeed.
I had the Filipino Breakfast which came with a fried egg, tocino (sweetened pork strips), tapa (slices of beef jerky) and longanisa (pork sausage) served with garlic rice. Really good value for money.
We found the iced latte and iced coffee alittle too dilute for our liking. But the Waffle with Choco Banana was really good. The waffle was thick, crispy on the outside but soft and fluffy on the inside. Great way to finish off breakfast.
Rali's Grill and Bar is located at Malawan Park along the Argonaut Hi-way, Boton. It is a quaint little restaurant with both indoor and al-fresco dining, and overlooking the Bay. Lovely place to have a quiet evening.
The food is rather inexpensive, but not fantastic. The potato soup of the day came in a small bowl and tasted like... potato soup. The Shanghai Lumpia came as 16 pieces of bite-sized meat spring rolls. They were tasty but was alittle too much for a starter dish.
The Beef Stroganoff Fettuccine was not bad. It had chunks of beef and the portion was manageable. Quite tasty. What I had was the Baby Back Ribs. It came with mashed potatoes and seasonal vegetables. The ribs were succulent and tender and not too bony. The Inihaw na Bangus (grilled milk fish) stuffed with onions and tomatoes was alittle too burnt, but the meat was sweet and soft. There were alot of bones though, so do becareful when you eat it. They should have wrapped the fish in aluminium foil before grilling instead.
We had dinner at the famous Lighthouse Marina Resort, boutique hotel, restaurant and bar capped by a lighthouse, located at one end of Waterfront Road. The atmosphere here is fantastic. Seated in the garden, looking out into the Bay, truely a candlelight dinner.
The Virgin Colada and the Four Seasons Shake was good, and got the evening started on the right note. Then we had the Shellfish Sampler which was a dish with baked oysters, mussels and shrimps. Well prepared and tasty, we enjoyed this starter dish.
We also ordered the Spinach Fettuccine with Seafood and the Crab Cakes. I especially enjoyed the crab cakes with the lemon cream sauce and potatoes au gratin. However, the food prices are quite high and we had to wait quite a while for the food to arrive.
Seafood By The Bay is a Chinese-styled seafood market and restaurant, where you can hand-select your own catch from a variety of fishes and other shellfishes on display. It is located along Waterfront Road, just next to Pier One.
For drinks, we ordered a Pineapple Shake, a Boku Shake, a Strawberry Shake and a Four Seasons Shake. For food, we had the Fried Noodle with Seafood, which was deep fried noodles topped with a gooey corn-starch gravy of shrimps, fish slices and mixed vegetables. Quite bland and lacks imagination.
The Male Crab Fried with Chilli Sauce was quite a disappointment. The sauce was totally non-spicy and was a watery brown liquid. The crabs were quite meaty and cooked just right.
The Mother Prawn Steamed with Garlic was another disappointment. There was no garlic taste at all. The prawns were quite large but a little overcooked. The Fried Mixed Vegetables was a combination of stir-fried broccoli, kai lan and bak choy topped with sliced mushrooms. At least the vegetables looked green and fresh.
The Lechon Kawali was just thick chunks of roast pork, deep fried to golden brown and served with a small plate of black sauce.
The best dish of the night was the Pusit Lumot (grilled squid) which was stuffed with sauteed onions and tomatoes. The squid was cooked just right and retained its spongy, chewy texture. The dark soy sauce dip also brought out the fragrant barbecue aroma of the grilled squid. I enjoyed this dish the most.
All in all, we spent over 3,700 pesos on this dinner, which by our standards was quite exorbitant. The quality and taste of the dishes did not match with the prices charged. The restaurant itself is quite pleasant and painstakingly decorated. Perhaps a better chef could be brought in to enhance the whole dining experience.
Just next door, you can find Pier One Bar and Grill, with live band entertainment till late. They have a huge stage fronted by al-fresco dining tables all around the plaza. On the Thursday night I was there, the place was quite packed, even at 11pm, with people eating, drinking and celebrating.
Being only a social drinker, I ordered a Weng Weng, not knowing what is was and it almost got me drunk. Later I found out that it is actually a cocktail mixed with 6 liquors (vodka, tequila, brandy, bourbon, scotch whiskey, rum) added to pineapple/orange juice and a dash of grenadine. But I liked it.
So these are some of the restaurants and eateries that I have tried within the SBF zone. There are, of course, many more places to eat in Olongapo City and around. That would have to be another post.
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