The northern part of Metro Manila (which includes parts of Quezon City) is a place my family and I rarely visit. The only times we would usually find ourselves in that part of the city are when we would have to pass through it on the way to the North Luzon Expressway, to visit our departed relatives at a cemetery in Novaliches, or to go to Trinoma, which is the only mall we actually visit there. Quite honestly, I also feel uneasy when we venture into that side of the city because of the negative publicity--a quick search on Google will show you that Quezon City has a pretty high crime rate with frequent cases of car theft, for one.
However, a family celebration held recently brought us over to that part of the city--two of my mom's cousins decided to hold a joint birthday celebration at a restaurant called Fiesta Island Seafood Hub (F.I.S.H.), located along Visayas Avenue corner Congressional Avenue (beside Chinabank). It was my first time to eat here, so I thought I'd share to you readers my first-ever FISH experience.
I also apologize for the quality of the photos--I took them using my phone and just edited them using an online editing tool.
The restaurant was pretty easy to find thanks to the large sign and the numerous tarps in the immediate vicinity. The parking space right in front of the restaurant was absolutely full--luckily we were allowed to park at Chinabank next door, since the bank was already closed anyway (I guess they only allow this at night). There was also a security guard hired to watch over the cars parked at Chinabank so there's no need to feel uneasy.
As we entered the restaurant, we were greeted by waiters who ushered us to one of the two function rooms that was reserved in advance by my mom's cousin (I think there were more than twenty of us). The waiters assigned to our group were friendly and attentive. Strangely, some of the waitresses were dressed in kebayas which made them look like Singapore Airlines or Malaysia Airlines flight attendants.
Apparently, the one along Visayas Avenue isn't their only branch. This large tarp that was posted right at the entrance advertised their new branch at SM North Edsa.
This is the hallway where the two function rooms are located. Tables for other customers are on areas located on either side of the hallway, none of which are air-conditioned. Apparently, they also have several KTV rooms, named after different provinces and decorated appropriately depending on the province it was named after. I also liked how the entire place had this resort-like feel, from the staff uniforms (except for the kebayas), to the paintings, decorations, tables, chairs, lighting fixtures, and the floor. This place definitely deserves an "A" for effort!
Inside one of the function rooms. That wall with the colorful tress can be conveniently removed for larger events. Both function rooms have free WiFi and are equipped with large, LCD TVs for karaoke. However, since the room dividers are just made of wood, you can easily hear what's going on in the other function room--not a good thing if two events are being held simultaneously.
The food was laid-out for us buffet-style. There were actually quite a lot of options.
First up: Kare-Kare Oxtail. It wasn't really very good; I thought it was quite bland--a disappointment compared to other kare-kares I've tried before.
The Pork Sisig, on the other hand, was good. It was very tasty and not too fatty either, which somehow makes it less "sinful" to eat (though in reality, it doesn't). I just had to return to the buffet table for more.
I never actually tried the Sinigang na Ulo-Ulo, so I can't comment on it myself. However, I did overhear a cousin comment something like "Masyadong maasim" (too sour).
The Pinakbet Tagalog, despite the number of ingredients it contains wasn't really very tasty--certainly not one of the best ones I've tried. I couldn't even differentiate it from the kare-kare. Another thumbs down for FISH.
I got a little bit of everything--with the exception of the sinigang.
Aside from the dishes posted above, we were also served Crispy Honey Squid, though I failed to take a decent photo of it (oops). If you look at the last photo above though, you will probably see the squid amongst the other dishes that I tried. Anyway, aside from the sisig, it was the only other dish that I tried that wasn't bland. My mom didn't like it though since she found it too sweet, but for me I thought that was a little bit better compared to the other dishes that were served to us. It also seemed unique; I don't think I've encountered this dish in other restaurants before.
Our dessert was a small plate of Buko Pandan Salad. This one was decent. I like how it wasn't too sweet--it was just right.
Overall, I was actually underwhelmed by the food, and that's saying something. For those who've seen my previous food reviews, you'll notice that I'm actually easy to please--I'd easily praise restaurants or dishes that other people would probably be more critical about. I guess they still have to work a bit more on the food because as a restaurant, that's what would determine whether customers would be returning or not.
I highly commend their staff, however. They were very friendly and attentive and would immediately respond to our needs and would even go the extra mile to please us--when someone in our group asked for an additional helping of the buko pandan salad, for example, the waiter returned with a big bowl of the buko pandan salad that's good for four or more people. As mentioned earlier, I also like how they were very detailed in making the place feel like a resort. This somehow makes the experience a bit better, even if the food did turn out to be a bit of a disappointment.
If I had to give them a score (with 10 being the highest), I think this place gets a 4.5.
Fiesta Island Seafood Hub (F.I.S.H.)
47 Visayas Avenue, corner Congressional Avenue, Quezon City
Operating hours: 11:00am-12mn (Monday-Thursday); 11:00am-2am (Friday-Sunday)
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