Best Places to Eat in Iloilo for Your Next Barkada Get-Together

Address: Villa Beach, Barangay Sto. Niño Sur, Arevalo, Iloilo City

Operating hours: Monday to Friday & Sunday, 9:00 AM to 9:00 PM

Recommended budget for five: PhP1,500

Being in the business for more than three decades already, Breakthrough is already a word of mouth restaurant. It is a local favorite offering Filipino cuisine at Villa Beach in the Arevalo District. You and your friends can indulge in fresh seafood and other classic Filipino dishes either for breakfast, lunch, or dinner. You can surely ensure that your seafood is fresh since their live aquarium is just at the entrance of the restaurant.

How to get there: From City Proper, take a Villa-Arevalo jeepney and get off at Breakthrough.

Address: Barangay Sto. Niño Sur, Arevalo, Iloilo City

Operating hours: Monday to Sunday, 7:00 AM to 9:30 PM

Recommended budget for five: PhP1,500

Tatoy's Manokan and Seafood Restaurant is another not-to-be-missed restaurant in the Arevalo district. The restaurant is best known for its native lechon manok (roasted chicken) sold for PhP380. Apart from chicken, you can also try their lechon baboy (roasted pig) for PhP660 per kilo, which is already suitable for a group of four to five. If your group prefers fresh seafood, they also have boneless bangus (milkfish) (PhP240 and up), and steamed oysters which are just PhP100 per plate.

Your barkada can also eat inside a nipa hut (native cottage) or in the restaurant's food halls to have the complete Tatoy’s experience. They likewise have spacious areas to cater to even a whole class or bigger groups. If you want a more fun barkada bonding, Tatoy’s now has an infinity edge swimming pool open for the public.

How to get there: From City Proper, take a Villa-Arevalo jeepney and get off at Tatoy’s.

Address: Atria Park District, Donato Pison Avenue, Barangay San Rafael, Mandurriao, Iloilo City

Operating hours: Monday to Sunday, 10:00 AM to 10:00 PM

Recommended budget for five: PhP1,500

Ang Kamalig Restaurant offers recipes from the heirloom of returning Iloilo City Mayor Jerry Treñas’ family who owns the place. The restaurant was started by the family in the late 1980s but went on hiatus for a few years. Recently, the restaurant was reopened by the family to share their very own take of classic Ilonggo recipes. Their food servings are meant for sharing: that is why most customers of the place are families and barkadas spending worthwhile bonding moments.

Among the favorites in the restaurant are their callos (beef strife stew) (PhP295), chicken inasal na lumpia (grilled chicken spring roll) (PhP115), and their special bulalo (beef soup made of shanks and marrow bone) (PhP495). Their sinigang na baboy sa mangga (pork sour soup with green mango) (PhP400) is also a must-try. Aside from their Atria branch, Ang Kamalig also has a branch at Robinson’s Jaro.

How to get there: From City Proper, take SM City Proper jeepney and get off at San Rafael intersection and walk a few meters to Atria. You can also take a taxi to go directly to Atria.

Address: Riverside Boardwalk, Mandurriao District, Iloilo City

Operating hours: Monday, 10:00 AM to 1:00 PM; 5:00 PM to 9:00 PM

Recommended budget for five: PhP1,500

With its name coming from the Ilonggo word for “fish pen”, Punot is a haven for seafood lovers. The restaurant offers flavorful seafood dishes with a twist such as their pomelo balingon (anchovies), a signature salad with lettuce, pomelo, cashew nuts, anchovies, and lemon vinaigrette (PhP205). Another signature dish they have is their Seafood ala Punot, a combination of grilled tangigue, squid, and shrimp with citrus butter (PhP325). If you prefer something light, they also serve another Ilonggo soup dish, pancit molo made with homemade molo (Ilonggo version of dumplings) balls topped with onion leaves (PhP160).

How to get there: From City Proper, take an SM City Proper jeepney and get off near Esplanade Iloilo then walk towards Boardwalk Iloilo to Punot.

For more scrumptious food places, visit Yoorekka!

Address: 113 Seminario Street, Jaro, Iloilo City

Operating hours: Monday to Sunday, 8:00 AM to 12:00 MN

Recommended budget for five: PhP2,000

If you like beers, then a German restaurant could help quench that thirst. There’s one in Iloilo that has been serving German beers and cuisine since 1997! Bavaria German Restaurant is just a small restaurant located in a less crowded area of Jaro district but the place is still frequented by many. You can try their German beers for PhP140 to PhP160 for a 500-milliliters or one-liter glass.

Aside from beers, they also have a long list of German specialties such as bouletten (ground beef spiced with onions, garlic, and German mustard served with mashed potato). They also serve pasta and pizzas.

How to get there: From City Proper, take a Jaro Liko-NFA jeepney and get off at Bavaria. You can also take a Jaro-CPU jeepney then get off before Jaro Plaza. After that, walk across an alley leading to Bavaria.

Spending some time with your barkada over good food and fun-filled conversations can be a good break from the hustle and bustle of the city.