General Santos: Dinner at Euro Kitchen (Tiongson Arcade) and visiting the General Santos Fish Port

General Santos is the jump-off point for Lake Sebu, South Cotabato, and Glan (Gumasa) and Maitum, Sarangani. After whitewater tubing in Maitum, I was back in General Santos. I had one more night before my flight back to Manila the next day. So that was enough time to try out at least one restaurant and visit the General Santos Fish Port early the next morning.


The city has some good dining options. So I made sure to try out one restaurant in General Santos for dinner. I was told there are several restaurants which serve really good steak. After getting some leads, I asked for directions from the front desk. When I told them I wanted steak, they suggested this new restaurant called Euro Kitchen.

So I went to the Tiongson Arcade area by habal-habal. Tiongson Arcade is a long stretch of outdoor grills and restaurants such as Gio's Mongo Grill which serves Mongolian bowls and Gusteau's which I heard serves really good crab. If I had more time, I would have explored more.



Euro Kitchen is owned by Finnish chef Henrick Stork and his wife May, which explains the Finnish translations in the menu. The serving sizes are really big which is why I'd give the restaurant a two thumbs up for value for money. I ordered the T-bone Steak with Rice (which ranges from Php300 to Php500 depending on the weight of the steak) and Pork Kebab with Rice (Php90) which I really had a hard time finishing since the serving size was just too much!


The next morning, I woke up early to visit the General Santos Fish Port. I didn't know that they had very strict rules to enter. You can't wear shorts, slippers, or sando. Plus if you want to get in the market area, you need white rubber boots. They won't accept any other color of boots.



We were able to borrow white rubber boots at the hotel. Unfortunately, I did not bring any pants during this trip and was hoping they would allow me in. But the guards were very strict since there was a camera monitoring the gates. So I ended up buying something at the nearby ukay-ukay just to get in.

It's arguably the cleanest market in the country and if you are fascinated by markets, this one is worth the visit. You can even buy your fresh tuna there if you want. The earlier you visit in the morning, the better since the supply of fish comes in quite early. And the better stocks are gone really quick.

With the visit to the fish port settled, I returned to my hotel to prepare for my flight back to Manila. Now I'm craving for sushi and sashimi!

South Cotabato: Dole's Club Kalsangi in Polomolok, South Cotabato and General Santos

Kalsangi is such a great place. The exclusive residential and golf club complex for Dole managers reminds me so much of the US, maybe because of its lay-out and architecture, open lawns, trees and cool climate. The whole place sits at the foot of majestic Mt. Matutum.

It was good the sun was out early in the morning so we checked out Mt. Matutum while the sky was still clear. We went around the Dole Plantation too.

Notice the Norfolk pines? They used to be Christmas tree supply for Dole's expat managers. But since most of the resident managers and supervisors are now locals, the trees are no longer cut down every Christmas and have grown tall.

After going to church, we visited the Trappistine Monastery (the sister monastery of the one in Guimaras) to buy some chocolate rhum balls and cookies, as well as Gibby's farm, also in Kalsangi.

Then is was lunch at the Dole's Club Kalsangi. It's very difficult to get inside since you need to know someone connected to Dole to gain access. I had a double burger, fries and salad.

After lunch, we brought Ryan to the airport then proceeded to Sarangani Highlands, a garden restaurant in Gen San with a great view of Sarangani Bay, for some drinks. The view and breeze was great!

We then visited the statue and burial place of Gen. Paulino Santos in front of city hall. What a disappointment. I was expecting more from a major city like Gen San. The city hall was an ugly nondescript building. The park in front of it, as well as the monument of Gen. Santos was obviously neglected. If they fix it, it could be a really great attraction. I was told that after all the years under the Acharons and Antoninos, Gen San is still not improving as fast as it should be. SM has had several ground-breaking ceremonies in the city but they always pull-out for some reason. Anyway, we checked out the P30M house of Manny Pacquiao too before proceeding to Alabel, Sarangani for dinner.