Location:
24 E. Osmeña Street
Guadalupe, Cebu City
Tel.No.: 253-3635

Specialty:
Mexican

Rating:
Nyss – 3/5
Geus - 3/5

FOOD:
It's been a while since I last ate at Mooon Café.  Geus and I went there last year only to find out that they were under renovation.  We eagerly waited for it to open again because we have been hearing lots of rave about the place.

The renovation of Mooon Café did not only aim to improve the place's appearance, it aimed to improve the menu.  Although the place was well-renovated, there were a few low points in terms of the food.

We asked the waitress for their specialty and she recommended two dishes – Mooonsteak and Mexican Baby Back Ribs.

Mooonsteak

Sizzling pork steak topped with gravy sauce, served with rice and vegetables

Although the menu claims that this is a sizzling dish, it was not "sizzling" when it was served.  I think the restaurant can live up to its food description by making sure that the dish really does sizzle hence the description and not just because it is served on a hot plate.  Even though the dish didn't sizzle enough, the gravy was really good.  It tasted of garlic and Geus and I loved it.  However, the pork was a little bit tough.  The serving was big and it was enough for two people which makes the dish worthy of its price.

Mexican Baby Back Ribs

The description of this dish does not fit the dish itself.  The pork was not succulent and it didn't taste like it was marinated in anything.  I also thought that they'd serve it with garden vegetables but they served this dish with the same vegetable mix as the Mooonsteak.  Corn is not grown from the garden right?  The sauce was really good though but it was not well enough to amply cover the ribs.

One thing good that I can say with the food is that the cook/chef really knows how to make good sauces.  They just need to improve on making sure that the meat they will serve is tender and to make sure that they really follow the description they put in the menu.

Their Mooon Frozen Iced Tea tasted like regular frozen iced tea but they made it a little more special by adding a swirl of grenadine on top.

Enough about the lows of the restaurant.  Let me tell you about their saving grace – Secret and Magic Cake. 

Secret is a non-alcoholic drink made of orange juice, lime juice, and grenadine.  It tasted really good.

Magic Cake is a dessert made of layers of cream, mango, and chocolate pudding.  If ever I come back to Mooon Café I will definitely order Secret and Magic Cake again.

AMBIENCE/SERVICE:
I don't have anything bad to say regarding the service I got from Mooon Café.  Their people all appeared to be well-trained.  The moment we got out of the car, a little boy dressed in a cute Mexican outfit with matching umbrella greeted us with "Ola! I'll watch over your car for you."

When we entered the restaurant, we immediately felt like we were in Mexico.  The paintings, fixtures, furniture, and window dressings all revolved around one central theme – Mexican. Even the waitresses and waiters were dressed in accordance to the theme.  The hoop earrings of the waitresses were even uniform!

When we decided to get dessert, we could not find the dessert list in the menu.  A waitress approached us and she brought with her all the desserts that were available on a tray.  She described the desserts.  It was such a nice service and I applaud Mooon Café for doing this.

RICE:
Mexican Baby Back Ribs – Php 149.00
Mooon Steak – Php 149.00
Garlic Rice – Phop 20.00
Secret – Php 45.00
Mooon Frozen Iced Tea – Php 45.00
Magic Cake – Php 95.00

VERDICT:
Nyss –  I will go back there and try out other dishes on the menu.  Maybe we just did not choose well hence my average rating.  I'm going to give this restaurant another chance to redeem itself.
Geus – I like the food's sauce better. "Secret" indeed has a mysterious taste. "Magic Cake" is just ok. Service is awesome!