Whipping up Filipino dishes is a daily affair for the chefs at Cagayan's.

Cagayan's Cafe
G107-108 Centrepoint
Bandar Utama
Petaling Jaya
Tel: 03-77241022
Business Hrs: Daily, 11.30am-10pm.

Non-Halal

Despite the Philippines' proximity to Malaysia and the high number of Filipinos working here, Filipino restaurants are a rare find in the Klang Valley.

For Sarawak-born Victor Lim, this was an opportunity to introduce variety into the Malaysian food and beverage scene.

In April, Lim opened Cagayan's Cafe in Centrepoint Bandar Utama.

"Centrepoint has a variety of good restaurants, and Cagayan's offers an alternative to what is already there," said Lim.

Lim also owns Terikyaki Boy, a Japanese restaurant in Kuching.

"My cooks in Teriyaki Boy are mostly Filipino, and that spurred us to open a Filipino restaurant here."

The outlet however, does not serve only Filipino food.

"About 50% of our menu comprises Filipino cuisine.

"We also include Japanese don buri and Western dishes to cater to a wider group of diners as we realised there might be some who are sceptical about trying Filipino food."

Lim highly recommends the Grilled Whole Red Tilapia, or Milkfish stuffed with onions, chillies and tomatoes.

The red tilapia is flown in from Sarawak and is an alternative to the seasonal Milkfish.

The onions, chillies and tomatoes are used for stuffing as well as sauce.

Cagayan's Cafe is located in a cosy corner at Centrepoint, Bandar Utama.

"The fish is first stuffed with the ingredients and then grilled.

"The balance of the ingredients are then pan-fried and poured over the grilled fish once it is ready."

Lim said pouring the ingredients over the fish made the fish juicier.

He said the dish was commonly found in the coastal areas of the Philippines.

Besides these delectable dishes, Cagayan's is also known for its sauces, namely Classic, Chilli Hot and Oriental.

"The Classic Sauce is tomato-based, while the Oriental Sauce is soy-sauce based.

"The Chilli Hot Sauce is just a spicier variation of the Oriental sauce."

A special tea menu is available daily, served from 3pm to 5pm.

The menu is a combination of local and Filipino light bites.

Cagayan's is non-halal, and pork is actually a mainstay in many of its dishes.

"Pork is big in the Philippines, and cooking a Filipino meal without it is quite sacrilegious for the Filipinos, particularly in certain dishes."

For a quick and crispy meal, try the Crispy Pata, which is deep-fried marinated whole pork leg.

The marinade is made of black pepper, spices and seasoning.

The dish is accompanied with homemade chilli dip consisting of onions, chilli, lime and soy sauce.

A dish that is similar in taste to the sour and spicy tom yam is the Pork Belly Sinigang.

It contains pork meat, cubed yam used to thicken the broth, long beans, eggplant, and water spinach.

Lim though has made changes to the original recipe, making it less sourish and spicier to suit the Malaysian palate.

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