First Bite: Sakura Terraces

Chaya is my favorite Japanese restaurant in Baguio and I was excited to share this wonderful find with R’s parents. I had no idea though that a lot of locals and tourists also know my secret Legarda Road gem. The place was packed on our first night in Baguio and we were gently turned down to dine there for dinner when the front host found out that we didn’t have any reservation on its busy night. I had to think of another restaurant quick before R’s parents turn from hungry to hangry. And the first restaurant that came to mind was Sakura Terraces.

Hello, Sakura Terraces!

This restaurant has been highly rated on its Facebook page and looloo. There was even one Japanese reviewer who mentioned that Sakura Terraces offer the real deal while giving Chaya a very low rating. I then thought that Sakura Terraces might be my new favorite. 

As we drive our way to the restaurant, I gave it a call to make a seven-minutes-till-we-get-there reservation. Luckily, we got a go signal from the restaurant and soon, we found ourselves right in front of it. 

I got a bad feeling about the place though when we stepped inside a barely packed restaurant but I quickly shrugged it when I saw its Salmon Mania platter for only PHP1,100. (The platter consists of salmon nigiri, broiled salmon nigiri, salmon maki, salmon kani maki, and salmon sashimi.) 

We decided to order that one along with Sukiyaki Hot Pot with Clear Noodles (PHP650, good for 3 pax). R also ordered a glass of Watermelon Shake (PHP60) while everyone else settled with house tea. 

First served was R’s shake and though it tasted sweet and all, I really do not like fruit shakes with milk so I just had one sip and was done with it. 

Salmon Mania was served next and it looked pretty nice! I kept thinking that we did the right decision as I took more photos of the platter. But it was a different story when we started eating. 

The salmon sashimi was frozen and you could actually feel and hear the ice crystals crush every time you take a bite. The maki rolls were just so-so and the nigiri was a letdown. 

I then thought that its sukiyaki might be better than Chaya though it’d be hard to beat as I love Chaya’s flavorful hot pot. 

Our hotpot was served when we were halfway done with our platter and after a quick photoshoot, we split the hot pot to four. 

I could tell right away that it wouldn’t be as good as Chaya’s as the supposedly thin slices of meat were all lumped together. R’s mom commented that the restaurant didn’t even properly defrost it hence having huge balls of shredded meat. The meat too was not fresh. It was too chewy that some of us had to spat it out. 

At least the broth had the enjoyable sweet and salty taste that I like; but aren’t we paying for the meat more than the broth?

Overall, it was a terrible dinner and I wouldn’t go back for more. 

Sakura Terraces is located at 168 Military Cut-off Road, Baguio City.

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