Kim's Taste #38: Shaka Cafe at Streetscape - My New Favorite Al Fresco Dine-In

Hello everyone!

It's been a while since I posted something related to food, so I decided to deviate again from my travel series and add something to my Kim's Taste series. As part of my general goal of promoting Cebu to the international community, I can't set aside the food scene here, so expect posts like this to pop up from time to time.

I am not a food critic nor a restaurant reviewer, so I'll always make a disclaimer that my posts in this series are solely based on my experience. I won't encourage you to have expectations of these food places based only on my post. It's best that if you happen to visit, your expectations should be based on different reviews. While my posts can give you a general idea about the place and its food, I can't be an accurate metric of what's good food and what's not because my palate is quite diverse and my tolerance in the food category is also high. I mean I don't have a refined taste. I'll eat whatever's available on the table.

The reason I'm telling you those things is that this restaurant in review might not be for everyone. But if you're a vegan, vegetarian, or just into fruits and vegetables, this is the place for you.

Let's talk about Shaka Cafe, shall we?

Streetscape Mall is located in Banilad, Cebu City. It's near Maria Luisa Village and it's one of the newest malls that offer a "unique lifestyle destination" with different restaurants, stores, and different services. I think I already shared before one cafe that's located in Streetscape. If you're interested, you can read my review about Sip Cafe. It's also located in Streetscape.

Shaka Cafe is located at the front of the mall, under a canopy of a big fig tree. It's an interesting location considering that the Philippines has a hot and humid climate. With the help of the umbrellas installed at each table, you're assured of having a shade all the time. As for the humidity, I think that big tree helped a lot because it was not so humid when we were there.

Shaka's place is not that big. I couldn't even consider it a cafe or restaurant. It's more of a food stall. There are more food stalls in the area that offer different food selections like there's Vietnamese food and Mexican food, as far as I can remember. One thing I liked about the place is that it's facing the road and the parking lot, so it's spacious. With the help of that big tree and some ornamental plants, a slight breeze can be refreshing and pleasant.

Even if we had to wait for a while for our orders, we never felt that we should go somewhere with an air-conditioner. It was early afternoon and I was surprised to see a lot of people ordering. Most were not dining in, but having their food on the go.

Shaka offers fruit and vegetable-based food creations from smoothie bowls to salads and refreshments. They also serve coffee, of course. You can look at their menu here. Some reviews claim that they're the best vegan restaurant in the Philippines. I can't confirm nor deny that claim as I haven't been to a lot of vegan restaurants in the Philippines even if there is not a lot. All I can say is that I was not disappointed in any of my orders in Shaka. I mean I tried in their different branches, except in Siargao, and I'm always satisfied with their smoothie bowls. I have been to another vegan restaurant here in Cebu and I was a little bit disappointed by the consistency of their burgers. As for Shaka, some say they have the best vegan burger. I will try that next time.

I ordered Bakunawa (All Summer Bowl) while Ivana ordered Cloud 9 Kook (The Ultimate Energy Booster). Their smoothie bowls are priced at Php 300.00 ($5.25). Because I didn't have my lunch, I ordered their Salad Of The Day for Php 270.00 ($4.74). They were a little bit expensive, but it's really worth it.

The smoothie was good as always, but it was the salad that made my day. They say that it was all about the dressing. I never tasted something that good for a vegetable salad. It's a must-have! I let Ivana have a taste and she agreed that it was really good. I ate the whole serving and then proceeded to my smoothie bowl. I also consumed the whole thing like I haven't eaten for a day. It was that good!

OVERALL VERDICT: WELL-RECOMMENDED!

I guess that's all for this post. See you on the next one!

Kim Ybañez

_{Welcome to Kim's small corner in Hive. He is a chemical engineer by profession, but a blogger by passion. He is a wanderlust and an adventure seeker. Join his quests as he visits secluded destinations, climbs mountains, tries new and exotic dishes, and explores his country (The Philippines). He's also a trying hard photographer so stay tuned as he shares his photos and his thought process while creating them.}

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