One of the downside of having meetings in the afternoon is the heavy snacks. After eating a couple of oven-fresh pan de coco and baked macaroni for an afternoon snack, I was planning to skip dinner and spend a quiet night at the hotel. But after the meeting, J insisted to take me to dinner. I tried to refuse kindly but he's having none of it. This is the usual scenario when I am in Cebu--suppliers feed me until I'm bursting at the seams, literally.
I finally agreed to go to dinner with a condition that we're eating light. We didn't drive too far because around the corner was Insular Square in Mandaue. I guess it's fairly new because some of the spaces were still vacant.
There were a couple of restaurants here but I veered towards Dong Juan---it looked cozy and I like the word play, it makes the name of this restaurant more memorable. "Dong" is what "toto" to an Ilonggo or "totoy" in Tagalog, a term of endearment we often call a younger male sibling, cousin, nephew, a young boy or a young man.
Dong Juan's cozy, casual ambiance creates a fun, lighthearted experience. They don't have an extensive menu---just what I needed for this dinner!
J told me that Dong Juan started as a hole-in-wall in Guadalupe then it became popular because of its affordable prices and range of popular food. We got a garlic-cheese pizza and fish & chips. The fish & chips was nothing to rave about but the pizza was good. I was also impressed with the iced tea glass---it reminds me of a cough syrup bottle and the bottle where my grandmother aged her coconut vinegar.
This was a simple but fun dinner.
Linking to Food Friday and Food Trip Friday
