Street Food and Restaurant Cuisine in Moalboal and Cebu City, Philippines

Our getaway to Moalboal initially wasn’t about Filipino food. We visited with the primary intention to snorkel at Moalboal coral reefs and visit Kawasan waterfall. Somehow, traveling with a foodie boyfriend turned into scheduling our days around our meals. One of the most disconcerting moments, funnily enough, was being trapped in our Moalboal guesthouse imprisoned by torrential rain until I was brave enough to travel into the tourist restaurant strip with just one umbrella between us. Cebuano street food, local cuisine and restaurants became our world.

With only six days in Cebu, we spent most of our time in Moalboal and a little time in Cebu city. We enjoyed a mix of local and tourist food, and while my boyfriend is more adventurous with food, I’m more conservative.

*Photographs by Hyeon Jin Jeong

 

Cebu – The Old City

Street Food, Bakeries and Cafes

We initially stayed at a location in Junquera Street because we wanted to access the South Bus Terminal easily. This area near Santo Nino basilica is considered old Cebu, and is pretty run down and contains many homeless people. Hungry for a small dinner after our four-hour flight from Seoul, S. Korea, we meandered the streets searching for food. We saw a strip where several food carts displayed local food so we found a spot to try some chicken and rice. Two friendly locals who were seated at one stall explained the pricing to us, and soon, we were scooping up pieces of chicken and little triangular pouches containing rice using plastic gloves. We poured vinegar sauce on our chicken to add moisture and flavour. The chicken was salty but we were grateful for a meal before bed.

The following day, we purchased bread from a local bakery near Junquera Street, including rolls with a pineapple sliced filling as well as cheese bread. Each item was around four pesos (eight cents) each. There seemed to be many bakeries to choose from both in Cebu city and Moalboal town. Some were chains and others seemed privately run. We brought our baked items to a Korean themed Oppa Café which had little sectioned booths giving clients a little privacy. We ordered sweet lattes (around 100 pesos/ $2), each, and snacked on our bakery bread.

Later that day, after walking around Santo Nino, visiting Megellan’s Cross, and picking up local souvenirs at Carbon Market, we were starving. Disappointed that a restaurant we planned to visit was actually closed in the afternoon, we stopped at a humble local restaurant run by a grandmother and grandfather.

They had lots of dishes in a glass display, and after pointing to the dishes we wanted, abuela (grandma) laid several small dishes on our table, including a yellow chicken curry, a beef dish in a dark sauce, rice, and a minced beef ball. They even brought a knife for us to peel mangoes which we picked up earlier in the local market. We thanked them heartily and paid around 300 pesos ($6) for everything.

Moalboal

Both guesthouses we stayed at in Moalboal didn’t have restaurants and as a result we ate out all the time. Panagsama beach has a strip that includes restaurants, cafes, bars and souvenirs stalls. There are a few restaurants en-route to the beach strip, but the majority are concentrated side by side along the coast itself.

Veranda, Moalboal

The first place we stopped at for dinner was Veranda. The large open seating area with picturesque wooden furniture has an incredible open-air sea view. The seating left good space between tables which gave couples like us a little more privacy, and summer hits played overhead. We sat as close to the sea as possible, and ordered the chicken adobo, as well as a platter called Turkish. Adobo is a popular dish in the Philippines. The Turkish was a spicy rice meal which was very flavorful and combined well with the adobo as sharing dishes. I ordered a Lemon Drop cocktail, while Max enjoyed a San Miguel Light, and we later shared a mango shake for dessert. Eating at the western restaurants was considerably dearer than eating at the local ones. Our meal for two cost around 800 pesos ($16).

We returned to Veranda later in our stay to enjoy breakfast, but arriving around midday, we were told that breakfast was over and we’d have to order from the lunch menu. We chose a cheese and bacon omelet and a club house sandwich, and a couple of coffees that were served as expressos. The omelet was tasty and the clubhouse was filling but pretty standard.

Before leaving, we enjoyed a couple of mango juices with the usual added sugar to remove some of the sour fresh mango taste. Meanwhile, we watched boats loading and unloading tourist divers and watching local children play on the beach. The experience was very pleasant, and Veranda definitely became one of our favorite locations to eat at.

Marina Cucina Italiana, Moalboal

We visited Marina Cucina Italiana for dinner on our second evening in Moalboal. The location is part of a hotel resort which included a pretty reception patio and terraced restaurant with an ocean view at the back of the property. Marina Cucina Italiana was fairly posh by Moalboal standards. The lighting was pleasantly lowered and once again, we sat as close to the sea as possible.

We ordered a pizza, two pasta dishes, and two San Miguel Pilsens. Max ordered a Bolognese and I ordered a Seafood Mare pasta. The Seafood Mare looked particularly succulent in the menu photo. Our pizza turned out to be a thin crust and we requested meat and vegetable toppings.

The Bolognese arrived first, and a few minutes later, the pizza arrived. The Bolognese arrived first, and thereafter, the pizza. While the Bolognese was pretty standard, the pizza was delicious. Twenty minutes later, we asked our server whether the Mare pasta had been started, and whether it was possible to cancel it since it was taking quite a while to arrive. After some confusion and several discussions with the staff, the meal was eventually cancelled. Although the ambiance and food itself was great, the time difference between dishes arriving and lack of communication between the staff left more to be desired, and as a result, we didn’t repeat a visit to Marina Cucina Italiana.

Café Cebuano, Moalboal

Café Cebuano was one of our favourite spots. We initially visited to enjoy dessert there after dinner at Café Cebuano, but decided to return several times. The restaurant was wide and extended all the way to the ocean terrace. It has a large bar island in the center of the restaurant, and easily accommodated couples as well as large groups. The ambience was pleasant, with soft lighting and pleasant music, and overall, it seemed to be the poshest restaurant we found.

For dessert, we shared a mango split topped with biscuit crumbs, and enjoyed a local sour fruit juice called Calamanci. Our bill was around 200 pesos ($4) for the one dessert and one juice.

The following day, we returned for dinner during an epic storm that was ripping through some of the Philippine islands. The wind battered the protective covering placed over the open balcony framing, and waves splashed almost as high as our elevated floor above the sea.

Max chose a burger with fries while I chose a sweet and sour fish dish which came with rice. Both meals were pleasant and we washed these down with a couple of San Miguel Pilsens. The total came to around 700 pesos ($14).

On our final morning in Moalboal, we revisited Café Cebuano to enjoy their American breakfast with a sea view. The breakfast included ham, bacon or sausage, eggs, toast, a fruit bowl (fresh mango and pineapple), a tropical mixed juice and a tea or coffee. We upgraded our coffee to lattes and breakfast for two overall cost around 560 pesos ($11).

The French Coffee Shop, Moalboal

The French Coffee Shop itself was almost always full and buzzing, despite not having a view of the sea, and the seating was more compact which gave us the feeling of being part of a community of travelers, rather than feeling more isolated as a couple enjoying our own experience. The music played overhead included lots of summer Ibiza-style hits, and everyone inside looked happy.

We visited The French Coffee Shop twice for their American breakfasts and their eggs benedict. Breakfast included bacon, sausage or ham, eggs, local sweet bread, butter and marmalade, and a side of banana and mango, with a delicious local juice and freshly brewed coffee. Our breakfast for two usually cost around 500 pesos ($10).

On one occasion, the coffee served was a little old and so I asked that we receive new ones. Sebastien, the French owner, happily replaced our coffee and later asked how it was.

The smell of good coffee floated around the door and it was always hard deciding to try an alternate location to have breakfast at. Overall, The French Coffee Shop definitely offered the best quality breakfast.

Moalboal town

Moalboal town was very different from the tourist strip on Panagsama beach. Moalboal itself is a small hub with arriving buses, markets, shops, restaurants, motorcycle drivers, and general businesses that usually accompany a local town that caters to a local tourist resort.

The Plaza Café and Restaurant, Moalboal

We visited The Plaza Café and Restaurant which was packed with local Filipinos, and with the exception of a group of three, we were the only tourists in there. Couples and large groups sat around tables, and the general buzz in the air was made by lots of conversation between diners. I don’t recall any music playing overhead.

We ordered the local Cebuano delicacy, Lechon (slowly-roasted young pig), as well as stir-fry noodles, rice, and prawns in a sweet ‘n sour sauce. The Lechon and rice arrived after forty minutes, while the other items arrived about fifteen minutes thereafter. The Lechon was both crispy and tender, with more fat that I expected, and very succulent. I was very impressed but glad that Max and I were sharing as I would have found it too fatty to eat it all myself. The meal came to around 400 pesos ($8). If you have the time to wait, I highly recommend visiting The Plaza Café and Restaurant.

In addition to restaurants, Moalboal town is packed with bakeries and street food. While en-route to Cebu city, we stopped at Moalboal town and ate at a local stall, the same kind as the place we ate at in Old Cebu city at abuela’s restaurant. We told the owner what we wanted, pork chops, chicken, minced pork balls, bean sprouts, rice, and two San Miguel pilsners.

After requesting a knife for the pork chops, a worker appeared with scissors and cut up our pork chops like a mother preparing food for children. Max didn’t seem too impressed, but overall, the food itself was fairly good. There were a few foreigners there too, but most guests were locals. I watched an older man eating alone, and a girl with a baby in her arms trying to prevent the baby from slapping the plate and all the food across their table. The place made for a great spot to people watch. Our meal came to around 300 pesos.

Just before sharing a private van with another couple, Max took a walk and returned with take-out coffees and very delicious sweet bread filled with chocolate. I was very pleased with this nice surprise. Definitely check out the local bakeries while visiting Moalboal.

Cebu City near Old Banilad Road

Greek Taverna

Just before leaving for Mactan airport, we stumbled across Greek Taverna near Old Banilad Road while searching for a massage spa, and stopped there for a midnight snack. It was located at a mall near our hotel, Main Hotel and Suites. There, we found affluent Filipinos socializing and enjoying a live band performance.

Tired, we joined the scene but kept to ourselves on the patio which was a little quieter. We ordered a kebab and salad, and a couple of pop drinks for a total of around 300 pesos ($6). Both the kebab and salad were pretty delicious. The kebab was succulent and the sauce used was tasty, while the salad, despite being stingy on the feta cheese, was exactly was I had been craving.

Overall, our holiday experience turned out to be more of a food tour than anything else. We tried local as well as foreign food, and largely enjoyed all of it. I hope this mini guide gives you a better idea of what to expect when you visit Cebu City and Moalboal for the first time. Thank you for taking the time to read this, and feel free to leave any recommendations, clarifications, or comments below.

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