When in doubt or can't decide what to eat always go back to your roots. Basically what happened to us when we made a stopover at Solenad Nuvali last weekend. I was with a large group and it took us a few good minutes to decide where and what to eat. The decision to dine in a restaurant offering Filipino comfort food became an inevitable choice.
We end up at Loumar's, a local establishment founded in 1997 serving southern Tagalog fare. Loumar's Cafe and Restaurant serves Filipino food and the best Buko pies and fruit flavored tarts from Tagaytay. As for the restaurant's ambiance, I couldn't put my finger on what ambiance they want to achieve. There were booth tables and long tables with faux vines hanging on the ceilings, a mix of quirky, vintage and native decor accented the restaurant. But you can definitely conclude that it is a place for families and groups.
Since we were a group of 17 people we ordered their group meals: Sets 7 and 8 which each set can fill the tummies of around 5-6. The set 7 included: Crispy Pata, Sinigang na Liempo, Butterfly Tilapia, Chopsuey, Pancit Guisado, Rice and unlimited Iced Tea; while the Set 8 composed of Bulalo ng Tagaytay, Pork Sisig, Inihaw na Pusit, Mix Seafood, Inihaw na Liempo, Pancit Guisado, Rice and unlimited Iced Tea.
Here are what we ordered and ate:
Bulalo ng Tagaytay - bulalo is a light colored soup that is made by cooking beef shanks and marrow bones until the collagen and fat has melted into the clear broth. Bulalo is native to the Southern Luzon region of the Philippines. Loumar's version included corn and that definitely added a sweet tasting flavor to the broth. Theirs was really tasty and flavorful. I really liked it and the beef meat was very tender and falling off the bones.
Crispy Pata - this is deep fried pig trotters or knuckles served with a soy-vinegar dip. It can be served as party fare or an everyday dish. Loumar's was good. The outside layers of the meat and the skin were really crispy yet the inner layers were tender. The soy vinegar dip was ok.
Sinigang na Liempo - is a Filipino soup or stew characterized by its sour and savoury taste most often associated with tamarind. The meat used here is pork belly. I love that the soup was super tangy and full of veggies. The meat and the pork fat were soft and tender, my kind of sinigang I must say.
Butterfly Tilapia - This is basically just deep fried tilapia only that the technique in preparing Tilapia is different as the fish was cut so the meat is spread in a butterfly cut for easy eating. This was paired with sweet and sour dip. The presentation was really good and appetizing.
Chopsuey - is a stir-fried dish made-up of meat and/or and seafood cooked with different kinds of vegetable. Loumar's version had more veggies than meat and the sauce was thick. It was good and flavorsome.
Pancit Guisado - this is vermicelli rice noodle stir-fried with a hodgepodge of bite-sized meat and vegetables. The color of the noodles was kind of pale but don't be deceived as this was good and really tasty and had a good garlicky flavor.
Pork Sisig - Sisig is a Filipino dish made from parts of pig’s cheek, ear and snout and liver, usually seasoned with calamansi and chili peppers. Loumar's was crispy and creamy and had that mayo taste we all actually liked it. It wasn't that spicy too so I was able to enjoy it.
Mix Seafood - another stir-fried dish composed of different kinds of seafood and then put on a hot plate for that sizzling effects. The amount of seafood though is very few in my opinion. It tasted good though.
I was not able to take photos of the Inihaw na Pusit and the Inihaw na Liempo but both are good too. The waiting time took around 15 minutes to cook all those food but that was reasonable for the amount of dishes that we ordered. Each dish could feed 2-3 pax so I think the sets with its price points were fair.
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