Hacienda Isabella : A Prominent Getaway that Won't Fail to Give You the Best

Wazzup Pilipinas!

Enter Hacienda Isabella, a much-lauded location for weddings, photo-shoots and vacations, tucked away in Indang Cavite off Tagaytay City. It’s a huge land owned by Kuh Ledesma with villas maintained by about 30 housekeepers and staff who are glad to serve guests the Filipino way, unhurried yet sincere.

Last weekend, with Wazzup Pilipinas bloggers, we had the chance to experience dining and staying in at Hacienda Isabella. Click here for the review of our close encounter in the hacienda.

This blog post is another part of the review which specifically talks about food.

 

Review of Hacienda Isabella's Food Fare

Ambiance: ★★★★★

The first floor of main house of the hacienda houses the kitchen and dining areas where about three groups of guests can have meals from breakfast and lunch to dinner.

The dining tables are made of wood that look like they can stand eons because of the materials used. The designs of the interior was magnificent, full of displays of collected items, framed excerpts of inspiring thoughts and nice architecture all throughout in consistent theme.

The color that's most evident here is brown, which invokes warmth stimulating the appetite. Therefore I sense that it's a good color chosen for the dining place. This neutral tone also appeals to be simple, friendly and comforting. I can quickly associate it with all ethnic and organic items that are nurturing and at the same time comforting.

With everything inside making us exclaim "wow" deeply in our heads, having meals in Hacienda Isabella is truly a grand experience.

More pictures at the Wazzup Pilipinas Facebook page.

Service: ★★★★★

As shared in the blog post of Roch would indicate that service here is top of the line. All members of the staff are gracious and they make you feel honored. Special mention to Victor and Marq. Victor toured us around the Hacienda Isabella and made sure we had everything we need while Marq was the one who fetch us from our meetup point in Manila. Victor took care of us from start to end of our stay at Hacienda Isabella, and even told amazing stories. The Hacienda Isabella was even made more interesting thanks to his stories.

Food: ★★★★★

We came in late afternoon last Saturday, and we had dinner after touring around the villas. We didn't know about the food available on the menu but only trusted the keepers to serve us with their best-selling food viands.

For starter, we had the pumpkin soup which tasted good but quite watery for me. I prefer pumpkin soups which are creamier and thicker in texture. Nonetheless, their version was okay as it was light and satisfactory to fill our hungry stomachs. 

Another starter was the fresh green salad which comprised of different ingredients for our own choices: corn kernels, raisins, a bowl heaped with lettuces, walnuts, Parmesan cheese, chunks of apples, jackfruit and mangoes. Two types of salad dressings were given: vinaigrette and Caesar. These two appetizers seemed to already make some of us feel full.

Next, a bowl of pasta landed our table with two choices of tomato-based sauces: bacon and tinapa (fish). The taste of the tinapa for spaghetti was unique and almost every one of us liked it better than the former. My friends know that I'm no spaghetti lover but this no-ordinary sauce was right off the bat different from anything I've tasted before. The fish used was fresh as it didn't have a spoiled smell at all. When put together with the pasta, sprinkles of Parmesan cheese helped to improve the flavor. 

 

Another main dish was the roasted or grilled chicken. They served us three whole chicken for all 12 of us so that makes a quarter piece for each one of us. The chicken was delightful in taste both in and out. They must have seasoned it at a very well number of days. I loved the flavor which seems to be better than the commercial grilled chicken available in Manila. We were definitely full but still must find room for the dessert later.

For the dessert, we had sweet potato fries (kamote fries), completely and evenly coated with sugar yet with decent sweetness. they were nice and crispy, not puffy. These delights became our companion while talking by the pool before going to sleep.

In the next morning, we had Filipino-stle breakfast at 8:30AM after "warm-up exercises." Our food consisted of fried rice (with bits of ham and egg), pork tocino, fried milkfish (bangus), omelet with sliced onions, red bell peppers, and ham. Suman and latik (sticky rice with sweetened coconut jam) ended our meal with a bang. Oh, I could have eaten more if it wasn't too heavy!

 

 

 

After three hours, lunch was served with portions to match. Feast your eyes on mushroom soup, chicken/pork adobo, chop seuy, fried cream dory with lemon sauce, rice with pandan leaves, and buko salad with fresh coconut strips, nata de coco, raisins and walnuts. My favorite would be the dory! It was just heavenly, perfectly fried and moist. The batter didn't lose its crunch quickly and the fish was soft on the inside and the sweetened taste by the lemon advanced the dish to the next level of goodness.

 

Price for Value: ★★★★☆

If you have a few extra money lining your wallet and time to burn, there's only one place to be right now: Hacienda Isabella for any meal of the day. I don't exactly have the prices of their food because they didn't have an available menu for customers at that time. Diners are to set an appointment to book an arrangement of the meal, so you would know the rates when you contact them through the numbers below.

We have just given the info that a day-tour plus one meal cost PHp 1,500 per person so my rating for this section is based on that.

Just expect that a prominent location like Hacienda Isabella won't serve low-quality dishes and they won't fail to give you the best. As long as you can afford to pay for a 2013 price tag, everything would be neat! :D

Hacienda Isabella

8 Carasuchi Street Brgy. Carasuchi, Indang Cavite

Contact Numbers: (02) 625-2453, (02) 531-0688, +63917 813-9065, +63920 953-9488

This post was written by Rochkirstin Santos (http://rochkirstin.com/), an IT person by profession; foodie by nature; wushu athlete by training; dancer by heart; writer by passion; hasn't met a piece of cake she didn't like. :)