By Maria Jose
Ria-Lity Bites

NOWADAYS, Davao City is with restaurants offering various dishes and cuisines. But before all those crowded the city, there were a few which filled our childhood memories with gustatory delight.

Some of these are still around, and when we long for those simple, homey tastes that bring us that homey feeling, we (meaning me and my equally food-loving cousins) always go back to these restaurants.

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As a kid, we always had Sunday lunches after mass. The one we loved most, among all others, was Harana Restaurant. I bet most of us have childhood memories associated with this restaurant.

Aside from the good old Filipino dishes they serve, what we love most is the vast, vast, vast playground we can run around and play in. The vastness of it would put to shame those teensy-weensy play areas that fastfoods now have. Harana still serves those yummy Filipino dishes.

Their playground might look different now, but I'm sure many kids still look forward to going there for a Sunday lunch.

Also famous for their Filipino dishes, most of all their grilled seafoods, is Luz Kinilaw. It is actually almost a tourist attraction. They serve some of the best Grilled Tuna Belly, Panga, Buntot, and Bagaybay.

Then there are the Chinese restaurants which have continued to thrive until today: Shanghai, Famous, and Asia. All three serve fabulous fried rice, pancit canton, and seafood dishes. As a kid, my favorite dish whenever we went to one of these restaurants was the Sweet n Sour Pork. Now, I look for their crab dishes. Delicious!

Before Dabawenyos knew Italian, Spanish, Thai, or French cuisine, they already knew Japanese. All thanks to Tsuru, one of the most enduring high-end restaurants in the city.

Up to this day, nobody can beat their Ebi Tempura, their fresh Sashimi (salmon is my favorite), and their Beef Misono.

As a treat, Tsuru serves up lunch and dinner buffets every 15th and 30th of the month, so you can enjoy their crunchy tempura, an assortment of sushi and sashimi, and many other delectable Japanese dishes.

For delicious comfort food, there's no place to go but Dencia's Restaurant. Up to this day, nothing can really beat the combination of their congee and their tokwa't baboy on rainy days, when you're feeling a bit sick, or simply when you arrive from an early flight. The taste and quality simply haven't changed since I was young.

Before those fastfood restaurants came to town, Davao City already had Sunburst Chicken Restaurant. They still serve the same tasty and juicy fried chicken with a cup of rice, and their famous coleslaw. But the thing me and my cousins love most at Sunburst is their deliciously to die for Fried Chicken Skin.

We know it's meant to be an appetizer but we love every bit of its crunchy goodness that we eat it as a viand with rice.

Up until now, we begin some of our days and end most of our late nights with a serving of tapsilog or tosilog from Taps.

Taps used to be just one stall, but nowadays, they're everywhere, serving up those famous silogs and more for every Dabawenyo who wants their food fast and affordable.

If it's authentic Pinoy snack items you want, there's no place else to go but Jaltan. Jaltan serves every Pinoy rice cake you can think of -- puto, kuchinta, bibingka, sapin-sapin, suman, palitaw, and more. All at affordable prices.

They now even have stalls at the mall so you can enjoy those Pinoy flavors while you shop, or when you get home from shopping.

On hot and sunny days, a trip to Merco is sure to satisfy your every craving. Until now, we go to Merco for some good old banana split or a very creamy milkshake. My favorite is the Thick Mocha Milkshake. And if we have some more space in our tummy, we try have a slice (or two) of their famous pizza. Ham, cheese, pickles? simple, yet very enjoyable.

Some days, we simply just want to go out and eat. And we usually do that at Cecil's. On most days, we'd order some pancit lug-lug and fried lumpia.

Some days we'd deviate and order some Pancit Molo or Chicken Mami. But there's never a visit to Cecil's that didn't end with their chiffon mocha cake. The soft and airy mocha chiffon is complement well by the sweet and creamy butter cream icing. Mmmm?

And for more homemade pastries, we order some apple pie, potato rolls, or mango squares from Mam Bebs Bakeshop (formerly La Suerte Bakeshop). Up to this day, their potato rolls best even the best ensaymada. And their tarty apple pie is one that many crave for during Christmas time (or on any other day).

While we enjoy many of the restaurants, cuisines, and dishes available to us here in our beloved Davao City, there are just some days' moments when we long for those delicious flavors which bring to us not only full stomachs, but also memories of our childhood.

For more information on the restaurants mentioned, please visit MyDavaoCity.com.