BATANGAS | Don Juan BBQ at Taal
Tuesday, August 23, 2011Three hours of grueling bus ride is more than enough for one’s stomach to grumble in protest, especially if you haven’t had proper breakfast yet. I hope you’ll forgive me if my first post at the historic Taal Town is about a restaurant.
The day was a scorcher as we took shelter at Don Juan BBQ’s cool interiors after being directed here by some of the locals.
Don Juan looks like a typical Filipino house on the outside; painted in warm white, it has a pitched roof with capiz (mother of pearls) windows circling the whole structure. The place seems to be emulating the old houses which Taal is known for.
We seated ourselves near one of the windows and checked out their menu (not for ventilation as the place is air-conditioned). As expected, they serve mostly Filipino dishes with some leanings to barbecued fares. They have a separate section for Taal specialties and they have longanisa (Filipino sausage), yay!
It’s a no brainer that I’d be ordering their Taal longanisa, it’s gonna be the first time I’d get to try them out.
After much chaos, everyone’s finally done with their orders. Good thing the staff was very accommodating; we were quite the rowdy bunch. Waiting time was not that long and our food arrived one by one sooner than was expected.
We ordered their Batangas bulalo (Php290.00) for the gang (we were nine in the group) and it was enough if only as an additional soup (note that it is not refillable, unlike most bulalo joints).
It was not as good as the other bulalo I’ve tried though. There were hardly any bone marrow (heck I can’t even remember if there was even a bone) with a few pieces of beef swimming around the bowl, I guess this was purely soup and the marrow was only for flavor. I don’t really eat bone marrow so it was fine with me, but those who dig this stuff might really be disappointed.
I was excited with my Taal longanisa (Php88.00) since it is the garlic type that I so love. It also, however, fell short of my expectations. I’m not sure if Taal’s longanisa is really full of cubed fats but theirs definitely has a lot which is actually not my thing. The meat was also a bit on the hard side, so minus points again.
I also tried out some of my friend’s fare (those that were within my reach, haha). The Ihaw-Ihaw Chicken Pecho (Php75.00) and BBQ Combo (Php85.00) were too tough for my liking, they may have been overcooked.
For desserts, we ordered their turon (banana fritters) with ice cream (Php35.00) which, unfortunately, they ran out of stock. They were able to give us one serving though so we were able to check it out.
They were sized like longish lumpiang shanghai (fried mini spring rolls) and had none of the crusty sugar that is distinct to turon. A scoop of ice cream is plopped on top. It was average tasting, nothing to really write home about. Serving size was okay though for its price.
Our lunch at Don Juan BBQ was very average and was almost bordering on disappointing. The place looks decent enough and the staff was very polite, hopefully they can improve their dishes for a more enjoyable dining experience.
Don Juan BBQ
Address: F. Agoncillo St. (right beside the market), Taal, Batangas
Contact Number: (0922) 803-8855 | (043) 302-2486
13 comments
Ganda ng place...
ReplyDeleteSana ganon din yung food... :(
Aw.. too bad. I'm excited to this Taal series.I've been to different parts of Batangas but I've never been to Taal. I have read that the Biggest Catholic Church in Asia can be found there.
ReplyDeletebuti na lang masarap pa rin tingnan yung food sa pictures mo sir! :) looking forward sa Taal series.. :)
ReplyDeleteOh you were in Taal! Very polite talaga yung staff ng Don Juan but the food is average lang. Sana sa Taal Bistro kayo itinuro. ^_^
ReplyDeletei like the facade and the interior of the restaurant...the wooden furniture and fixtures makes it so accommodating and cozy...
ReplyDeleteTripper10
ReplyDeleteOo nga eh, sayang
Malditang "Kura"cha
Yup, and I have just posted about the said church. =)
MarLiesTravels
Thanks! Ayan na start na =)
Nuna
Uy saan dun yung Taal Bistro? Parang yun lang nakita namin na resto sa pag ikot namin
Juneosidabenitez
Very nice place nga sya, but food is on the average side
Yung taal bistro sa may Calle A. delas Alas. Sa kabilang dulo naman yun nung palengke. Malapit lang din sa Don Juan. Di bale, next time diba? =)
ReplyDeleteKahit hindi masyado masarap, pwede na sa akin, may mabilhan lang ako ng bulalo dito :)
ReplyDeleteNuna
ReplyDeleteDefinitely next time =)
Claire
Ang hirap pag walang local food na malapit =P
Sayang naman na average lang ang food. :( Parang ang cozy ng interior nya.
ReplyDeleteLooks like you did have a good food experience at Don Juan BBQ. I think I should write that so I would avoid such a place when I visit Bicol in the future.
ReplyDeleteNext time bili na lang kayo ng Tapa sa amin :) " Gerry and Lheen Special tapa and Longanisa " I maintain my parents store blog site :) Maganda ang taal pero kailangan alam agad ang pupuntahan para di sayang ang oras. Our blog will tell you good things about the place : http://www.thebestoftaalbatangas.com/
ReplyDeleteKarla
ReplyDeleteOo nga eh, siguro kung medyo mas mura yung food, sakto lang
Gwapito
This is not in Bicol sir
Dexter
Okay, check namin yan next time :)