The Food at Isla Hayahay

We eagerly wait with anticipation the mealtimes at Isla Hayahay as we didn't know what would be placed before us. Since we paid for a 4days/3nights package which already included our meals, there was no point in ordering. And most of the time, the food was just too much for us to finish off anyway. Just to give you an idea, here were our meals during our stay with them:

Calamari, battered fish and chicken with sinigang na hipon (shrimp).

Fried chicken with sweet and spicy sauce.

These were just for lunch. Dinners were the best! Find out more after the jump!

Dinners started off with a bowl of soup (that's pumpkin soup on the left) with garlic buttered bread.

I did not expect these considering that pumpkin soup is not a Filipino dish and serving bread for dinner (just before the mains) is not customary in a Filipino household at all. I would expect this if I were eating in any of the european restaurants in Makati as they would serve bread as sort of antipasti/appetizer but not somewhere in remote Bohol (Calape is not a city). So this was a pleasant surprise. Nothing commercial, all home-made, or at least it tasted home-made to me. I'm not sure about the bread though if Isla Hayahay baked these themselves but considering the remoteness, I'd think that they did. :)

These shrimps tasted oh-so-sweet, oh-so-fresh! Cooked with butter and garlic, I couldn't resist eating with my hands and licking my fingers afterwards.

This was off for me as I could taste the orange soda used in this dish.

Great pork steak! It was cooked well, not stringy or hard at all. The goodness of lutong bahay.

Favorite among the lot. Crabs with sauteed veggies. Yes, I was the one who tried to finish off this dish!

Not included above would be the baked ribs. The meat was cooked through, soft, and easy to chew. Husband loved it but I thought it lacked sauce.

During breakfast and lunch, we'd have fruits for dessert. But come dinner, this was what we had:

Cake a la mode and Filipinized banana crepe!

I say Filipinized because the crepe had caramelized banana as filling. And the combination actually worked. Did not expect having a crepe that soft and of that consistency in Calape, Bohol. Pleasant surprise. It could rival the crepes being commercially sold here in Metro Manila, and I would dare say, even the Belgian crepes being sold at the Salcedo Saturday market!

The downer to the whole experience would be breakfast. It was the same day, everyday! I wondered if they had anything else in the kitchen? But since we were on a package and it seemed that they had a set of menu, I didn't bother to ask. Though western breakfast was offered (on their menu). And I wouldn't have minded having a continental breakfast or even just pancakes for a change!

But thanks to the staff for preparing H's "40th" cake! He was indeed surprised!

My body thanked me that for 4 days, I abstained from any of the preservative laden food I usually subject it to. Thank your Isla Hayahay for the homecooked meals! We truly appreciated it!