It’s more fun dining in Dumaguete

We recently visited Negros Oriental and Southern Cebu.  It was a five-day trip and in those five days we were able to dine in a public market, on a bangka, on a sandbar, by a waterfall, by the beach and in a nipa hut.  It’s not all glamour but the experience and rustic settings are something you don’t usually get. Only in the Philippines! It’s definitely more fun dining in the Philippines!

The Malatapayan Wednesday Market is 30 minutes away from Dumaguete: Definitely no frills, very native and very cheap. It rained that day so we could not really walk the stalls but you are supposed to buy the fresh seafood and have it cooked in one of the restaurants there.  Instead we just ordered from the restaurant we sat in. 

The view from our table:  Manang slicing the fresh fish, which they grilled

A must is the lechon being sold in stalls:  There were two when we were there and they completely sold out.

We had “puso,” which is Cebuano rice steamed inside woven coconut leaves.  We were 10 people and paid P 2,000 for all that we had: grilled fish, fish tinola, dinuguan, kinilaw, puso, sinakol, and mineral water.

Breakfast in Tanjay: Bud-bud with hot chocolate

We then went to Bais Market and bought fresh seafood and fruits and took it with us on the bangka. 

The bangka has a table in the middle where we made the sauces and side dishes — salsa and kinilaw — and where we ate.

At the back of the bangka, the owners grilled our seafood: Crab, prawns, tuna belly, tuna panga and pork.  What a view for lunch — the Manjuyod sandbar and the picturesque mountains and blue waters.

We ate kamayan-style and everything was so good!  Again, we spent only P2,000 for 11 people. 

Bluewater Sumilon is 45 minutes from Dumaguete. They have a moving sandbar that appears depending on the tide.  We were lucky the sandbar was there that afternoon, though it was very windy due to habagat season.  They set up dinner for our group and we had it all to ourselves that evening.

Baked aglio olio clams with sesame-miso tuna tartar: We had a five-course degustation dinner for P1,500 per person.

Coconut prawns in saffron crab risotto and roasted pork loin in bacon-onion marmalade

Bluewater is the only caterer allowed to set up at Tumalog falls in Oslob.  They charge P 1,500 per person. It’s more than worth it!

Rustic yet in style: They put up a buffet table and picnic mats for us to sit on.

Lunch facing the amazing Tumalog falls

We had grilled seafood, liempo and freshly cooked danggit since we were in the southern part of Cebu.

The meals wouldn’t have been fun without friends and family, so make sure you enjoy as one big group! We were 26!

Our last dinner at Bluewater resort was by the beach and the lagoon.  We had an appetizer station, a main-dish station, grilled liempo and chicken, make-your-own-pasta station and a dessert station for P 1,000 per person, which included the beautiful setup we had all to ourselves. 

Buffet by the beach

Fresh fruits and native kakanins by the lagoon

They even set up a bonfire for roasting marshmallows after dinner.

On our last day before going to the airport, we had lunch by Rizal Boulevard in Dumaguete and ate in a bahay kubo in Lab As with fresh air and a beautiful view of the Dumaguete Bay. 

Lab As is one of the best restaurants in Dumaguete: It’s a must, including a meal in one of the restaurants by the boardwalk and a stroll. We spent P550 per person for the buffet we had them prepare for our group, which included adobong kangkong, Dumaguete Express, kinilaw na tanuige, fried prawns, chili crabs, spicy sizzling squid, inihaw na pusit or grilled squid, inihaw na tuna belly, Conching’s grilled chicken and buko halo for dessert.

Chili crabs

Dumaguete Express