Hula-Hula Seafood and Barbecue House

I suppose that even if they want to, most couples cannot enjoy lunchtime with their spouses because their significant others would usually be away at work at midday. I suppose I lucked out then, since as I work for/with my husband, we have daily lunch dates. :)

We usually eat at the office when we have baon I packed from home. Sometimes we buy from my suki point-point (a.k.a. turo-turo/carinderia). Often, when we have to head out for business meetings, we have little adventures trying out restaurants we've never been to before.


The photo above was taken on one of those lunch dates, at the Hula-Hula Seafood and Barbecue House at Shangri-La Plaza in Mandaluyong. The restaurant serves fusion cuisine (Hawaiian-Filipino-Japanese-etc) and in the menu are items like Island Paella in Bamboo, Bangus Sisig, Spicy Seafood Udon... you get the drift. :)

That above is their Davao Gulf Luau Feast. It's actually a feast for 3-4 persons (don't worry, we didn't finish all of the food!), and is made up of Grilled Mussels, Tuna Belly, Squid and Liempo. It's accompanied by Fish Kinilaw, Mango Salad and Cucumber Salad, and two heaping (more like mountains) of two kinds of rice: Pineapple Fried Rice (the light yellow-colored mound) and Baby Shrimp Fried Rice. The feast is served on a giant bamboo tray (the size of a four-seater table) lined with banana leaves, so you can actually eat straight from the tray and feel like you're dining in some island and not in a busy mall. :)

And how much was that? P695.00 plus the cost of drinks (I had a guyabano shake for P95.00) and VAT. I suppose for a party of 3 or 4 the cost would be about P300 per person, same amount you'd shell out for a meal at Dencio's or Gerry's, or a plate of pasta at Italianni's.

And how was the food? Good. I think it's comparable to Dencio's and Gerry's, only the presentation is a novelty and the ambiance is far less noisy and far more conducive to an enjoyable lunch. (I don't know about dinnertime or Friday nights though.)

Hula-Hula has another branch at Westgate Alabang, which we've been to about 3 times already. Apart from being closer to us, we like this outlet better because it is bigger and more spacious, and the airconditioning is better than the one at Shangri-La Plaza. The last time we were there we also ordered the Crab Maritess (proclaimed as their bestseller, garlicky and cholesterolic). While dining we were treated to a modernized hawaiian dance number by the food attendants. :)