The uniquely designed arch that welcomes motorists to Tanay, Rizal (Photo from Tanay Tourism Office)
Google "Tanay food" and the search engine will show the names of restaurants and their locations and the variety of food that these dining establishments offer.
Restaurants and food hubs are luring food lovers to Tanay, Rizal to try the variety of dishes, from snacks and street food to gourmet-prepared food and internationally-inspired delicacies.
From the town proper to the upland villages, several areas in Tanay, Rizal are becoming popular sites for restaurants, coffee shops and food kiosks.
In the upland Barangay Cuyambay, the Marikina-Rizal, Laguna and Quezon (Marilaque) Highway boast of several restaurants and coffee shops that become too crowded during weekends and especially on long weekends.
Information gathered from the office of Mayor Rafael “Lito” Tanjuatco revealed that some of the restaurants in the upland barangays sprouted after the pandemic as tourists, including the video bloggers, contributed a lot in spreading the news about these places during the easing of the quarantine restrictions.
Motorists sometimes had to abandon their plan to dine at their chosen restaurant due to the difficulty in finding a parking space.
Similar to the upland areas, restaurants along the highway in the lowland villages, such as Barangay Plaza Aldea, also get crowded during lunchtime due to the volume of dine-in customers.
The office of the mayor said there are tourists who opt to dine in the restaurants that have a good view of the countryside or the mountains or those dining establishments with an overlooking spot of the lowland areas.
Customers even extend their stay in the restaurant not only to appreciate the food but also to feel the ambiance that the establishments offers.
One such place is Wyndell’s Town, located on the road side of the highway at the town proper, which offers a variety of local and international dishes.
Jeff Pino, Tanay's municipal administrator said that the dishes that every restaurant in the town offers differ, thus giving food lovers a wide range of options.
At Wyndell’s Town, there is “Kansi Bulalo,” an Ilonggo soup dish with bone marrow which is a combination of the popular Sinigang and Nilagang Bulalo.
Wyndell's version of the Iloilo dish "Kansi Bulalo" (photo from Wyndell's Al Fresco's Facebook page)
Wyndell Roy Hervias said the restaurant also boasts of its variation of pizza pies such as Basil Honey Pepperoni, Fruiti Di Mare, Hawaiian and Barbeque Chicken, all freshly-baked from the oven.
Along Sampaloc Road in Tanay, Casa de Robles, owned by couple Don and Juliet Robles, started offering lunch and dinner meals in addition to its breakfast meals for guests staying at the garden resort.
Guests at the resort may opt to choose from a wide range of meals from ala carte to set meals or group meals which are offered at affordable prices especially those on a budget.
Juliet Robles said among the meals are the Pinoy's popular dishes of "Silog" (sinangag and itlog), Chinese-inspired viands and other dishes, the ingredients of which are sourced fresh from the town's market.
The local government of Tanay said local and foreign tourists are among the town’s frequent visitors.