Welcome Back (Isla Sugbo) Seafood City!

Ah, Seafood City! Brings back childhood memories!

In the 90s, whenever my parents had visitors, we'd always go to Seafood City in Lahug. I remember walking into the huge restaurant (because of my size, the place seemed really huge), and my siblings and I would go straight to the aquariums to look at all the creatures while our parents chose some of these (un)lucky creatures to be put on our plates.

The return of this impressive seafood restaurant of the 90s as Isla Sugbo Seafood City is joy! Though the new Seafood City at the ground floor of the Grand Convention Center of Cebu is not as huge as my memory of the old one, Isla Sugbo Seafood City can seat 300 guests.

Isla Sugbo Seafood City
Ground Floor, Grand Convention Center of Cebu
Archbishop Reyes Avenue, Cebu City
(032) 260 8000
Lunch 11AM–2PM daily
Dinner 6PM–10PM daily

Isla Sugbo Seafood City sticks with the same concept as its ancestor: fresh catch laid out for your choosing alongside sea creatures swimming in aquariums not knowing how it'll end up on your plate—it's your choice how it should be cooked. If you have no idea how you want your fish or prawn or crab or whatever you have chosen cooked, ask the servers for the different cooking styles. Prices of dishes depend on the weight of the seafood/meat plus the cooking fee of Php 40 per 100 grams. A one page menu lists just drinks (for available desserts, just ask the servers).

 

Eeny, meeny, miny, moe, which ones should go (to the pot/pan)?

Isla Sugbo Seafood City opened about a month ago and barely three weeks old in their new home, I was invited by a friend to their media launch. Seefood diet, here we go!

Look closely. A part of a land creature snuck onto the table: (grilled) pork belly. The pig was probably found swimming in the sea, the people around the table joked. But, really, Isla Sugbo Seafood City has chicken, pork, and vegetables, too. All (including the seafood, of course) cooked to your liking by their chefs from Hong Kong.

I will not describe each because I have a very poor foodabulary. With my limited adjectives for food, I am picking the most used: delicious! My favorites were the sole fish fried with garlic butter sauce, deep fried blue crab with salt and pepper, and the prawns with lemon butter sauce. Oh, and the desserts were delightful, too!

The buchi is from Tsay Cheng, the Chinese restaurant next door.

It's time to bring my parents to Isla Sugbo Seafood City—just like old times but with reversed roles. All the same, we'll be there for the same reason the family has frequented the old Seafood City: the excellent seafood!