First Bite: Siglo Modern Filipino

R and I decided to avoid the Valentine's Day mayhem in Manila and went to Tagaytay for a nice short break. We arrived in two hours on a Friday night and enjoyed the cool breeze of the city. Thinking that most people will celebrate Valentine's on Saturday, we decided to head back to Manila early afternoon of the 14th but we were stuck in traffic and Waze said that it will take us a long time before reaching Nuvali. Without hesitation, we made a U-turn and opted to head back to R's apartment. But since we were hungry, we made a quick stop at this Filipino restaurant called Siglo. 

Hello, Siglo Modern Filipino.

I was a bit iffy to stop by this place as I couldn't find reviews about it. But hungry people stuck in crazy traffic cannot be choosy. 

The restaurant serves typical Tagaytay specialties such as Bulalo (PHP350) and Tawilis (PHP150). We opted to get those as well as Chocolate Milk Shake and Strawberry Smoothie (PHP125 each) from its neighbor Adam's Cafe. 

Our drinks arrived in 15 minutes or so and both were very sweet. In fact, too sweet. It was like slurping dessert on a hot day. Not exactly something ideal to be paired with our meal but it was okay to battle the early summer heat.

After almost an hour, our dishes were finally served. The waiter apologized and said that it took them a while to make the bulalo as they had to make sure that the meat's tender. (True enough, it does take at least 3 hours to make really good bulalo. But the long wait was not acceptable.)

We enjoyed our meal without uttering a word. Yes, we were that hungry! 

The bulalo was indeed tender and quite flavorful. It was almost just like my mom's bulalo. Siglo added banana instead of corn for that slight sweet taste. Honestly, I prefer corn but I guess they ran out of it due to the unexpected influx of people who were also stuck in traffic. 

The tawilis was so-so. It was nothing extraordinary and it did not make much of an impression. Then again, there really is nothing much to expect from deep-fried fish unless the atchara or sauce is spectacular. 

Overall, it was a filling meal and it didn't hurt our wallets. Will I come back? Perhaps not as I could easily get those dishes elsewhere. But if you're stuck in traffic near Picnic Grove, this place could save you from hunger. 

Siglo (and Adam's Cafe) is located at Ground Floor, View Park Hotel, 3500 Tagaytay-Calamba Road, Sungay East, Tagaytay City.

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