Hukad sa Golden Cowrie!

Hukad sa Golden Cowrie @ Robinsons, Dumaguete

Hukad sa Golden Cowrie, as our servers (a gentle bunch who can't speak Filipino well) claim, started in Cebu and branched out to Davao and Dumaguete Cities. Our group didn't know about this bit of information until the time when we stepped into the Dumaguete branch looking for a good place to drink beer and and have some really kicking Pulutan. And kicking it was. With our bottles of beer, we ordered for (unlimited) rice to match the Crispy Pork Kare-Kare. In short, we eventually ended up eating dinner. 

Fried Baby Squid on Tinta (P170)
Crispy Pork Kare-Kare (P198) 

The Fried Baby Squid con Tinta didn't look appetizing at all. Actually, it was kinda scary. But was it good? Oh yes. Very crispy and a bit makunat. The Baby Squids were served with an ordinary-looking white sauce. I didn't bother (mayo? aoli?) to find out what it was.   

I've tasted quite a number of versions of Kare-Kare: Chicken Kare-Kare, Vegetable Kare-Kare, Kare-Kare with Chocolate Bagoong, Brothy Kare-Kare, and the list goes on. Hukad's version was Crispy Pork Kare-Kare. It's a combination of Kare-Kare AND Lechong Kawali just like the one we had in Pine Grove Mountain Lodge in Dahilayan, Bukidnon. I clearly remember how much we loved it. Anyway, the Hukad version's not as memorable but it was good enough. 

Quaint and Quiet Dinner at Dahilayan, Bukidnon!

PINE GROVE @ Dahilayan, Bukidnon

Temperature dipped. It was cold... we were tired and hungry. We settled to have dinner in our “chalet.” We were the only guests so service was quick (to think that our food server was also the front desk officer!). We were really not expecting much as long that it’s edible. The food came. Usual Pinoy food where thick gravy’s slopped on the meat. 

But to our pleasant surprise the Kare-Kareng Lechong Kawali (will try preparing this soon with my Tita Nelia's Chocolate Bagoong!) was really delicious! The meat crunchy and the sauce, nutty! The boneless Bangus with gravy and sliced garlic was also good and so was the Sinigang na Hipon! Sarap.  

Nakabawi na ang Dahilayan sa matabang niyang mais (earlier, we bought yellow corn in Forest Park also in Dahilayan which I can say ang pinakamatabang na mais na nakain ko! It was carton box pretending to be corn).

Hay… I did enjoy Bukidnon.