Michi Photostory: Tagaytay

Showing posts with label Tagaytay. Show all posts

January 03, 2023

Breakfast at The Farmer’s Table Tagaytay

My mind and body are still in holiday mode but today is the first day of school for the year 2023 so I mustered up enough energy to move. Well, I’m a morning person so I really wake up early but for the past few weeks, I stayed in our bed even though I’m awake. My husband and son are on vacation so I don't need to prepare early breakfast, late ang gising ng mga kasama ko.

It is the first week of the year 2023 so I am starting to declutter my phone gallery, let me start with our recent trip to Tagaytay. We usually go to Tagaytay every Christmas Day as part of our tradition but for the past few months, nakailang balik na kami dito. We had Breakfast at Taza Fresh Table and Balay Dako so I don’t know where to go na.

Then I remembered “The Farmer’s Table Tagaytay” so I suggested this to my husband. He messaged the restaurant but he was informed that they are fully booked but they accept walk-ins if we are willing to wait. So we took a risk and in our mind, kung wala available, we will just go to Sonya’s Garden.

We woke up early and we arrived at the restaurant before 6:30AM, we saw a number of people waiting already but it is not enough to occupy the restaurant so we felt relieved, no need to transfer. Since the restaurant is not yet open, the staff informed us that we can explore the garden.

So we had a quick tour even though, we‘ve been here a few times already. We experienced glamping, we availed massage and spa and we had a food trip here in Nurture Wellness Village. There are a few changes and they had rebranding, so the old restaurant is now “The Farmer’s Table” with a new name and new menu.

The staff ushered us to our table before 7AM but they really waited for 7AM before they took our order. You need to scan the QR code to browse the menu. Their menu is available online too so I already browsed their menu prior to our trip.

For breakfast meals, they have Brunch Faves which you can order all day, or the Good Morning Tagaytay meal. GMT is a typical Filipino Tagaytay breakfast served with garlic rice, 2 eggs of any style, and house-made pickled atchara. My son ordered from the Special Holiday Menu.

We ordered Mr. Jones US Beef Tapa PHP420, Amadeo Style Garlic Pepper Longaniza PHP395, Lengua Estofado PHP695, Garlic Rice PH105, Americano PHP195, and Chocnut Hot Chocolate Eh PHP195.

During our visit, the temperature is 19C and it was windy so it is really cold but we were happy because our food is warm unlike in our experience at Napa at Crosswinds last year. Moving on, the breakfast meal is on the pricey side but it has a huge serving naman. The tapa is just okay but I liked their Garlic Pepper Longaniza. The Lengua Estofado is good for sharing pala so my son was not able to finish this, take out na lang. The Chocnut Hot Chocolate Eh is just okay, we prefer our own version of hot chocolate.

And because it was so cold, we ate fast so ito na yata ang pinakamabilis namin na kain sa restaurant. Parang sa fast food lang kami kumain. Lol. But I’m pretty sure that we will return in the future and try other meals.

Watch the video here

November 14, 2022

Breakfast at Taza Fresh Table

My mom is staying in our house for a few weeks and we just received my son’s report card, as a reward for a good performance, we went to Tagaytay for a celebration. My initial plan is Balay Dako but I changed my mind so I suggested to my husband Taza Fresh Table. We were supposed to eat here two years ago but the restaurant was closed because of the Taal Volcano eruption and then COVID-19 happened.

Read: Buffet Breakfast at Balay Dako

I checked their Instagram account, Facebook page, and website and I was looking for their Breakfast Menu, because when I downloaded the menu on their website, there is no Breakfast Meal. I even sent a DM on their Instagram account but I did not receive a reply. I booked a table on their website but I did not get any confirmation.

Despite having no reply or confirmation, we still went to Taal Vista Hotel to eat our breakfast. We arrived past 7AM so we waited for almost an hour because the restaurant is still closed. Natetempt na rin ako magbuffet breakfast na lang sa Veranda pero since ilang beses na rin namin natry ang buffet breakfast nila, naghintay kami sa Taza.

From the time we entered and left, kami lang yung diners so the waiting time is not that long. The staff gave us the menu and while browsing the menu, I realized mahal din pala breakfast meal nila, price ranges from PHP350 to PHP950 + 10% Service Charge.

As I’ve said before, I already checked their website, Instagram, and Facebook page so I already have an idea of what to order. I was surprised lang na mahal pala ang gusto ko na order, pero dahil nagcrave ako doon sa photo nila, inorder ko pa rin. I ordered Steak and Eggs PHP950 + SC, my husband chose Tapang Barako PHP900 + SC, while my mom and son chose Taza Burger PHP750 + SC. Yellow Mango Shake PHP250 + SC.

Steak and Eggs PHP950 + SC

Hanger steak with two eggs any style, French fries

Taza Burger PHP750 + SC

Ground beef patty, Tagaytay romaine lettuce, mozzarella, potato wedges, coleslaw.

Tapang Barako PHP900 +SC

Hanger steak marinated in coconut vinegar, coco amino, coconut sugar, garlic, soy sauce, bay leaf, and Barako coffee.

The meals were served in less than 30 minutes but I was shocked when I saw my steak and eggs, ang liit ng steak. Ang layo niya sa picture na nakita, ito yung tinatawag na Expectation vs Reality. Toink! I ordered steak in other restaurants like Melo’s and Hogs & Cattle Steakhouse, and Outback Steakhouse and so far ito yung pinakamaliit. Konti lang din yung tapa compared sa pictures ng ibang bloggers na nakita ko. I told my mom, nasa Pilipinas na siya pero yung order niya hindi nagbago. Halos same kasi sa order nila ng anak ko sa Roft Rotisseri “Lunch Burger”.

Anyway, the service is good and we enjoyed our food naman but whenever we think of the price, nanghihinayang kami. Sana pala nagbuffet na lang kami kasi konting dagdag na lang. Waah! #chargetoexperience

We did not stay long because I attended the Virtual Parents-Teachers Conference while my husband drove to Caleruega for our next agenda.

Read: Mother’s Day at Taal Vista Hotel

Trick or Treat at Taal Vista Hotel

Christmas at Taal Vista Hotel

Taza Fresh Table at Taal Vista Hotel

Kilometer 60, Aguinaldo Highway

Tagaytay City 4120, Philippines

Operating Hours:

Friday 12:00 NN to 3:00PM, 6:00PM to 10:00PM

Saturday 8:00 AM to 10:00 PM

Sunday 8:00 AM to 6:00 PM

Note: Sunday dinner is open during long weekends (Monday is a Holiday)

January 26, 2022

Breakfast at Napa at Crosswinds

“For Christmas is tradition time - traditions that recall the precious memories down the years, the sameness of them all.” Helen Lowrie Marshall

It’s been seven consecutive years that we’ve going to Tagaytay every Christmas Day. It was one of our holiday traditions that we try to keep so I’m thankful that despite the global pandemic, we were able to go out during Christmas Day. Here are the restaurants that we have tried for the past several years.

Breakfast at Antonio’s

Cafe Veranda at Taal Vista Hotel

Verbena Restaurant of Discovery Country Suites

Cafe Voi La

Sonya’s Garden

Among the five restaurants, we frequent Verbena Restaurant because of the less crowd, yummy food, and good customer service. Good thing that we planned to eat at Napa at Crosswinds because we have no idea that Discovery Country Suites is already closed, I’m not sure kung under renovation lang pero sira na siya nung dumaan kami.

Anyway let us go back to our topic, we first visited Crosswinds “Swiss Luxury Resort” way back in 2012 and since then we have also frequented this place for a staycation or food trip. In a span of one decade, they already built few cafes and restaurants like Coffee Project Crosswinds, Cafe Voi La Crosswinds, Ruined Project, Napa at Crosswinds, Windmill Lausanne, and Yama Crosswinds.

Read: Staycation at Crosswinds Swiss Luxury Resort

We only tried Cafe Voi La so last Christmas we decided to visit Napa at Crosswinds. Napa is inspired by the popular place in California which is Napa Valley. You will easily notice the cabin-themed and rustic interiors of the cafe. You can see wooden benches, tables and floors, and wine barrels. And of course, Crosswinds is known for the Swiss-inspired themes so this cafe has a relaxing ambiance. You can choose indoors or al fresco dining.

We left the house before 5:30AM and we arrived at the cafe after one hour of traveling. The parking is limited so we are thankful na nakapagpark pa near the cafe or else, malayong lakaran. Marami na rin tao and yung iba hindi na nakapaghintay so umalis na and because of that, lumapit na ang pila namin.

Opening time is 7AM but unfortunately, hindi on-time yung pag-open. The staff ushered the guest one group at a time. As I’ve said before, you can choose indoor or outdoor but we prefer indoor (with a good view) because it is cold and windy. We prefer the second floor but the staff said, hindi pa daw pwede so we settled for this spot na lang. So kahit mauna ka pala, hindi ka naman makapili ng gusto mong place.

We were waiting at the table for several minutes already pero walang lumalapit na staff to get our order so kung hindi pa kami tumayo at nag-ikot sa cafe, hindi namin malalaman na self-service pala so we fell in line na and I noticed that the second floor is already occupied so mas okay pala mahuli? #bitter

Since it was our first time, we were having a hard time choosing from their menu so we ended up ordering kung ano yung nasa picture. hehehe! We ordered Long Drive Breakfast PHP525, Pancetta and Eggs PHP535, Grilled 4 Cheese Sandwich PHP305, Capuccino PHP245, Premium Chocolate PHP280, Vietnamese Latte PHP270, and Basque Cheesecake PHP245. Take note Cash Payment Only.

I was surprised that after six minutes, our order is ready for pick-up, which was so fast. But we were disappointed because the food is cold. Kaya pala mabilis lang, I assumed precooked na mga foods and nagplating na lang. Yung fries na lang ang lamig, sino ba gusto kumain ng malamig na fries?

Ang ganda pa naman nung nakapost sa restaurant nila. “Napa is a place where you can have breakfast at any time of the day with a view to match every soul’s troubles” Kaso kung malamig ang food hindi nakakacomfort ng soul.

The cafe is located in the cold place of Tagaytay, we ordered breakfast meal and the price is not cheap so we were expecting warm foods. Buti na lang yung drinks, hot talaga. Mas masarap siguro yung Pancetta and Eggs kung mainit. We like cheesecake but we don’t like the taste of their Basque Cheesecake. Despite my disappointments, I’m still happy that I was able to visit this place, at least nag-iba ng ambiance. Charged to experience na lang.

Watch the video here

Napa at Crosswinds

Open daily from 7 AM to 9 PM

Crosswinds, Tagaytay, 4120 Cavite

October 19, 2020

Buko Pie in Tagaytay

Buko pie or coconut pie is considered a specialty of Los Baños, Laguna so my ex-boyfriend now husband used to buy this as a pasalubong whenever he visits me. LDR ang peg namin before because I worked in Makati and he worked in Laguna. But he stopped buying this because I told him that I am not fond of buko pie.

When my late grandmother moved to Victoria, Laguna, we always visit her every month. For those seven years of monthly visits, we always pass different stores of Buko Pie and minsan kahit sa daan meron nagbebenta. I think mabibilang ko lang sa daliri ang nabili ko na buko pie, I tried several brands na rin and sa tagal hindi ko na maalala lasa nila. Hehehe!

Cecilia’s Buco Pie

Last month, my husband went out and came back with a box of buko pie. Mainit-init pa nga ito nung binigay sa kanya, ang sarap sana kainin kaso busog na kami sa dinner. When I checked the box, it is from Tagaytay so I was surprised kasi akala ko puro Buko Tart kapag sa Tagaytay.

Read: Buko Tart in Tagaytay

The following day, my husband sliced and reheated this in the oven toaster so I was not able to take a picture of the whole pie. Looking at the slice, hindi tinipid sa ingredients. As I’ve said before, buko pie is not my favorite but I still enjoyed this one. My husband and son love this, yung anak ko na hindi naman mahilig sa mga ganyan na food pero mas marami pa nakain sa akin.

Speaking of Tagaytay, the last time we went here was January 2 and after that, nagkaashfall and then community quarantine na. Tagaytay is already open for tourism but unfortunately, my son is not allowed to go out yet, sana naman by December pwede na mamasyal.

February 07, 2020

Breakfast Buffet at Balay Dako

We always go to Tagaytay for a food trip but until now I still have a long list of restaurants that I want to try. I feel happy whenever I ticked something off on my list and finally last December, we were able to visit Balay Dako. I wanted to try this restaurant but the problem is they only offer buffet breakfast every weekend and holidays so we grabbed the opportunity when I saw that they are open few days before Christmas.

Read: Food Trip in Tagaytay

Balay Dako does not accept reservations, it is a first-come-first-serve so we left the house as early as 5AM because we will fetch my grandmother-in-law in Laguna. We arrived in Tagaytay past 6:30AM. From the parking lot you can already see the wooden house, it lives up to its name because Balay Dako is a Negrense word which means “big house”.

My husband registered and the staff gave us a number, pang #18 na kami. They started calling the number at 7AM and the staff ushered us to our table. We have a breathtaking view of Taal Lake and who ever think na after few weeks, magkaka-ashfall.

It’s funny because I don’t like to visit during weekends and holidays kasi for sure marami tao. Pero marami pa rin pala tao kahit weekday and hindi pa holiday so I guess lagi sila puno kahit mahal ang rate. According to their site “Antonio’s is much more than a restaurant. It is an experience”, so charge it to experience na lang kahit lugi ko sa 11-years old son ko na mahina kumain. Hindi ko pa rin maaccept na adult rate na siya. Hehehe!

Balay Dako Buffet Breakfast Rate 2019

P700 - adults
P450 - children below 4 feet
FREE - toddlers and below

Prices are subject to a 10% service charge.

Antonios’ Group of Restaurant has 5 restaurants in Tagaytay, the first restaurant that we tried is Breakfast at Antonio’s, and this time buffet breakfast at Balay Dako. This restaurant serves Filipino cuisine so if you love Filipino food or if you have balikbayan, this is a good choice. PHP700 + service charge is not cheap but if you check the buffet spread mukhang sulit naman sa dami.

Read: Christmas at Breakfast at Antonio’s

They offer mixed green salad with 4 types of dressing, fresh fruits, bread, assorted jams and spread, hot and cold drinks, dessert, cereals, granola, soup, and a main course. For main course, they have assorted tuyo, homemade longganisa, bacon, daing na bangus, ginisang gulay, chicken and pork adobo, tapa, corned beef, atchara and ensaladang mangga.

They have a station where you can create your own omelet and fried rice. Just choose from the available ingredients and the chef will cook it for you. They also have balut, penoy and taho. Of course, I was not able to try everything but my favorite foods are puto bumbong, taho, champorado, ginataang halo-halo, ensaymada, daing na bangus and since Christmas season may Ham.

Watch the video here

Update: January 2023

My mom visited us last year and I planned to bring her to Balay Dako because I’m sure she will enjoy Filipino Cuisine but when I inquired, napaisip ako kung worth it pa ba pumunta because of the price increase. My family ate at Balay Dako last December 2019 and the rate is only PHP700 + Service Charge so I was really shocked that after three years, PHP1,200 + Service Charge na yung rate nila. Konti na lang kasi buffet breakfast na rin sa hotel so we just ate at Taza Fresh Table pero mahal din pala. Parang nagbuffet na rin pala kami sa presyo. Waah!

December came and we were looking for a restaurant where we could have an early Christmas get-together and Despedida na rin because my family will go to Vietnam and my mom, niece, and nephew will go to Norway; so yun na rin yung last meeting namin sa year 2022. We’ve been inquiring to different resorts and buffet restaurants pero fully booked na rin so I suggested Balay Dako.

Balay Dako does not take any reservations and they have a first come first served policy so we just need to go early to get a slot. The breakfast buffet is from 7AM to 11 AM every weekend and on selected holidays.

Balay Dako Buffet Breakfast Rate 2022

PHP1,200 - Adult

PHP900 - children below 4ft

FREE - toddlers and below

Prices are subject to a 10% service charge.

On the day of our trip, we left early and arrived at the restaurant at 6:20AM, the guard gave us a small piece of paper where we need to scan the QR code and fill out the Guest Queuing Form. Yung paper, #173 nakalagay pero hindi namin alam kung what number nagstart. Past 7AM, they started calling the numbers na and as far as I can remember, pang #20 kami sa natawag but we were seated at 7:15AM so mabilis naman magpapasok ng guests.

We are a group of 10 people pero wala ng available table for 10 people so 2 separate tables na lang kami. Anyway, the Balay Dako menu is still the same and this was our second time so I only have limited pictures.