Here's Your Guide to Restaurants and Cafés in Westgate, Alabang

(SPOT.ph) Let's learn primary Alabang navigation, first: Molito Lifestyle Center and Alabang Town Center (a.k.a. Town) are only separated by the Madrigal Road. If the restaurants and cafes are jam-packed in Molito, you can transfer to Town, and vice versa; if it's too crowded at Town, you move to Molito.

But if you want to dine or drink in a place that's typically not too crowded in general—which isn't always a telltale sign of bad food, drinks, or service—a leisurely ten-minute walk takes you to a quieter area of the neighborhood: Westgate Center, which is what we could describe as a "quieter Molito." It has the same al fresco dining vibe, but with less foot traffic.

As much as we'd love to gatekeep the restaurants and cafes in this area for the sake of a more private and intimate experience, the dining scene at Westgate Center is equally deserving of being at its full capacity and gaining popularity by word of mouth.

Also read:
Here's Your Guide to Restaurants and Cafés in Molito, Alabang
Get a Tattoo for as Low as P500 When You Grab a Cup of Coffee at This Alabang Café

This is the ultimate guide to Westgate Alabang restaurants and coffee shops:

Bean & Yolk

Operating hours: 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. from Monday to Friday, and 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Saturdays and Sundays.

Once a Poblacion go-to, the breakfast spot has moved to a new home at Westgate Center. This is one of the few spots at Westgate where you can indulge in smoothie bowls and stacks of pancakes with a cup of coffee during actual breakfast time, then pasta plates and hearty rice meals for an early dinner.

Southbank Café + Lounge

Operating hours: 7 a.m. to 1 a.m. from Sunday to Wednesday, and 7 a.m. to 2 a.m. from Thursday to Saturday.

Southbank Café is a café, bar, and restaurant all rolled into one two-story establishment. This is a Westgate Center establishment that's often packed with people for breakfast, lunch, happy hour, dinner, and a nightcap. 

Liquid Gold Wine & Spirits

Liquid Gold Wine & Spirits is a new liquor shop in the area that has an extensive selection of wine and a few other spirits (e.g. gin). The store has its own dining area where customers can drink the wine bought from the store. What's great about this is that food from other establishments are allowed inside without corkage fee, even if they do serve their own food.

Melo's Steakhouse

Operating hours: Open daily from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m.

Melo's Steakhouse, the "Home of Certified Angus Beef & Wagyu," is the place to go for steak or a romantic date at Westgate Center. This is also a great place for happy hour as they have a daily buy-one-take-one promo on all their cocktails from 2 p.m. to 6 p.m., plus good pintxos.

Wildflour Café + Bakery

Operating hours: Open daily from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m.

Wildflour in Alabang is the biggest branch of the restaurant to date. The two-story café-bakery has a display containing their bestselling pastries like the Cremadettes, and the menu includes famous dishes such as Kimchi Fried Ricke and Steak and the underrated Squid Ink Pasta. 

UCC Café Terrace

Operating hours: 7 a.m. to 11 p.m. from Sunday to Thursday, and 7 a.m. to 12 a.m. on Fridays and Saturdays.

UCC is another place for a coffee fix. The café has an all-day breakfast menu of waffles and French toast, but they also serve Filipino-style and Japanese-style breakfasts such as Beef Tapa and Seared Salmon respectively. 

Angrydobo

Operating hours: 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. from Monday to Thursday, and 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. from Friday to Sunday.

Owned by celebrity power couple Judy Ann and Ryan Agoncillo, Angrydobo started as a restaurant that serves adobo in different ways. It has evolved into a restaurant bar that also serves an all-day breakfast of Crispy Lamayo, Kaya French Toast, and something as creative as Bulalo Empanada, and cocktails like Ube Cream and Tamarind Ginger Bourbon.

Kanin Club

Operating hours: Open daily from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m.

Kanin Club used to have a lot of branches in Metro Manila, but this is one of the branches that survived the onslaught of the pandemic. This restaurant is known for no-frills, no-fuss Filipino food such as the Crispy Dinuguan and the Sinigang Rice.

Neil’s Kitchen

Operating hours: 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. from Monday to Thursday, and 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. from Friday to Sunday.

Neil's Kitchen, one of the prettiest restaurants in the area, is where families—especially huge ones—tend to dine at. The restaurant serves contemporary Filipino dishes such as Sinigang Paella with Grilled Pork Belly and a Dinuguan Fondue.

Tus’ Restaurant

Operating hours: 11 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. from Monday to Thursday, and 11 a.m. to 9:30 p.m. from Friday to Sunday.

Tus' has always been known for one thing: dessert skillet, specifically the famous fudgy Half-Baked Cookie. This dessert is served in a small clay pot with a scoop of ice cream on the side.

Café Breton

Operating hours: Open daily from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m.

Whether sweet or savory dessert crepes, Café Breton has 'em! Fans of the institution swear by the simpler Butter & Sugar with Lemon, but there are more complex crepes, like the Funtastyc, which have a banana, chocolate-hazelnut spread, vanilla ice cream, and a Gran Marnier flambé.

Whistlestop

Operating hours: Open 24/7.

Westgate Center is surrounded by BPOs (Business Process Outsourcing) and other companies working for international clients, which makes Whistlestop a great place that can cater to those getting off of work in the wee hours of the morning. They serve beer, wine, and cocktails, plus food to pair them with. 

Da Gianni Cucina Italia Manila

Operating hours: Open daily from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m.

This Italian restaurant, owned by Matteo Guidicelli and his family, is where you can nosh on all the Italian food essentials. The restaurant has antipasti, insalate or salads, luppe or soup, pizza, pasta, risotto, and steaks, but, if anything, we recommend their coffee and their Tiramisu Espresso.

Shinomiya

Operating hours: 5 p.m. to 12 a.m .from Monday to Friday, and 11 a.m. to 12 a.m. on Saturdays and Sundays.

Surprisingly, Westgate Center has plenty of Japanese restaurants—more than Molito—and Shinomiya is one of them. This restaurant is known for its sushi, but its menu (which is mainly in Japanese but with English translations) also includes noodles and fried food.

Hanamichi

Operating hours: Open daily from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m.

Another Japanese restaurant you can find at Westgate Center is Hanamichi. As standoffish as the storefront looks, the interiors are every bit posh and have that Japanese aesthetic. Here, customers are served with Japanese food using ingredients flown in from Japan.

Butamaru

Operating hours: Open daily from 11:30 a.m. to 10 p.m.

Butamaru, yet another Japanese restaurant, sets itself apart as this dining spot is known for its relatively budget-friendly tonkotsu ramen. The menu is kept short and simple with only a number of appetizers, add-ons, and drinks that can be added to an order of bowl of ramen.

Sushi Ninja

Operating hours: Open daily from 11:30 a.m. to 9:45 p.m.

One of the hidden gems of Alabang is Sushi Ninja. This restaurant has traditional sushi but they're known for artistic takes on sushi, created by Chef Matthew Floro Tanjuakio, like the Oedo Toshi and the Okinawa Toshi which use seared wagyu beef with wasabi mayonnaise and torched salmon with truffle oil respectively.

Kaya Korean Restaurant

Operating hours: Open daily from 10:30 a.m. to 9 p.m.

The only Korean restaurant in this part of Alabang, Kaya is the restaurant to go to for Korean food such asjokbal, bossam, bibimbap, tteokbokki, and mandu. These dishes can be paired with soju,makgeolli, and bokbunja.

Alba Restaurante Español

Operating hours: Open daily from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m.

When it comes to OG Spanish restaurants, Alba Restaurante Español is an institution that's been around for more than 70 years serving traditional Spanish dishes. They are popular for their lunch and dinner buffets, both under a thousand pesos, but customers can also try a la carte dishes such as the callos, squid ink paella negra, and chorizo tapas.

Pizza Telefono

Operating hours: 8 a.m. to 11 p.m. from Monday to Thursday, and 7 a.m. to 11 p.m. from Friday to Sunday.

Pizza Telefono, a brand under ArmyNavy, makes hand-tossed pizzas. They do offer something as simple and basic as a Pepperoni pizza, but for those willing to try something new, Pizza Telefono has more experimental pizzas like the Pacific Clam which has clam chowder added.

Starbucks Reserve

Operating hours: Open daily from 6:30 a.m. to 12 a.m.

A three-story Starbucks Reserve can be seen from the Filinvest Avenue main road. This specialty coffee shop serves more premium coffee and pastries that aren't usually offered in regular Starbucks stores.

Kickstand Café & Brew

Operating hours: Open daily from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m.

This cute café that's concealed by car and bike shops and is far—at-least-500-steps-away kind of far—from the busier parts of Westgate Center. This dining spot is the new spot for riders and cyclists to grab Filipino all-day breakfast, sandwiches, pasta, coffee, and cocktails.

Caviar Restaurant Champagne Bar

Operating hours: 5:30 p.m. to 10 p.m. from Monday to Saturday, and 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. and 5:30 p.m. to 10 p.m. on Sundays.

People go to Caviar Restaurant for a more fine-dining experience. They have rare caviar varieties and oysters, among other dishes, you can pair with glasses of champagne. Plus they announce seasonal course menus on their Facebook page.

If you see the "Lavazza" sign at the storefront, that's because the restaurant bar carries the Lavazza brand of coffee beans. They use this for the coffee they serve on the menu, such as espressos and lattes. 

The Food Market Manila

Operating hours: Open daily from 7 a.m. to 12 a.m.

The Food Market, right beside Neil's Kitchen, is known for their waffles.  While its typical to eat waffles as a dessert, The Food Market has savory options pairing the waffles with chicken, sausage, bacon, ham, omelet, and even one turned into a pizza.

Hacienda Inasal

Operating hours: Open daily from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m.

Looking for chicken inasal?There are only a few options in Alabang you can count on one hand, and that veeery short list includes Hacienda Inasal. The Westgate Center branch is currently the only existing branch after the Glorietta store permanently closed its doors.

Brothers Burger

Operating hours: Open daily from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m.

The Brothers Burger store at Westgate Center is where South folks in the area go for affordable juicy burgers—the cheapest burger options being less than P250. There are a few people who dine in here, but based on our own observation, the burgers are ordered for delivery.

Hermanos Taco Shop

Operating hours: Open daily from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m.

There are a few signages around Westgate Center that say there's a Hermanos Taco Shop nearby. This Mexican eatery which is semi-hidden in a row of other shops—not related to food, aside from one coffee shop—serves birria, quesadillas, burritos, and tacos.

DRAFT COFFEE by Lew's

Operating hours: 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. from Sunday to Thursday, and 6 a.m. to 11 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays.

The "one coffee shop" right beside Hermanos Taco Shop Right is DRAFT COFFEE by Lew's. The small coffee shop serves interesting coffee concoctions like Sunrise Coffee which has coffee and orange juice and Sweet Corn which uses sweet corn milk as its dairy ingredient. They also have cake-inspired shakes and creative soda drinks for those avoiding coffee.

Tasty Habit by Surge

Operating hours: 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. from Monday to Wednesday, and 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. from Thursday to Saturday. Closed on Sundays.

Surge is one of the many fitness and lifestyle centers at Westgate Center, and right by the entrance is another store called Tasty Habits. This shop is known for its healthy smoothies using different fruits such as apples, blueberries, dragon fruit, watermelon, papaya, banana, and more.

Conti’s Bakeshop and Restaurant

Operating hours: Open daily from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.

Conti's Bakeshop and Restaurant is where families eat out. The bakeshop restaurant offers the same dishes and cakes Conti's is known for, such as the Mango Bravo and Baked Salmon.

Max's Restaurant

Operating hours: Open daily from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m.

Since the closure of Max's Restaurant right across from Alabang Town Center, the residents go to the Max's Restaurant branch at Westgate Center for their fix of comforting Filipino food. 

Tokyo Tokyo

Operating hours: Open daily from 10 a.m. to 9 pm.

Tokyo Tokyo has a standalone takeout store located on the Westgate Center parking lot—near Conti's and right across South Supermarket. For those working nearby, it's a lunch option that won't break the bank.

Opening soon at Westgate Center

There are a few stores at Westgate Center we're excited to visit. There's Dough & Grocer (beside ICON Golf & Sports) which we hope will have a dine-in option after shopping their rare, imported grocery items; Orlandos Churrasqueira (beside Bean & Yolk) for Portuguese eats; and Swaadisht (beside Belo Medical Group) for Indian dishes. 

How to get to Westgate Center, Alabang:

If you're going to Westgate Center by car, there are three entrances. You can pin Uniqlo Westgate, Starbucks Reserve Westgate, or Conti's Westgate on the Waze app or Google Maps app, as these stores are nearest the entrances and exits. Parking rates start at P40.

Westgate Center is at Filivest City, Alabang, Muntinlupa City—in the intersections of Alabang-Zapote Road and Filinvest Avenue, and Commerce Avenue and Filinvest Avenue.

For more information, check out Westgate Muntinlupa City on Facebook.

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