Mahogany Market

Behind the Metropolitan Trial Court of Tagaytay City is the Maghogany Market. The specialty in the Mahagony Market, is meet, specifically Batangas Beef.

There are also carinderia's or a series of small canteens, where the specialty is bulalo. Bulalo is a meal consisting of a beef shank.


This trip was a work visit, so I will try to cover this place more next time I am there.

View from Tagaytay Highlands

On the eastern slope of the Tagaytay ridge is the exclusive Tagaytay Highlands community. Tagaytay Highlands is a recreational and residential complex access to which is limited to resident and shareholders. Thanks to Coffee Klatch we have been able to get a few pictures of the view of Taal Lake and Volcano from the Tagaytay Highlands.

You can find more picture of Tagaytay Highlands here.

Good Friday @ Our Lady of Lourdes

Holy Week is an important religious holiday in the Philippines. On Good Friday, the third day of the Holy Week, drove of people attended mass at Our Lady of Lourdes Parish in Tagaytay City.

Our Lady of Lourdes Parish

Fountain on the garden in front
of the church entrance

The Garden of Gethsemane were the
devoted do the Stations of the Cross

Preparing for the procession

The Superior Room at Taal Vista Hotel

We have written about Taal Vista Hotel before. On our last trip there we booked a Superior Room and I took a few photographs of the accommodations. The Superior Room has a tariff of Php8,000 (about $200) per day.



The Superior Room basic rate is good for two adults and two children. The room comes equipped with two beds, one King sized and the other a single bed. At the back of the room as a terrace with a nice view of Taal Lake.


Each room also has access to a private garden.

Cafe on the Ridge dessert

I had this sinfully rich chocolate dessert at Cafe on the Ridge at the Tagaytay Vista Hotel. We ordered brewed coffee and I was in the mood for something sweet and comforting that cold afternoon. It was the hotel's signature dessert, unfortunately, I forgot what it's called. Chocolate lava cake, I think.... We waited for about thirty minutes for my dessert and I was getting a tad impatient so we called the waitress to remind her of my order. She went to check in the kitchen and when she got back, the waitress apologized for the delay and promised to serve it in ten minutes. The chocolate cake, she explained, err... "erupted"... in a manner of speaking in the course of the baking process and they had to start over. Now how's that for a signature dessert of a hotel best known for its beautiful view of the the Taal volcano?

View of the Taal Lake from Taal Vista Hotel

Although I may have forgotten the name, what I cannot forget is the warm luscious chocolate that oozed out of the fresh out of the oven chocolate cake, a perfect contrast to accompanying scoop of vanilla ice cream. This sweet duo was drizzled with raspberry syrup which added a tangy kick. Oh, what a treat it was. Try it, I promise, it is worth going all the way south for.

The Cliffhouse, Tagaytay

I took some pictures during our very first visit to the Cliffhouse in Tagaytay. It's funny how I'd been going to Tagaytay relatively frequently and yet I has able to go to the Cliffhouse almost three years after they started operations. I enjoyed our stay there and I think you will agree with me if you get to visit the place. It was a good thing that the weather was just perfect that day, too- no fog giving us a clear view of the Taal volcano. The cool Tagaytay breeze never fails to impress.

The Cliffhouse, like One Destination, is a food complex along the Tagaytay Ridge that offers an amazing view of the Taal Lake. It has a very nice garden which gives the place a wonderfully relaxing atmosphere.

Any one of the restaurants or cafes found at The Cliffhouse is a perfect place to have a cup of coffee... or two. Unlike One Destination, the Cliffhouse has well landscaped grounds and concrete-paved parking lots. It definitely beats passing through dingy, muddy, Gasul-lined alleys to get from one spot to the viewing deck.

We had lunch at Platito where I ordered Longganisa. It was a very hearty meal, the longganisa was delicious.

The meal, at Php190, came with three eggs, cooked according to your preference, and a cup of very good brewed coffee.

Other restaurants in Cliffhouse include Cafe Breton, Massimo's, Fruits in Ice Cream, Domicillo Homestore and Bar, Buon Giorno and Fire Lake Grill.

I am definitely going back there again to try out the other restaurants. Buon Giorno and Fire Lake Grill bears the mark of approval of The Philippine Tattler magazine. Looks promising.

Sunrise on Tagaytay Ridge

We are starting a new year, and a shot of Taal Lake from Tagaytay Ridge at sunrise seemed like a good way to start the year.

Picture taken from Taal Vista Hotel.