It’s been almost three years since I’ve visited Coron town. Most tourists dismiss the small town as there isn’t much going on there. But I fell in love with the place the first moment I walked through its winding streets. What endeared me even more are the numerous places to eat out in.

You can tell from my figure, I love to eat.

►EXPLORE: CORON TRAVEL GUIDE

While my fellow travelers were crowding at a nearby cashew nut store for pasalubongs, I was busy checking out the baby back ribs being grilled at Santino’s Grill. After a longish ride from the Busuanga Bay Lodge, we were gonna have our lunch in town before proceeding to the Two Seasons Coron Island Resort & Spa.

Santino’s Grill is a restaurant in Coron famous for its baby back ribs. Apparently, the place is named after the owner’s son and not after the popular soap opera character from ABS-CBN. The place is open-aired and sports a very Filipino ambience; wooden furniture, sawali walls and ceiling, rustic lamps—you get the drift.

I’ve heard that serving time isn’t really the restaurant’s strong point, I guess that’s why they prepared our food way ahead of schedule. It’s a good thing too, since cooking for more than twenty individuals is no easy feat.

A tip for those visiting Santino’s Grill, prepare for a longish wait for food to be served. Or if possible, try to call and ask if you can have your order ahead of time before actually going there.

We were served Santino Grill’s signature baby back ribs (₱300.00). This usually comes with either French fries or mashed potato paired with a sour cream onion-dip. But since we were the restaurant’s guests, we were treated with a buffet.

Spell unlimited ribs! This would’ve been perfect after climbing at Mt. Tapyas.

Along with the ribs are bowls of veggie salad, barbecued squid (which I first thought to be isaw) and sinigang soup. I’m no fan of salads but surprisingly, I liked it.

The barbecue was okay, so was the sinigang.

And true to its reputation, Santino’s Grill does indeed deliver when it comes to their baby back ribs.

Again, I’m no fan of ribs, (I’ll take steak over one anytime), but this one’s unlike I’ve tried before. Given, most baby back ribs are tender—but this one just melts in your mouth. The sauce lathered was just perfect for me—not too sweet—and the dip complements the meat well. And yes, serving size is humongous.

Since it’s a buffet, I was looking to get a second round of the baby back, but alas, I wasn’t as fast as my companions. The grill’s already wiped clean of ribs.

Santino’s Grill Coron 
Address: Felisidad St., Coron, Palawan
Contact Number: (0921) 967-7571 | (0915) 700-3881
Opening Hours: 10:30AM to 2:30PM | 5:30PM to 10:00PM
GPS Coordinates: 12.000711, 120.209854