Honeymoon in Palawan

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Overview

seaweed Photo - Ka Lui, Puerto Princesa, Philippines

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The province of Palawan is considered the last frontier of the Philippines. Mother Nature has blessed with the beautiful mocha-colored and white sandy beaches, amazing limestone cliffs and a wide variety of flora and fauna on land, air and sea, among others. The government of Palawan recognize this gift and is quite conscious about protecting their natural resources. The province's main source of income is through tourism.Puerto Princesa is the only city in Palawan. It is in a tight contest with Davao City as the largest in the country (and in the world, I think). The city is the main seat of the provincial government, as well as the center of commerce and industry. It has be...Read More

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Banwa Pension House

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Hotel

banwa pension house lobby Photo - Banwa Pension House, Puerto Princesa, Philippines

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when jan and i decided to go to puerto princesa for our honeymoon, i immediately went to work looking for lodging. our initial list had asturias, the legend and hotel fleuris because they were the ones on the PALakbayan list of partner hotels. hotel fleuris had good reviews from a friend, so it was on top of the list. things got a little confusing, however, when people started suggesting asturias and legend. legend located nearer downtown and had good accommodations, asturias was farther away and was supposed to be better for honeymooners.i did further research on puerto princesa hotels until i stumbled along the banwa pension house website. i immediately fell in love with the place. it fe...Read More

Member Rating 4 out of 5 on June 26, 2008

Banwa Pension House
Liwanag Street
Puerto Princesa
+63 48 434 8963

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Lotus Garden Restaurant

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Restaurant

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one of the things we really enjoyed in puerto princesa was the dining. while the food was really good, the restaurants themselves were actually quite an experience already. most of the places we ate in showcased architectural and visual artistry that complemented the meals we had wonderfully.our original intent was to go to ka lui only to discover that it was closed on sundays. since we were hungry already, we decided to proceed next door at the lotus garden restaurant. it was a japanese restaurant. customers are asked to go barefoot (like in banwa pension house) upon entering the main restuarant. one can choose to sit on the floor or take a regular table. we chose the one the table over a t...Read More

one of the things we really enjoyed in puerto princesa was the dining. while the food was really good, the restaurants themselves were actually quite an experience already. most of the places we ate in showcased architectural and visual artistry that complemented the meals we had wonderfully.

our original intent was to go to ka lui only to discover that it was closed on sundays. since we were hungry already, we decided to proceed next door at the lotus garden restaurant. it was a japanese restaurant. customers are asked to go barefoot (like in banwa pension house) upon entering the main restuarant. one can choose to sit on the floor or take a regular table. we chose the one the table over a tiled hole in the ground so we could still stretch our legs.

when we got the menu, the prices were on the expensive side. each meal started at P250.00 on the average. we decided to get the set menu of P450 for 2 people instead. it consisted of 2 rice, clam soup, 2pcs. of prawns, adobong puso ng saging and pork yaku plus palawan princess (which was just actually graham crackers and condensed milk). not bad for it's price though when we got to taste it, the pork was on the tough side. the rice and adobong puso ng saging were just okay. not good, not bad.

what i really enjoyed about lotus garden was the landscaping and interior design. there were detached cottages that had hammocks and provided more privacy. there were also ponds with fish and had water lilies (at first i thought it was a lotus, the resto being named lotus garden after all).

our meal was far from great, but it wasn't bad.
they do have an all-you=can-eat sushi for P370.00, which seems to be their speciality since they are a japanese restaurant after all. so if you are craving for raw seafood, lotus garden may just be the resto for you.

we also appreciated the very good service the staff provided us. they were quite eloquent, as well as polite. the menu was explained well when we asked what it was. our glasses were constantly re-filled with water. their localized-kimono added to the japanese-zen stuff lotus garden was trying to project.

all-in-all, we did enjoy our first meal in puerto princesa for the quaintness of the dining experience. it's worth trying out, especially if you are into japanse food. Read Less

Member Rating 3 out of 5 on July 2, 2008

Lotus Garden Restaurant
371 Rizal Avenue
Puerto Princesa 5300
+63 (48) 4341132

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Ka Lui

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Restaurant

ka lui Photo - Ka Lui, Puerto Princesa, Philippines

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we wanted to eat at ka lui the day we arrived at puerto princesa. it was when we were right at the doorsteps of ka lui did we find out that they were closed on sundays. on our second try, we were 30 minutes early and no reservations. we forgot that they opened at 6PM and that reservations were actually recommended. fortunately, the staff allowed us in. there were still some available tables. again, we were asked to remove our footwear upon entering the main restaurant. true enough, the best seats in the house were already reserved. so it really is best to call before going to the restaurant. it is quite famous with the tourists. people start coming in droves by 630PM.the...Read More

we wanted to eat at ka lui the day we arrived at puerto princesa. it was when we were right at the doorsteps of ka lui did we find out that they were closed on sundays. on our second try, we were 30 minutes early and no reservations. we forgot that they opened at 6PM and that reservations were actually recommended. fortunately, the staff allowed us in. there were still some available tables.
again, we were asked to remove our footwear upon entering the main restaurant.

true enough, the best seats in the house were already reserved. so it really is best to call before going to the restaurant. it is quite famous with the tourists. people start coming in droves by 630PM.

the place was adorned with the various artworks, most of which had fish for their subject. from batik to ceramic plates to windchimes and japanese lights. while there were other interesting subjects for the artwork, the fish ones were the most numerous

sculptures and artistic lamps adorned the interiors of ka lui. fresh fruits also served as additional decor.

they had quite a selection of meals, especially seafood, to choose from. my husband and i decided on their Ka Lui Special which was good for two people at only P375 (exclusive of vat and service charge). based on what was on their menu, it was actually value for money. we get have clam soup, lato (that seaweed that looks like grapes), stir-fried vegetables, fish cordon bleu, grilled tuna, garlic-buttered prawns and fresh fruits sprinkled with muscovado sugar. the food was great! the fish was definitely fresh and i particularly enjoyed the fish cordon bleu and prawns. the muscuvado sugar brought me (and jan) back to our childhood memories of the sugar. mmmmm... good and satisfying meal it was! and my avocado shake was delicious. mmmmm....

what i was most fascinated with, however, was the bathroom. i actually went back there just to take photos because it was just so well-thought off and unique. the sink was made of hard wood shaped in your usual bowl. the floor was made of wood instead of tiles. the door had a small hole when vacant. once somebody uses it, the lock to the door would close the hole up to indicate it was occupied. the hand dryer was the most environmentally-friendly i have every seen, too. it was a loooooooooong strip of cloth the width of a paper towel. users can wipe their hands then just drag it down to a little bucket below, which means it can be just washed over and over. no trees hurt in the making of that hand dryer.

among the three restaurants we ate in, ka lui is my favorite. not only was it a gastronomic feast, it was also a visual and sensual experience. Read Less

Member Rating 5 out of 5 on July 4, 2008

Ka Lui
369 Rizal Avenue
Puerto Princesa, Philippines
(048) 433-2580

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kamarikutan

Restaurant

gallery Photo - Puerto Princesa, Philippines

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Another of our palawan dinner was spent at kamaricutan, as recommended by friends. on our way to banwa pension house, the tricycle driver who brought us there also mentioned the restaurant to us.it was post-shopping from the baragatan festival stalls so we ended lugging around the giant rattan picnic basket i bought for mom with the rest of our bargain finds inside it.kamaricutan is a bit far from the downtown compared to the other two restos we ate in. this one was located farther than the airport. it was not by the highway, rather one has to enter a wooded compound, probably 50 meters from the main road (am bad with estimations).it seemed that jan and i were the only pe...Read More

Member Rating 4 out of 5 on July 4, 2008

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