Buffet in Café on the Ridge of Taal Vista Hotel in Tagaytay

Taal Vista Hotel, one of the oldest hotels in Tagaytay, prides its Café on the Ridge as a Filipino-Heritage-Inspired Restaurant that features Filipino cuisine and elegant Filipino Folk Dances as entertainment. Visitors will certainly be re-acquainted with Filipino culture!

Tagaytay is very much famous because of the Taal Volcano and its cool temperature. And this is evidenced by the sheer number of both local and foreign tourists visiting this place. Oh, and not to mention the pristine environment that you will really find breathtaking.

Now, Taal Vista Hotel is also a famous landmark in Tagaytay because it is known to be one of the oldest hotels there (existing for more than a hundred years already and outlasting a great number of earthquakes and other natural disasters, even the devastating ones).

Also, you'll be amazed of the place because of its preserved beauty. And you will appreciate it even more because there are lot of green spaces (e.g. picnic spots, etc.) where you can cuddle up with your loved one or simply hang out with your family. You may also opt to walk around the place and enjoy the grandeur of nature. Check out the photos on the upper right to give you an idea of how the place looks like.

Now, Café on the Ridge is nestled in this amazing place, Taal Vista Hotel. And it is primarily known for its Filipino cuisine, and some foreign cuisine. In this hub/article, I'll be sharing with you some of my personal ratings about the taste & variety of food, service and place.

The Food

Taste: 3 out of 5

Since the restaurant highlights Filipino cuisine, I really had a high expectation. This is why I became disappointed upon tasting the food. No, they weren't that bad. It was just that the taste was very much plain, and so I had this "my-mom-cooks-this-dish-better" feeling. And frankly, there was nothing there that was amazing enough to be memorable. I even got disappointed with the Paella because the taste was rather bland. And it was disheartening because that was something I kept my eyes locked on when I first saw the buffet table.

Well, at least I enjoyed the Bibingka which tasted great but needed to be moister.

Variety: 3 out of 5

The problem with our buffet experience was the lack of variety. This was why our food options were limited. Basically, the photos above show about 60% of what they have there. And this was saddening because my thirst for food exploration was not quenched.

Service: 3 out of 5

The place was running under full capacity during our visit. Hence, the waitstaff was not highly attentive of the customer's needs (e.g. water refills, etc). We even needed to repeat our concern just before they take action. But since the place was really jam-packed, the inattentiveness was slightly forgivable.

Place: 4 out of 5

Despite the things mentioned above, one of the things I really appreciated was the beauty of the place (which includes Taal Vista Hotel itself). The restaurant gives you a warm, cozy and inviting feeling which will remind you of Filipino hospitality. There are also glass windows permitting you to see the breathtaking view of nature from the inside. This further contributes to the amazing comfort the place provides.

The Entertainment

Although the food was not really amazing, our experience was still great because of the highly enjoyable and entertaining folk dances. It reminded me of how rich and flourished our culture was back then.

If not because of this, I would have just had a so-so buffet experience.

Okay, the place was really nice, and there is no way you wouldn't enjoy it. But, as for the food, there is a potential risk that you may not enjoy it as much. Nevertheless, considering all these things, I believe the place is still worth a try!

You may want to check this another place we visited on the same day: Antonio's Breakfast in Tagaytay