8 Sagada Restaurants You should try in 2019

deanignacio
Feb 9, 2019
7 min read

Sagada is very well known for its climate, charming people, amazing natural geologic features, outdoor activities and of course its food places. Be sure to check this great food stops on your next visit to this place famous for hanging coffins and broken hearted.

1. MASFERRE COUNTRY INN AND RESTAURANT

Location: Poblacion, Patay, Sagada, Mountain Province, Philippines 2619

Business Hours: 7am-9pm Mondays to Sundays

Mobile: +639174315225

Located right smack at the heart of Sagada town proper, Masferre Country Inn and Restaurant is a full service restaurant complete with lodging, a souvenir shop and a bakery. The place is one if not the most popular dining spot in Sagada as it houses on its walls the world renowned monochrome photograph collection of the Father of Philippine Photography – Eduardo Masferre, to which the place was named after.

Been going to Sagada for more than a decade now and I’ve seen the establishment’s growth and progress along with the town. The place became double its size through the years and now have a separate store for souvenirs and a bakery that sells organic rice, local fruit wines, coffee, wild tea, locally made food products and preserves. Today the place can accommodate up to 60 persons on a busy day.

Must Try: pizza pretzels, cheese bars, local preserves and jams.

2. THE YOGHURT HOUSE

Location: South Road, Sagada, Mountain Province 2619

Business Hours: 8:30am– 9:30pm

Mobile: +639081128430

All time favorite: Strawberry/Banana granola and fruits in season!!!

Love it or hate it. But definitely you will find reason to go back to this unassuming food place with a unique and colorful signage (that very well reminded me of my pillowcase when I was a kid) at the side of the road again and again. If you love yoghurt then you’re really in for a delectable treat as their yoghurt are the best in the area. Its even better than most of the ones sold in Manila. My Sagada sojourns are never complete without going here and sample their famous yoghurt.

One of the original food place in the area, Yoghurt House through the years has been synonymous with great dining experience, thus establishing itself as one of Sagada’s must visit. Located less than 500 metres from the Tourist Center, southbound it is on your rightside along the road leading to Lumiang burial cave and Sumaguing crystal cave. The place is a two storey house. It has a small veranda on the second floor that has a good vantage point of the street below. Good spot to kill time and relax your weary feet after all the activities for the day such as trekking, hiking and spelunking.

Yoghurt House is more than just a dessert place. If you do not like yoghurt then there are other food item on the menu you could choose from. Their servings are big and sumptuous.

A word to the wise, show up an hour or two earlier not just to get a nice comfy spot but for you to be adjusted on the serving time of the food. Food serving in Sagada is infamous but I’m telling you ITS ALL WORTH THE WAIT. Wait time during lunch and dinner sometimes even breakfast is long.

Must try: yoghurt with strawberry + banana + granola

3. SAGADA LOG CABIN

Location: Poblacion, Ato, Sagada, Mountain Province 2619

Business Hours 6:30pm – 9pm Mondays to Sundays

Mobile: +639156717949

Email: sagada_logcabin@yahoo.com

Facebook: @logcabinsagada

the restaurant’s distinctive appearance inside and out is what makes it stood out from all other food stops in Sagada. The place was initially a bar, then changed into a restaurant then became a lodge in the early 90’s. It was owned by Dave and Janice Gulian.

The restaurant offers a 5-course set menu that is a fusion of European and Filipino cuisine. Log Cabin gained popularity for its legendary weekend buffets prepared by French Chef Philippe Heyer or Chef Aklay to the locals. A world traveler who found his way to the Philippines by bike. He initially stayed in Palawan but realized he preferred mountains over seas and thus biked North all the way to Sagada. The residents of Sagada came to accept Philippe as their own and gave him the name “Aklay” (It means tall, white man with curly hair)

Though Chef Aklay, at the time of this writing, is no longer part of the Log Cabin family, the signature weekend buffet still carries on at Log Cabin to this very day. On weekdays the set up is still dinner buffet. Be sure to make advance reservations as most of the time they are fully booked. They are only open for dinner as they are busy preparing and cooking the entire day.

Must try: weekend buffet specials

4. SAGADA BREW

Location: South Road, Sagada, Mountain Province 2619

Business Hours: 7am – 9pm Mondays to Sundays

Phone: +63 917 808 7833

One of the more recently established food place that’s getting a lot of buzz from the locals, tourist and online community alike. Owned by Nita Claravall, a resident from Manila, who moved to Sagada,

The inside of the resto is diferent from the usual color schemes of most of Sagadan food places. It has a modern spin on it with three rows of wooden tables, a souvenir nook and dessert bar. The place easily gets jam packed during meal times. It is normal for you to see people outside on the waitlist so better go there early if you want to sample their food.

Sagada Brew offers set meals that is big in portion. The only thing I’ve noticed that’s consistent on my visits there was the slow service. The order takers and servers easily gets confused with the table numbers and the orders of their customer. But the food was really good. Its really worth the wait.

Another draw by the restaurant is their pastries and dessert section. You should never leave the place without sampling their signature lava cake and tarragon tea.

Must try: for main entries: Oriental Pork barbeque, Sagada Orange Chicken, Pinikpikan and beef Caldereta; dessert: their oozing lava cake and assorted pastries

5. GAIA CAFÉ AND CRAFTS

Location: South Road, Ambasing Sagada, Mountain Province 2619

Business Hours: 9am – 6pm Mondays to Sundays

Phone: +639491376777 ; +639157276831

Cool and cozy interiors, breath taking view of the nearby terraces at their veranda, delectable vegetarian menu all at a very affordable prices, this tree house inspired cafe/restaurant/ giftshop is sitting at the side of the cliff in Ambasing, on the southern portion of Sagada, few minutes away before reaching Sumaguing Cave.

Gaia gained popularity as it was featured on some local movies (That Thing called Tadhana and Glorious)

The entire place was eco-friendly as the entire structure was built from scraps and recyclable materials.

hat separates Gaia from other food stops in the area is that they only serve organic, community-sourced ingredients from and around the town. Their menu is vegetarian.

Gaia Cafe and Crafts is run and owned by Gawani Domogo. Gaia’s Manifesto states “aside from herbs and spices, we use organic raw sugar, unrefined sea salt, naturally-brewed soy sauce and locally-manufactured vinegar in your food. No MSG or any artificial flavors have been used.

Must Try: Vegetarian Adobo, Camote fries and the signature drink, Gaia Camote Quencher

6. LEMON PIE HOUSE

Location: Atey, Dao-Angan Sagada, Mountain Province 2619

Business Hours: 9am – 6pm Mondays to Sundays

Phone: +639077820360

Email: lemonpiehouse@gmail.com

If there’s a “house that fried chicken built” the next restaurant on the list must the house that lemon (pie) built. No Kidding. Although the Lemon Pie House offers more than just lemon pies, it become synonymous with this unique dessert that most of us love. Or hate.

Lemon Pie House is owned by Joseph Daoas. it was from his mother, a native of Ilocos Sur who married a Sagadan native where the lemon pie recipe originated and passed on. The Lemon Pie House was built in 2008 and serve fresh brewed coffees, egg pies, and even pastries along with their famous lemon pies.

Also located along the south bound road, The lemon Pie House offers unique dining experience that become a favorite of Sagada residents and tourists alike. They are drawn not just for the pie but for a sense of comfort and warmth and the coziness of the place. Shiny, well-polished wooden floors, walls lined with old pinewood and a display of native crafts and woodworks add to the place’s old and homely rustic charm. The chairs are likewise made from pinewood while low tabletops (I first thought I was on a Japanese teahouse the first time I went here) were once the roots of giant ferns that grow abundantly in the mountains regions of Sagada.

Must Try: Lemon Pies

7. SALT AND PEPPER DINER

Location: (Above SAGGAS office) South Road Sagada, Mountain Province

Business Hours: 7am – 9pm Mondays to Sundays

Phone: +639081774972 ; +639153229523 ; +639153230430

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Salt-and-Pepper-Diner-Sagada-Mt-Province/144217715612813

Following the wooden cabin design scheme on almost all the restaurants in Sagada, Salt and Pepper Diner is no exemption from the tables, chairs, walls and decor. The restaurant can be found on top of Ug-ugo Souvenir Store right beside the Sagada Genuine Guides Association (SAGGAS) office. Like Yoghurt House, Salt and Pepper has a veranda that has a very good vantage point of the road below.

Salt and Pepper is very popular from the early risers thats why in most of the occasion there are only two menu that they always serve most specially whenever there are too many customers – Longganisa and beef tapa with egg and brown rice paired with coffee or chocolate. Of all the restaurants on the list, Salt and Pepper is the only one that offer complimentary fruits in season.

Must Try: Longsilog and tapsilog

8. SAGADA ROCK INN AND CAFE

Location: Staunton Road, Sagada, Mountain Province 2619

Business Hours: 7am – 9pm Mondays to Sundays

Phone: +639209095899 ; +63920902-8608

Website: www.rockfarmsagada.com

The last but definitely not the least on the list, if walking (or trekking to be exact) for couple of kilometres (2.7km from the town proper to be exact) do not bother or discourage you at all, then you might find this secluded food place in the woods peaceful and far from madding crowd.

The 9-hectare land where Rock Inn and Cafe now stood was acquired by its owners way back 1993. It was originally developed into an orange orchard which became so popular that the owners decided to build an inn to accommodate guests.

Sample their crowd favorite pinikpikan and sisig. While waiting for your food to cook, engage in a very popular activity that you cannot find anywhere else in the Philippines: orange picking!

Orange picking season begins every year from late October to early November and lasts until January of the following year. with just an entrance fee of 50Php, you can sample several varities of oranges they grew – ranging from hamlin and ponkan to the famous sunkist variety.

The entrance to the cafe had a flowered trellis path that leads visitors to its swinging double wooden doors. Walk through it and you will be greeted by the cozy sunbathed and well ventilated wooden interiors of Café Bodega, It was initially a storehouse that was eventually converted into a spacious dining area since 2005 hence the name.

Diners have an option to either eat inside or go al fresco on the roofed side of the restaurant. There is a garden adjacent to the outdoor eating area where you can find a bonfire stone hut to which you can sit in during the cold and chilly Sagadan evenings and share stories and marshmallow on sticks