Taste of Saipan: Monte Vista

Formerly Marianas Restaurant, Monte Vista is one establishment that is a little hard to find. My friends and I saw an ad one day in the paper and decided to check it out. Unfortunately, even though the ad indicated their address on Navy Hill, still they didn't include a map and we had a little trouble locating it. We had to call a few times on our way there because there was no signs to guide us along the way.

To find the place, you had to go up on Navy Hill and then turn left up at the fork of the road towards WIC. There's a baseball field in that area and you should just go straight until you see a white mansion and then turn right after that and look for the rather inconspicuous sign of the restaurant ahead.

The trouble was all worth it when we got there though. The place was fantastic and I love the huge windows where you can enjoy a beautiful view of the ocean and of the Managaha Island. The place was bright and very comfy too and I like the blinds and the overall look and feel of the place. I'm such a sucker for Asian designs and furnishings like their sofas that I didn't want to part with anymore as soon as I saw it. :)

They have a wide selection of dishes to choose from and every order comes with an all you can eat buffet of their soup and salads. If ever you find yourself there, I recommend that you try their potato salad which is simply delectable. ;)

Taste of Saipan: Diamond Restaurant

I was supposed to be writing about Mariana Resort Hotel's restaurant today but our lunch plans there with our friends was canceled up until next week so we'll just have to wait until then. My fiancé and I had lunch alone at Diamond Chinese Restaurant in Beach Road Garapan instead and according to him, that would be the first and last time he will eat there. I felt the same way but I could hardly say the same thing since that was my second time there although the first experience was a hell of a lot better than what we just had today.

The restaurant looked pretty much the same from the first time I was there more or less three years ago, only their furniture of course looked older and the surroundings had the unmistakable impression of tiredness. The place was deserted except for a group of old folks eating near the entrance and two Chinese waitresses who seems to be having a bad day for they looked like they have the world on their shoulders or maybe they just hadn’t received the memo about smiling to customers.

The table we picked had a printed menu under its plastic covering aside from the back to back table tent card on it. I asked if that was all they have and she handed me a real menu in response. I scanned their selections and ordered the one that was described as “Celery Chicken, Beef or Fish” and opted for the chicken, while my fiancé asked for their “Scrambled Eggs with Shrimp.”

I commented on my fiancé that the menu listings should be Chicken with Celery or Shrimp with Scrambled Eggs and not the other way around. Well, how wrong can I get, the menu turned out to be correct as the realization came only when the food was delivered on our table. My order was indeed all about the celery as chunks after chunks of it was served to me while the chicken was lost somewhere under it. The scrambled eggs with shrimp were the same story. In any case the taste wasn’t so bad especially when we added Tabasco and soy sauce to the egg. Their corn soup though was a little bland.

What I particularly didn’t like was when the waitress had served the food on our table. She had just set down the plate when as an afterthought, she grabbed the spoon that was already on the dish and dissected the food to see if it was indeed the chicken that I ordered. I sat there in disbelief of what she did that she had already walked away before I had realized what just happened. My fiancé and I looked at each other managing to laugh.

Taste of Saipan: Tony Roma's

It had been a long time since I had last been in Tony Roma's and last two weeks ago before Valentine's I found myself inside it's cozy establishment at the Comete Building in Garapan to meet my friend Lein — who had just flown from Guam — for lunch. We were supposed to meet up with Phil — who must have overslept as usual and didn't at all showed up — to go about our plans for the upcoming events in May in which the we are going to help her spearhead much like we did last year. So it turned out that it was just the two of us for lunch and not our usual trio.

For appetizers we were served with bread and what they call Potato Skins shaped like a leaf or a tiny boat depending on how you look at it that were deliciously crispy and was covered with cheese and chives served with ranch dressing. It was so good, I swear I almost finished the whole plate. For the main course, Lein had baby back ribs while I chose Rosemarie Chicken which was just divine. I had been contemplating on where to go on Valentine's with my hubby and that place was definitely way up on my list.

Taste of Saipan: Raffy's Diner

From the place where Jollibee used to stand in it's happy grandeur is now occupied by Raffy's Diner, a definitely grown up and more serious replacement that offers a range of western dishes.

I had dinner lately there with Hayden a few weeks back but I prefer that place in the morning right by the glass walls where you have an unobstructed view of the Kristo Rai Church and the road. It used to be the place where my fiancé and I would rendezvous to meet and have breakfast together and I had enjoyed those times extremely especially when it drizzles and we would be inside sipping coffee huddled together while watching news or sports on their flat screen television or just looking at the rain and eating breakfasts the way they are supposed to be: heavy, greasy and cheerful sunny side ups with hash browns, french fries and sandwiches.

Taste of Saipan: Tangji

Tangji is just one amongst a number of Chinese restaurants clattered around the island of Saipan. It is small and inconspicuous beside the Mobile Gas Station across Pizza Hut and First Hawaiian Bank along Middle Road. Inside it looked like a windowless one room nursery with it's pink walls with nonuniform chairs and tables that screams at its total plainness. Though it is not necessarily the kind of place that will impress anyone, they certainly makes it up by the food they serve in an overly friendly price that ranges as low as $3.00 per order and a chili which I love that is only moderately hot just perfect for their every dish. 

Among their selection, I had taken to liking their Beef with Scrambled Eggs that is served under piles of stir fried Chinese Pechay and reaming servings of rice which I again asks without fail that the Chinese waitress knows already by heart and would guess my order for me even before I open my mouth. My boyfriend on the other hand - a person of habit such as I - would also always ask for his favorite Shrimp with Scrambled Eggs while the rest of our friends would all opt for the place's infamous Beef Broccoli. 

I myself do not tend to experiment with my orders at Chinese Restaurants for I have seen a number of friends who did and ordered something they aren't familiar with and ended up being sorry at the end. An incident such as that happened a few months back when one of my bestfriends Elle decided to try something new on the menu at Tangji without asking what it was and it turned out to be a soup that looked and tasted like plain water with salt and a dash of flour. Tophee and I at that time couldn't help but laugh and tease her as we shared portions of our regular but much beloved choices to her so she wouldn't feel half as bad.

Taste of Saipan: Poon's Restaurant

Poon's Restaurant is a new Chinese establishment located also in Middle Road which definitely looks more classy in contrast to Tangji-a Chinese restaurant that we like and frequent. They have round tables to go with their black high back chairs that had caught my eye when we came to check it out. We came to visit when my colleague and friend Eve had gotten a $35 Gift Certificate from the restaurant and she called us all in for a lunch treat, otherwise I wasn't sure if I'd have the opportunity to drop in since its standing on an area where it is not much noticeable.

It was a pretty place with an all-year-round decorations we sure had fun pointing at each other. At first I commented how advance and ready they already are for Valentine's when we realized that other holiday decorations are either thrown around the room, hanging or plastered on the walls in greeting. They had Valentine's Day cut outs, Chinese New Year symbols and lanterns, Christmas wreaths and displays - you name it. Someone from our group then pointed out at an altar on a corner of the room and said out loud, "That one must be for All Soul's Day!" which got us all laughing. The food was good especially the deep fried chicken and the beef broccoli that we ordered in a very affordable price.

Taste of Saipan: Costa Terrace (Aqua Resort Hotel)

Costa Terrace Restaurant (Aqua Resort Hotel) is one of my true favorites which is open from breakfast to dinner  all throughout the week with their special seafood buffet on Sundays. Their weekday buffet however is a wide selection of dishes of chicken, beef and pork and an even more impressive array of desserts such as ice cream, fruit salad, cakes and other pastries. The place is also a favorite choice for receptions and gatherings, in fact, one of my godson's Christening reception among others was held there inside a room adjacent to the main dining area.

They also have a pasta corner where you decide which ingredients among the choices there you'd like to put on your spaghetti or carbonara.  Aside from the food, its the service in Aqua Resort that we love best with their more than accommodating staffs that are ever ready to assist you the best they can.

Tastes of Saipan: J's Restaurant

There are two J's Restaurant establishments on island: There's one along Beach Road and another on Middle Road. Among the two, I personally prefer the latter which I find cozier and more appealing in every aspect I could think of compared to the other. We consider ourselves genuine patrons of that place and more often than not we always asks for the same order over and over deeming the menu of no use to us anymore.

Both me and my fiancé's favorites are the crispy Chicken Chasers and Beef Bulalo that we always order without fail every time we find ourselves in those premises. Some friends of mine for example usually opts for the Crispy Pata and Sinigang na Hipon in which they never fail to taunt me with knowing full well I wouldn't eat it any way. I in particular like their iced tea and of course their cups after cups of coffee.

But it was more than the "comfort food" as we call it why we frequent that establishment, it has also become a "comfort place" to many nocturnal beings like us who sometimes drop by in the middle of the night to eat and hangout. What with their dim lighting and comfortable cushioned chairs placed strategically against the walls with large windows where you can view either the parking lot or the cars zooming in and out on the road or the extra dim elevated area with the television overhead so you won't miss any of the shows you like while you eat and stay hour after hour just chatting or idling away without anyone bothering you.

Taste of Saipan: Himawari Japanese Restaurant

I thought I like Sushi but now I had come to love it after visiting Himawari — a Japanese restaurant in a rather secluded area in Garapan.

Himawari is actually also a Japanese store and the restaurant which was also named after it, is housed on its right wing area. The place was small but nevertheless attractive in its own right. Besides I had always like Asian decor especially the Japanese styles of clean, simple, serene designs although this particular restaurant is more in to dark wood when it comes to their furniture and some antiques for decorations.

My  fiancé and I together with his family had decided to have dinner which was rather unexpected. We were just supposed to have an ordinary dinner at some restaurant we frequent but in a sudden inspiration my fiance turned towards Himawari out of the blue asking us if we cared for some Japanese food that night. So we said why not since we haven't tried the place yet and how glad I was that we did.

We ordered their specialty — a plate of Sushi in 12 different varieties and another plate of Salmon Roll plus a steaming bowl of Ramen. The Sushi variety plate was beautiful and very creatively made served with wasabi and pickled ginger or gari; the art in the food and how painstakingly it must have been done didn't escape me. I reached out with my chopsticks and picked a roll surrounded with tiny little orange gems that I found out was called Tobiko—a roe commonly called flying fish roe that is commonly used to flavor and enhance texture of a variety of sushi rolls which has a slightly salty taste—and popped it in my mouth where it melted in a surprisingly perfect mingling of flavors that was truly delicious. The next I tried was this roll with peach colored fish on top which I believe is white tuna and I was surprised on how delectable and fresh the fish was without the taste of rawness that I had to double check on what I was eating to check if it was indeed raw at all. I tell you every bite of that morsel of fish was heaven in itself and was a real treat to the senses. I had quite finished the thing already when I asked my fiance the name of the fish to confirm what I just ate and he laughed telling me that I should have left some for him to see. I tried all the other rolls that looked yummy and they were all fantastic except maybe the one filled with orange fish eggs which was actually Salmon eggs called Nigiri Sushi-Ikura that I didn't finish because I didn't like the way it all went popping inside my mouth when I chewed it. I scanned the remainders of the plate trying to decide which to try next and I could have gone ahead and ate everything if I didn't recognized the rolls that came with octopus and other sea creatures I couldn't fathom to eat and so I left the rest to my companions and eyed the other dish instead.

I tried one of the salmon roll applied with mayonnaise and melted cheese stuffed with avocado, cucumber and some other vegetables and once again it didn't disappoint. I think I finished three from that roll and by that time I was munching the third one I was already stuffed and couldn't have another bite even if I wanted to. 

They haven't seen the last of me though because right now I'm already hankering to go back for more of those wonderful sushi!