Izakaya Kagura

Izakaya Kagura Japanese Restaurant
AC Cortes Avenue, Brgy. Banilad, Mandaue City

By : Bert Mendoza

Since I am connected with a Japanese pharmaceutical company, most of the restaurants I had been to were mostly Japanese. We want to live up to our name as a Japanese business entity and therefore, patronize business establishments with Japanese nature. However, I would like to stress the fact that I am promoting Philippine business establishments and Cebu’s business establishments in particular so I have to take into consideration the strong business partnership between the Philippines and Japan. I also believe that aside from the Koreans, Japanese tourists also abound in this tropical Philippine Island.

Izakaya Kagura Japanese Restaurant is a newly opened Japanese restaurant along AC Cortes Avenue in Barangay Banilad, Mandaue City. Located just beside AA Barbecue and Grill along the business stretch of Banilad in Mandaue City, this Japanese restaurant is carving a name in Cebu’s restaurant industry. A Filipina entrepreneur married to a Japanese national owns it. What sets it apart from all the other Japanese restaurants is its set up, which is very accessible. You don’t have to go up the stairs in order to dine. Upon entering the establishment, traditional Japanese tables without chairs are arranged orderly in the dining room. Guests are only sitting on the floor cross-legged. This is the traditional Japanese sitting position when dining. However, there are also rooms with long tables and chairs for those who wish to really sit down when eating or those who would like to have privacy. These rooms are ideal for meetings and other social gatherings consisting of a not so large group.

They serve Japanese menus like the usual California maki, tuna sashimi, and chicken and beef teriyaki, ebi tempura cooked the Izakaya Kagura way. You can also cook your fish and meet dinner should you wish to do so. They have all the choices you want in a Japanese cuisine. Their appetizers are also mouth watering. It was the first time I tasted some and I really liked them. Foods are also served on time and you don’t have to wait long enough to the extent of loosing your appetite. It is service at its best. Furthermore, after dining out, their receptionists will give you candies as a sweet way of saying, “please come back!”

My boss will never leave this restaurant without a pack of Moringa tea. This tea is a natural way of protecting our immune system from harmful free radicals that can cause sickness and ailments. You should try it too. One pack costs around P500.00. Not bad for somebody who wants to have a healthier body and long life. Go to Izakaya Kagura Restaurant and experience it yourself.

CAFE HAVANA

By Neal Jason Cabahug

With some friends we went to this place which I very often heard being
mentioned. Classy though it was, but instantly I settled in comfortably in
one of their outdoor tables.


I loved the food, especially the pizza topped with quail eggs. It was
Guantanamera I think. Beer poured in and then I realized I have had 6 slices of pizza. The outdoor ambiance was relaxing, but when I noticed someone singing from inside, I swayed the group to transfer inside. A small band was playing with a fuschia pink-red dressed lady belting out a Latin song.

Having had enough of beer, I tried out their iced tea which my friend told
me to be different from the iced teas served in other restos. And truly it
was!

One thing I liked in Cafe Havana the most is the warm reception and
friendliness of the waiters/waitresses. I remember the guy named Jones, who charmingly introduced the unique food preparations they have. Truly, the people, food and place that Cafe Havana had is something worth going back to.

Mizu, a Jap resto you'll miss...

Mizu
Waterfront Cebu City Hotel
Salinas Drive, Lahug, Cebu City


By : Bert Mendoza

This Japanese restaurant offers a different kind of ambiance apart from all the other restaurants here in Cebu City. Its façade is a combination of both the ancient and modern Japanese architecture. Upon entering the wide entrance of the restaurant, you will be greeted by its friendly and good-looking staff. Their smiles will assure you that you have made the right choice in dining there. There is some kind of magic in this establishment that will make you go back there every now and then. It is just like you are dining in one of Tokyo’s best restaurants. I should know because I have been to Tokyo already and I was able to dine in some of its best restaurants. I am also connected with a Japanese company and most of my guests prefer to eat in a Japanese restaurant specifically Mizu Japanese Restaurant at the Waterfront Cebu City Hotel. They are serving one of the best Japanese cuisines in Cebu City and perhaps the whole Philippines.

Since they are catering to the class A and B crowd, their price is reasonable enough. Most of their target customers are hotel guests and tourists who are looking for authentic Japanese cuisines right at the heart of Cebu City. From the Waterfront Hotel, Mizu is just 10 minutes away from Cebu’s large shopping centers Ayala Center and SM City Cebu. Transportation is also very accessible considering that there are 24-hour hotel taxi services, which can bring you anywhere in Cebu City and in any point of Cebu province.

There is a set menu, which consists of our all time favorites tuna sashimi, California maki, and shrimp tempura etc. that are put in a small boat complete with all spices which would suit every person’s distinctive taste. I also love their ice tea, which is different from all the other ordinary ice teas, which I tasted before. They also serve fresh fruit shakes, which are not served in any other Japanese restaurants here in Cebu City. I would like to single out their cantaloupe shake, which I really loved so dearly. One glass of it is never enough for me. I recommend that you should try it too.

Like all the other Japanese restaurants, they also serve Japanese green tea upon requests. I also love it because after indulging yourself to a sumptuous dinner, you will feel light and it’s just like your stomach didn’t have to be that full. It feels so good to have a Japanese green tea after every meal and Mizu knows just how to make your meal satisfying but not really that overloading.

Looking for a nice Japanese restaurant right at the very heart of Cebu City? Try Mizu Japanese Restaurant at the Waterfront Cebu City Hotel.