When you’ve been to a place numerous times, our 6th visit to date, you’d like to think that you already know the place inside out— the restaurants, the hotels, the activities, and the beaches. But this is not always the case whenever we visit Boracay Island. Especially on this recent trip.
With our friends Pepe of @pepesamson, Ramil and Edgar of @pinasmuna, and Elei of @iameleimath, we trooped to Boracay Island at the start of summer to experience some of the best the island has to offer, thereby dubbing the trip #BestOfTheCoastPH. Since we know that we will only be in Boracay just for the weekend, our official airline partner, Cebu Pacific, flew us from Manila to Caticlan for faster travel. And for a more efficient travel, we used the Cebu Pacific Air app so we can book flights and do online check-ins from our smartphones. After an hour on the plane and a 5-minute speed boat ride, we’re already on the island.
The moment we arrived, we instantly felt the positive energy of the island. Seeing the blue-green waters with the summer sun casting a silver sheen on the soft waves was enough to put a huge grateful smile on our faces.
Now we’re ready to show you some of the 7 best places we went to for 2 wonderful days in Boracay Island.
1. COAST
Our home for the weekend. Ranked No. 1 in Trip Advisor, Coast, is currently the best hotel in Boracay! From the beachfront view, to the building design, to the amenities, to the accommodations, and to the restaurant, Coast definitely lives up to its rank. We were housed on the 2nd floor which gave us a good view of the swimming pool. Our room was lovely– with its tropical paradise decor and white clean sheets. Not only did we get welcome drinks when we entered the hotel lobby, we also got a welcome cheese and fruit plate with a bottle of red when we entered our room.
Admittedly, it was difficult to get out of bed the next day. It’s that choice to either stay in to enjoy the fluffy pillows, firm bed, and cold comfortable room or stay out to enjoy the fine sand, clear waters, and hot summer sunshine. Well, the struggle only lasted for a couple of minutes because after that, we found ourselves skipping and hopping towards the beach.
The service in Coast was impeccable. Everyone was friendly, accommodating, knowledgeable, and attentive while constantly wearing smiles on their faces. The buffet breakfast that came with the stay was delicious. Don’t worry, we’ll tell you more about our Coast experience on a separate story soon.
2. LOS INDIOS BRAVOS
Not wasting time, we headed over to Los Indios Bravos half an hour after dropping our bags off in Coast. Situated in Bulabog, the restaurant is just walking distance from the main highway. With its red leather couches and dark wooden benches, the place definitely has that Spanish pub feel that spells good beer, good food, and good people. Speaking of good beer, we love the fact that Los Indios Bravos serve local craft beers such as Joe’s Brew, Crazy Carabao, and Nipa Brew to name a few. Of course, we didn’t pass up the opportunity to try some beers to go with the dishes the restaurant prepared for us. After all, every hour is happy hour in Boracay. Well, that’s what we go by when on the island.
The dish that welcomed us as soon as we reached our table was the Cobb Salad. When you have a salad that has Cajun grilled chicken, smoked salmon, bacon, and blue cheese, you know it’s going to be one helluva salad! And it definitely was.
Their creamy and savory Chorizo and Mushroom Risotto was like a well-seasoned dream. Amongst the dishes we had the pleasure of enjoying, their Veal Cheeks, and Seafood Platter were one of the reasons why this life is worth living. Our dining experience in Los Indios Bravos deserves a longer airtime so we’ve decided to share it with you soon on a separate article. For the meantime, please take our word when we say that Los Indio Bravos’s Seafood Platter is the best in Boracay.
3. SOLANA AT SHANGRI-LA
In our opinion, Boracay has one of the best sunsets in the Philippines. Every sunset is different— some dramatic, some simple, but always perfect. It’s no wonder we found ourselves in Shangri-La’s Boracay’s Solana happily lounging in their private beachside cabana sipping their fabulous cocktails (our personal favorite was their Lemon Basil Cocktail) while watching the sun set on the horizon.
There is something about sunsets that captivate us. Maybe it’s the thought that we survived another day and that tomorrow is a new day for another fresh start, or maybe it’s the embrace of that peaceful warm last rays of the sun while seeing the light paint the sky with incredible hues. Whatever the reason, the sunset lovers in us were greatly satisfied.
4. CHA CHA’S BEACH CAFE
After savoring the breathtaking sunset, we went back to Coast to have dinner at their restaurant called Cha Cha’s Beach Cafe. Since it was a breezy summer night, we opted to dine at the beach. Coast is a hotel concept of Raintree which makes Cha Cha’s Beach Cafe another one of Raintree’s restaurants. We love their restaurants—Stella, Rocket Room, Kabila, and Chelsea Kitchen amongst the many concepts they have. That’s why when we learned about Coast and Cha Cha’s being part of Raintree, we had full confidence that this trip was going to be awesome.
We started the night with some cocktails and some Cold Spicy Salmon and Tuna Poke Bowl. We’re suckers for good poke bowls and this didn’t disappoint. The freshness of both salmon and tuna were evident which made us thoroughly enjoy the dish. We got excited when we saw that our favorite Winner Winner Fried Chicken, which was our staple in Raintree’s Providore, was on the menu. Of course, we had to get it.
As expected, our dinner was delicious but the 2 standout dishes we had were Cha Cha’s Mixed Plate Grill and Cold Seafood Platter. Nothing beats savoring the taste of the tropical island life with grilled meat and fresh seafood.
5. DOS MESTIZOS
Our first night in Boracay ended on a good note so we brought the good vibes over to Dos Mestizos the following day. One of the oldest restaurants on the island, Dos Mestizos is popular for bringing a little bit of Spain to Boracay.
As soon as we entered the establishment, happy hour instantly started. When your welcome drink is a glass of Sangria, you know you’re going to have an amazing lunch.
Tapas of all shapes and colors started arriving— one after the other, flooding our dinner table. The sights and aroma of Salpicao de Vaca, Jamon Serrano, Gambas Al Ajillo, Queso Manchego, Croquettas de Jamon, Bacalao ala Vizcaina, Tortilla de Patatas, Cochinillo, and Paella Negra were intoxicatingly delicious, enough for us to cheerfully shout “Happy Fiesta!”.
From the feast we ate, their Paella Negra was our top pick.
6. NAMI RESORT
It’s another sunset session on the island and what better location but in Diniwid Beach where Nami Resort is. The name Nami came from the term “namit” which means delicious in the Ilonggo dialect (Hiligaynon). And our experience was delicious indeed— from the view of the ocean, to the view of the sunset, to the food in the restaurant. One of our fondest memories of Nami was riding the semi-open bamboo lift to the restaurant. It gave us a great view of the beach while going up about 7 storeys high from the ocean deck.
After watching the beautiful sunset, it was time to enjoy the beautiful food. By the way, make sure to get the table by the window to fully savor the beach view.
We started our early dinner with a few appetizers— Caprese Salad, Mesclun and Watermelon Salad, and Nami’s bestseller, Mushroom Tarts. We didn’t have any shortages of entrée— Honey Bourbon Chicken, Pan-Seared Salmon, Breaded Dijon Porkchop, Mixed Seafood Platter. Call us biased but our favorite amongst the list was their Pan-Seared Salmon. Our love of salmon prevailed on this dinner.
The sunset that day was spectacular. More spectacular when taken from way up. We’re so happy that Elei brought his drone with him. It gave us a different perspective of the beach and the sunset. Mother Earth is truly amazing.
7. STEAM PUNK
Have you ever had a pre-dinner before the real dinner? It may sound confusing but that’s exactly what we had on our last night in Boracay. Enter Steam Punk, a local burger joint in the middle of D’Mall. We’re glad to have tried their sandwiches because everything we had was delicious! We stuffed our faces with their Double BLT (bacon, lettuce, tomato) which compromised of layers and layers of apple-wood smoked bacon and English loin bacon in between sugar-glazed donuts. It was the perfect combination of salty and sweet. Had it not been for the other sandwiches we got, we would’ve finished their BLT. We also had their Shrimp Roll which was totally filling.
Steam Punk also serves Boracay’s famous burger, the Chori Burger. This garlic barbeque glazed chorizo topped with whipped cream cheese and crispy fried onions is an island favorite. As sinful as it is, we paired the Chori Burger with a jumbo serving of their Ultimate Chocolate Fudge Milkshake and it was amazing! If you want to seriously stuff your face with meaty goodness, we suggest you get Steam Punk’s Triple X— half kilo Brazilian beef topped with lettuce, tomato, and onions. Pair it with their Caramel Cheesecake Milkshake and we promise it will make your day.
By the end of 2 days, we were happy, full, and already planning a trip back— a longer trip to be exact. This trip got us to know Boracay even more and made us realize that this island is truly breathtaking in different unique ways.
We’re so lucky to have explored the best places Boracay has to offer with the best people!
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Check out Coast on Instagram and on Facebook. Check out their Website too.
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Check out Los Indios Bravos on Instagram and on Facebook. Check out their Website too.
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Check out Shangri-La’s Boracay Resort and Spa on Instagram and on Facebook. Check out their Website too.
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Check out Cha Cha’s Beach Cafe on Instagram and on Facebook.
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Check out Dos Mestizos on Instagram and on Facebook. Check out their Website too.
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Check out Nami Resort and Spa on Instagram and on Facebook. Check out their Website too.
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Check out Steam Punk on Instagram and on Facebook. Check out their Website too.
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