Chef's Home: Still My Favorite Restaurant in Baguio City

My wife and I just celebrated one year of being married! We just want to thank the Lord Jesus Christ for guiding us in our first year of marriage!

For our anniversary, we went on a trip to Baguio City, the Summer Capital of the Philippines, and Vigan City, the capital of the Ilocos Sur province. On the eve of our anniversary, one of our ninongs and ninangs or godparents (thank you very much!) treated us to my favorite restaurant in Baguio: Chef’s Home.

The Dining Area. I took this shot when they’re about to close. So don’t worry!

They also sell some of their ingredients

Chef’s Home is a Southeast Asian (particularly Malaysian and Thai) restaurant located along Marcos Highway. It used to be a humble hole-in-the-wall with a homey feel in Outlook Drive before they moved to its present location. It is run by Malaysian chef Alvin Emuang and his Filipina wife Gina. They are a lovely couple who happened to belong to the same family of Christian churches we belong to.

I learned from Chef Alvin himself that he used to work in the hospitality industry at Thailand (that’s why they offer Thai food, too). So with this background coupled with chef’s Malaysian roots, we can be sure that the food at Chef’s Home is authentic and top-notch Malaysian and Thai food.

Did I already mention that Chef and his wife are super warm and friendly? I love that they talk to the customers so don’t miss out to strike a conversation with them. Moreover, Ms. Gina even blessed us with her angelic voice and sang a few songs for us.

Thank you, Ms. Gina, for even singing one of my favorite songs, “Araw-Gabi”!

Before I talk about the food, let me share another thing I discovered about Chef’s Home. I noticed that the prices in the menu ends with seven. That’s because they collect the extra seven pesos per menu item and devote it for charitable works. Amazing! (Next time, I’ll order more food to support their cause. LOL.)

Let’s now talk about the food we ordered. Of course, we had to order the Thai Crispy Papaya Salad. The papaya is crisp, drenched with their signature sauce, which is sweet, tangy, and a bit spicy. It also has tomatoes that’s tart, nuts for crunch, and coriander for freshness. This is easily one of my favorite dishes at Chef’s Home!

Instead of getting Penang Char Kway Teow (Penang-style stir-fried rice noodles) or Phad Thai (Thai stir-fried noodles), we tried the Penang Char Beehon. It has a nice wok hei (smoky aroma). The noodles are soft and bean sprouts add crunch.

For mains, we got the Deep Fried Boneless Chicken with 3 Flavoured Sauces, which has a light batter and sweet chili sauce glaze, and Squid with Salted Egg, which is tender and has chunks of salted egg.

Deep Fried Boneless Chicken with 3 Flavoured Sauces (PHP317)

But the most outstanding of all the mains that we got is the Malaysian Tender Beef Rendang (a Southeast Asian stew), which is flavorful and spicy. It’s rice-worthy and definitely one of the better beef rendang that I have tried in the Philippines.

Malaysian Tender Beef *Rendang* (PHP327)

For our drinks, we got Hot Malaysian Teh Tarik (pulled milk tea), which is perfect on a rainy Baguio evening. It’s so comforting!

To end our amazing meal, the Emuang couple blessed us with a Roti “Chef’s Home” with Banana, Peaches, Ice Cream, and Coffee Sauce. It’s a decadent way to cap our Southeast Asian meal!

Roti “Chef’s Home” with Banana, Peaches, Ice Cream, and Coffee Sauce (PHP417)

Chef’s Home is still my favorite restaurant in Baguio. Every dish we had was superb, and the hospitality is excellent. Needless to say, I highly, highly recommend Chef’s Home to you!

Have you been to Chef’s Home? Which of the dishes above have you tried or would like to try? Comment them below!

PS I’ll be releasing more Baguio (and Vigan) articles in the coming weeks!

Address: 88 Marcos Highway, Bakakeng Central, Baguio City, Philippines | Operating Hours: Monday-Saturday, 11AM-2PM & 5PM-8:30PM | Contact No.: 0916-4445756 | Facebook | Instagram (the IG account says it’s inactive)