Seaside Dampa, Macapagal Boulevard
With the proliferation of “Dampa Style” eateries, I find this to be the best in terms of orderliness and cleanliness. You can call it “bourgeois mentality” but thankfully, this place is out of the easy reach by the common masses in terms of distance and location. I am not even sure if there are jeeps that ply a route passing by this place. Some friends tell me there are. Anyway…
I came to know about this place through someone who invited old friends (that’s including me) for some kind of a reunion. And I immediately liked it.
“Seaside” – as it is commonly referred to by those who know about it, is located along the not yet so dense Macapagal Avenue facing the Manila Bay. Of course it faces the water, that’s why it’s called “seaside”. But that is only if you get to settle at those restaurants by the edge of the waters. Nonetheless, you will like many of the restaurants there – my favourites are not even by the water’s edge.
As you would already know, “Dampa Style” eateries have a basic concept, and that is: you stroll along a stall or dizzying rows of wet-market stalls to buy your favourite sea foods then you hop along and dump all those you bought at a restaurant or stall of your choice that will cook everything the way you like them to be! The original place of course is the Dampa in Paranaque (near the airport). Oh yes, that market is along Imelda Avenue as many people know and call it, even if Corazon Aquino’s government renamed it as Ninoy Aquino Avenue (if only to confuse us). Jeep drivers and taxi drivers know the place better as “Imelda” than “Ninoy” so be warned!
Oh yes, many of the restaurants are actually nothing new to all you dampa addicts. Example is “Julie’s” – that you know is/was once of the originals at the Paranaque dampa and even has two restaurants there. But the difference here is the atmosphere and well the ambience.
Like in many of those dampa eateries proliferating in the metropolis, you will find just every kind of seafood that you’d like to have. There are even those that you thought are not available in the Philippines or not at all existing as creatures from the sea! Shrimps, prawns of all sizes and colors are aplenty. Yes, I never thought they come in different colors! Some are yellowish, some are black-and-white, some are the normal brownish gray and yet some are pinkish gray! Crabs. Oh crabs! Yes there are the “alimango”, the “alimasag” and other weird-looking crabs. Yet the vendors and the restaurant owners will tell you how delectable those are.
Don’t think though that only seafood can be found here. Many of the stalls are awash with fruits and vegetables to go with your “fresh catch” from the sea!
And, while waiting for your food to cook, you can browse through the many other stalls that sell music CDs, movie DVDs, PC games and applications – all of the pirated kind of course.
Parking is ample in this place – then again you’ll have a little bit of time looking for a slot during weekend evenings. Oh, while all of them restaurants have piped in music or TV sets to entertain you, some of them even have live bands playing different genres!
Well, after all, aside from this place being by the shores of Manila Bay, what is the difference to other dampa eateries? As I said earlier, its just a bit cleaner, less crowded. Yes too, and a bit more expensive. But that’s a bit more to pay for taking care of your sanity!
Enjoy!
I came to know about this place through someone who invited old friends (that’s including me) for some kind of a reunion. And I immediately liked it.
“Seaside” – as it is commonly referred to by those who know about it, is located along the not yet so dense Macapagal Avenue facing the Manila Bay. Of course it faces the water, that’s why it’s called “seaside”. But that is only if you get to settle at those restaurants by the edge of the waters. Nonetheless, you will like many of the restaurants there – my favourites are not even by the water’s edge.
As you would already know, “Dampa Style” eateries have a basic concept, and that is: you stroll along a stall or dizzying rows of wet-market stalls to buy your favourite sea foods then you hop along and dump all those you bought at a restaurant or stall of your choice that will cook everything the way you like them to be! The original place of course is the Dampa in Paranaque (near the airport). Oh yes, that market is along Imelda Avenue as many people know and call it, even if Corazon Aquino’s government renamed it as Ninoy Aquino Avenue (if only to confuse us). Jeep drivers and taxi drivers know the place better as “Imelda” than “Ninoy” so be warned!
Oh yes, many of the restaurants are actually nothing new to all you dampa addicts. Example is “Julie’s” – that you know is/was once of the originals at the Paranaque dampa and even has two restaurants there. But the difference here is the atmosphere and well the ambience.
Like in many of those dampa eateries proliferating in the metropolis, you will find just every kind of seafood that you’d like to have. There are even those that you thought are not available in the Philippines or not at all existing as creatures from the sea! Shrimps, prawns of all sizes and colors are aplenty. Yes, I never thought they come in different colors! Some are yellowish, some are black-and-white, some are the normal brownish gray and yet some are pinkish gray! Crabs. Oh crabs! Yes there are the “alimango”, the “alimasag” and other weird-looking crabs. Yet the vendors and the restaurant owners will tell you how delectable those are.
Don’t think though that only seafood can be found here. Many of the stalls are awash with fruits and vegetables to go with your “fresh catch” from the sea!
And, while waiting for your food to cook, you can browse through the many other stalls that sell music CDs, movie DVDs, PC games and applications – all of the pirated kind of course.
Parking is ample in this place – then again you’ll have a little bit of time looking for a slot during weekend evenings. Oh, while all of them restaurants have piped in music or TV sets to entertain you, some of them even have live bands playing different genres!
Well, after all, aside from this place being by the shores of Manila Bay, what is the difference to other dampa eateries? As I said earlier, its just a bit cleaner, less crowded. Yes too, and a bit more expensive. But that’s a bit more to pay for taking care of your sanity!
Enjoy!
i was just there this afternoon and noticed that some kind of a mall or a row of airconditioned restaurants have been erected just beside it (to the north). but because of this article, we still opted to go seaside and had fun poking at the live crabs!
ReplyDeleteexcellent place!
I usually go there b/c it's near in my place and its's not just near but the cooking is good.And if we have also a foriegn visitor ,we bring them to that place.The only negative I can comment only is the other waiter or waitresses the're are like bargaining.They dont wait the costumer to decide what's the best for them or what 's thier choice if resto..They force them to go in thier restaurants even the costumer does'nt like Gosh!I hate that way they treat costumer
ReplyDeletei am a regular customer of sis resto but theres a fat lady in the counter whom they called jen i think,,,,shes trying to make an excess sa pagkukuwenta(i dont know for what reason is it for)you have to double check everything talaga....but still im staying as a sis customer.....
ReplyDeleteI'm really sorry for forgetting to acknowledge where I got the paragraphs I used. I tried to highlight it but cant seem to track the link then. I really apologise. I have edited it now. Sorry : (
ReplyDeleteno problem :)
ReplyDeleteWe experienced the same thing. When we asked the crew for our bill, we found out that they have charged us more than they should. We called their attention and noticed how they really intended to do it. So guys, beware.
ReplyDelete