Places to eat in Philippines

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Max's has been existing in this country since the mid 1940's and it has been through hell and high-water. Their name has always been synonymous to good Filipino Cuisine and they are most famous for their chicken (they are also called "The House That Fried Chicken Built").

It was handled by Francorp since 1988. The old was merge with the new. They had a different concept before(Chicken, Steaks, Coffee, Soda, Ice Cream etc.), but kept their original chicken recipes (By the founder's niece, Ruby) then added some more. Being handled by Francorp they were able to have quality control and were also able franchise their system without hassle. Francorp was a big help to them because even if they still had good food, Francorp was able to help them market their products well.

I believe they have a global concept, but the one in Sacramento, California, USA, did not work out well. I guess you can't be perfect.

Here in the country they are hardly without a client.

They have meals for groups, they cater for receptions/parties, and they have budget meals.

Cakes and other pastries are available in most of their branches.

Favorite Dish: Once in a while, even if I'm allergic to most of the chicken recipes, I do eat their chicken, because it's very, very tasty. They are really known for this.

I also love the fish recipes and Ruby's Kare-kare.

Their cakes and pastries are also good.



All major credit cards are accepted, but they accept cash too. ;p

Check their website for other details and these links:

http://thecookmobile.com/the-secret-recipeof-maxs-restaurant-fried-chicken/

http://www.marketmanila.com/archives/maxs-fried-chicken

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Max%27s_of_Manila

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Note: I know I should put more local chains here, but even if this is an international one, they "Philippinized" it.

Who are "they"?

The Aranetas own the master franchise and they have made this resto-chain family-friendly.

Most of the branches have very alert and efficient staff.

They are neat and very, very courteous.

The food is very, very affordable too.

Favorite Dish: RJ loves the spare ribs, the 1/4 chicken with spaghetti, the dessert sampler, the BBQ Cheesy Volcano Pizza and the Vegetarian.

I was walking up from one of the local diving shops when i noticed a line up of people standing out past the sidewalk.I looked up to see on their sign that this place is called the Blue Carabao Diner.The sign also has pictures of their specality,carabao {Philippine water buffalo} offered in two soups. I ventured in to take a look and seen that the food is offered banquet style,or what they call "toro-toro" meaning to point at the meal that you want.I have to say for an open style restaurant,they have managed to keep the place very clean and the staff are well dressed and wear special styled hairnets and serving gloves,i was impressed.As i was walking around a lady came over and introduced herself as the owner and head cook of the establishment,asking if i had any questions about the food and invited me to take a look at their kitchen,wow,impressed ! I was told that all first time foreign and local guest can request for a sample of a meal before purchasing the said food item,impressed again!
The restaurant is not fancy,but it is clean and tastefully decorated with local works of art and crafts.The tables are wooden picnic style good for four people.The washrooms are clean but you must ask cashier for toilet tissue. I should mention that it is self service set up cafeteria style,pay as you make your way down the tray rail.
The food was some of the best tasting food i experienced in my travels of the Philippines.I have eaten in some fancy restaurants and none of them could come close to the taste and quality or quality of the meals put out by this restaurant.No wonder people where lined up on the sidewalk to get into this place.Did i mention that it is very cheap? Bowl of soup,big enough for two people is like one US dollar. I was in Davao for one week and i ate at this place sometimes twice a day because they offer at least thirty five different meals to pick from.

Favorite Dish: It is hard to pick a favorite because it was all good,but that being said,i would say that the Hinilang {spicy carabao soup,tender chunks of carabao meat } with their well cook rice was a hit.Their beef pochero{meat attached to bones} would also rank among my favorites. They offer chunks of pork in a sauce {Humba} that melts in your mouth.They offer a nice selection of seaweed salads and vegetable meals.
The Blue Carabao is a must for anyone who visits Davao City.

For authentic Philippine cuisine dining, you must try jj's foodstream in Tagbilaran city.

My favourite dish during my last night in Bohol province was 'Kinilaw'. It is actually raw fish steeped in vinegar to 'cook' the soft white flesh. The balance of the sourness with the sweet richness of coconut sauce was just perfect. The lime added was nice touch and not overdone, which usually happens. The mungo soup was also excellent just like how I remembered my Mama cooked it but it could have used more coconut for more richness as it was on a lean side but the balance of taste was good.

The prawn soup was very disappointing because the prawns were tiny, I mean, really tiny with its shell still attached! The leafy vegetables in the soup were also very disappointing with stringy overboiled texture instead of retaining its firm and crunchy flavour.

I love the taste of my sister's chopsuey rice, it is how it should taste like in Chinese cities. The dishes were firm, juicy and retaining their essence not overpowered by the sauce.

The drinks however did not disappoint, mine and my Mama's sweet avocado shake was refreshing and had the right amount of sweetness. I can't stand it when it is too sweet. My sister's mango drink was made from real mangoes and a treat to the palate.

Favorite Dish: Kinilaw- please read above.

MAUREEN GABRIEL you suck!!!!!
there is a very unrespectful emloyee in your resto that has a very foul mouth! what kind of resto are you if you can't control and teach your own employees to respect people!!!!i think that you should think of firing her because if you dont, she might just injure a lot more costumers in the future because of her preposterous character!!!

Favorite Dish: MAUREEN GABRIEL you suck!!!!!
there is a very unrespectful emloyee in your resto that has a very foul mouth! what kind of resto are you if you can't control and teach your own employees to respect people!!!!i think that you should think of firing her because if you dont, she might just injure a lot more costumers in the future because of her preposterous character!!!

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My last VT meet was in Manila at Dencio's Restaurant. It was suggested by Aida (asianbelle). The restaurant is very close to the Megamall and very convenient place to eat. There were a lot of young people hanging outside just looking at their laptops and some people were just chatting and drinking their beer.

The ambience of the restaurant was really pleasant. The waiters and waitresses were busy. The hanging Japanese lights make you feel welcome at the restaurant. The tables were covered in white linen and it made the restaurant looked very clean and very fresh.

The waiters were friendly and courteous. There was a waitress buzzing people in and checking whether I had a reservation or not. As soon as I sat dow waiting for my VT friends, one of the waiters asked me what I would like to drink...

Favorite Dish: For some reason, I like the fried "bangus" (milk fish). Honestly, while I was eating it, I didn't even realize I was eating a "bangus" because it was already deboned and presented in a sizzling platter with green jalapenos! As soon as I had my first bite, I can hear the crunchiness of the fish between my teeth!

I had to ask how they cooked the bangus that made it so delicious and crunchy. I was told that the skin of the fish was deep fried and it was mixed with the meat of the fish and sauteed with some spices.
The "chop suey", mixed vegetables was delicious, too, but I had eyes on the bowl of "Chinese noodles and the "pinakbet" (Ilocano vegetables sauteed in shrimps "bagoong".

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AT LAST....THIS IS OUR 3RD ATTEMPT EATING THIS RESTAURANT, THIS RESTAURANT IS JUST OPEN RECENTLY, BECAUSE EVERY TIME WE VISIT THIS RESTAURANT IT IS FULL PACK WHAT EVER THE REASONED I DON'T KNOW THAT WHY WE MAKE IT APPOINT TO VISIT THIS RESTAURANT EARLY AS 4PM FOR A DINNER BUFFET. WE ARE SO CURIOUS WHY SO MANY PEOPLE WASTING THERE TIME FOR AN HOUR WAITING OUTSIDE JUST TO EAT THERE BUFFET.... AT 4PM WE RESERVED FOR 7PAX ACCORDING TO THE MANAGER WE SHOULD BE THERE BEFORE 5:30PM IF THEY CALL OUR NAMED AND WE ARE NOT AROUND THEY WILL GAVE OUR SEAT TO OTHERS, SO WHAT WE DO IS TO STAY AT THE CAR IN FRONT OF THE RESTAURANT SO WE WONT MISSED OUR TURN SAME WHAT OTHER COSTUMER IS DOING... AND 5:30PM CAME EVERYBODY WAS EXCITED TO ENTER THERE RESTAURANT SO WE CAN SEE AND EAT THERE LONG WAITING BUFFET........THE BUFFET TABLE IS NOT YET PREPARED WE WAIT FOR ANOTHER 30 MINUTES BEFORE THEY GAVE US A GO SIGNAL TO GET FOOD FROM THE BUFFET TABLE, MY WHOLE FAMILY IS ALREADY GETTING MAD ON ME BECAUSE FOR KEEPING US WAITING LONG BUT AS A MOTHER I AM STILL THE BOSS... THE WAITING AND MONEY IS NOT WORTH TO EAT THIS RESTAURANT THE FOOD IS ONLY ORDINARY AS IF YOU ARE EATING AT THE JAPANESE FAST FOOD RESTAURANT . I ASK OTHER COSTUMER AND THEY SAID IT IS ALSO THERE FIRST TIME EATING THIS RESTAURANT AND THE REASONED THEY HAVE MANY CURIOUS NEW COSTUMER THE COMPANY HAVE SPEND A LOT OF MONEY IN ADVERTISING ALMOST WEEKLY THEY HAVE AN ARTICLE IN THE BROADSHEET..... REGARDING THERE RESTAURANT AND YOU CAN SEE IN THE ARTICLE THERE YUMMY FOOD PICTURE....SO YOU WILL BE TEMPTED

Favorite Dish: LIKE WHAT I SAID NOTHING SPECIAL, THE SHRIMP SIZE IN THERE TEMPURA IS SO SMALL AND I THINK THEY ONLY BOTH THE CAKE THERE SERVED BECAUSE IT TASTE LIKE A CAKE IN A NEAR BY CHEAP BAKERY STORE.. THE TEMPURA SAUCE IS A BIG NO..... THERE KIMCHIE IS BITTER TASTE, THE SUKIYAKI SOUP IS SO SWEET AND ALL AS IN ALL GRILLED ITEMS THEY MARINATE IT IN ONLY ONE FLAVOR IT IS SAME TASTE...I THINK IF SOMEBODY EAT HERE THEY WOULD NOT GO BACK AGAIN

The ambience is quite good for dining in a country side and for its being an italian restaurant,I find it lucky enough to dominate the place for not having other competition in business! In addition, that it's place is in a popular leather shoe making destination wherein similar of what in Italy is famous of.although Liliw leather shoe is much different from what is known years ago....its not all made of locals because of the mixing in imported products from China and Korea.But ...thats another story!
The restaurant,which is highly rated and appreciated by many ...is dissappointing indeed! I just don"t know how it become an overly rated italian food when 3M pizza tastes much better than theirs! (check the crust! its an insult for a real italian pizza) and to all the pasta that we've order,namely the vongole and carbonara...oh,pleasssssse!!!!DON"T claim it is an italian taste!Anyway...just like I have said before that you have no competitors...WILL you just improve more,perhaps it is because its not an ala carte that I expected its just one of those fast food kind of place and stop bragging how it is so italian and the name dropping of some so called famous and politician people you know while we the diners can hear in the room so loud and clear! it is some what annoying...