Pizza and Pasta at Afrique's

I have been to Ilo-Ilo several times; way back when I only have shopping malls and fast foods on my itinerary! :) I never realized the true essence of traveling when I was younger. On my recent trip, I vowed to do something different; heritage sites instead of malls, local restaurants instead of fast food chains. 

As you all know, I failed on my sightseeing goal because of a very unfortunate event. I was so determined to succeed in the food aspect, but I made an exemption for lunch as I wanted to let my Mom have her favorite Kenny Roger's roasted chicken. I love to please my parents. Oh well, who doesn't? For dinner, I had the authentic La Paz batchoy in mind while my mom whispered 'Kenny Rogers' for the second time! Hahah! I felt so sorry, but I had to say "once is enough, Mama". :) I would probably have batchoy for dinner if I'm alone, but since I wasn't, I decided to have a "real" family dinner in one of the local restaurants.

My parents are cool, go-with-the-flow type of oldies. When I asked them if they want to have something Italian for dinner, they cheerfully agreed. Afrique's is a popular pizza and pasta place in Ilo-Ilo. It is one of the best, currently rank 11 in Tripadvisor's list of 73 dine-out spots in the city. A friend told me that I should never leave Ilo-Ilo without having a meal at Afrique's. I'm glad I took the advice this time.

Afrique's is very cozy. It is homey, yet infused with a fine-dining ambiance. I have convinced my mom and my aunt to have pizza and pasta with me. Since it was my first at Afrique's, I had to take the wait staff's recommendation; Sicilian pasta and Afrique's special pizza for us women, and Ox Tongue for my dad who preferred to have a rice meal.

Afrique's Special
(sausage, bacon, mushroom, onion, tomatoes, olive, garlic, Parmesan cheese, Afrique's pizza sauce)

Sicilian Pasta
(linguini with vegetables, sausage, bacon sauteed in olive oil and rich tomato sauce)

Ox Tongue
(tender ox tongue in Afrique's special creamy mushroom sauce)

Afrique's didn't fail, all the positive reviews were true! Afrique's special pizza differs from the rest as it has a creamy white sauce instead of the usual pizza sauce. The Sicilian pasta has a rich, but not over-powering taste. The pasta's tomato based sauce actually complements our pizza choice. I also had a little of my Dad's meal. It was very tasty, but my health conscious father said he would still prefer an ordinary Lengua dish without the cream and butter. The dishes came in huge servings. The prices on the menu were surprisingly affordable for an Italian restaurant. Thumbs up for Afrique's! 

You might wonder why my husband is missing in the photo, Ed went to Tacloban a week before
our flashpack trip to process some important documents. We later joined him in his hometown.

Afrique's Menu

(click to enlarge)

Location:

Afrique's

Smallville, Red Square Bldg

Ilo-Ilo City

Philippines

More of Ilo-Ilo:
Riverside Inn
Tibiao Fish Spa