Hog’s Breath Cafe Opens First Branch in the Philippines in Davao at SM Lanang Premier

Hog’s Breath Café Opening at SM Lanang Premier its First Branch in the Philippines!

Hog’s Breath Cafe Australia’s Steakhouse finally opened it’s first branch ever in the Philippines right here in Davao City at SM Lanang Premier with a soft opening last December 13, 2012. It is the biggest branch so far among all Hog’s Breath branches. They had a secret party hosted by DJ Norman last December 12, a day before they opened to the public. They will host their grand opening celebration in January 2013 that will coincide with the Australia Day celebration. They chose Davao because they fell in love with our city – the place and the people made them feel at home. It makes us proud. Hog’s Breath just opened a branch last year in Papua New Guinea, a place very close to the heart of the owners.

We are grateful that we got to try their Hogs-pitality a few days before their soft opening and the food they would offer to customers, diners and food trippers here in Davao. Our host was very friendly and accommodating. Thank you Ms. Roxeanne Macasaet, Marketing manager and corporate representative for L’ Restaurateur, the company which is responsible for introducing the franchise to the Philippines shares the excitement of opening the first branch.

Ms. Roxie said they want to bring here and share this Australian dining experience with the Dabawenyos. It is after all the newest restaurant in the city to have fun and enjoy dining with family and friends while enjoying their Aussie steaks and ribs dishes. For meat lovers out there, Hog’s Breath Cafe Davao is a place in the city where you can pig out to your heart’s delight… if I may put it that way. *wink*

Here is the menu they showed us that time we were there to taste their dishes.

For starters, we had Tomato Bruschetta one of your choices for appetizer.

Salt and Pepper Calamari… hand cut calamari rings dusted with salt and pepper breadcrumbs piled on a bed of sweet potato chips and served with sweet chili sauce. This is one of the choices for starters as well.

Buffalo Wings… dusted and marinated with traditional hot sauce, fried and served with Hog’s Breath blue cheese ranch dressing, celery and carrot sticks. This was a hit among those who tasted it then and there. I am not much into buffalo wings but I enjoyed eating this. My husband loved it!

Then of course, we got to try their signature steaks…

Prime Rib Steak… Hog’s Breath Cafe’s signature dish which is a must try of course. It is slow cooked for many hours (that’s around 18 hours if I am not mistaken) for maximum flavor and tenderness for this 200 grams steak that is char grilled. Served with vegetables and mashed potato which happens to be one of the food I really like when I don’t want rice.

The prime rib steaks are grain fed. Their steaks are from a supplier in Australia which they fly in through Singapore to Davao according to Ms. Roxie.

Smoked Pork BBQ Ribs… tender and delicious as most food trippers and friends there at that time agreed.

When you come to Hog’s Breath Cafe, you should not leave without trying its signature Smoked Pork BBQ Ribs (half-rack) which is tenderly delicious served with a special Hickory smoked BBQ sauce. It is served with curly fries which they call Hog’s Tail fries, and house salad or a choice of creamy mashed potato.

When I saw the main menu, I wanted to try next time their Chicken Parmigiana, their Chicken and Rib Combo or their Rib and Steak Combo.

Spaghetti Aglio Olio with fresh tiger prawns and a piece of garlic bread. Now this disappeared before I got to taste it.

Salmon Nicoise Salad… pan seared salmon on top of salad greens with seasoned potato chunks, cherry tomatoes then drizzled and seasoned with Italian vinaigrette. They do have a local supplier of salmon here in Davao according to Ms. Roxie. Hubby and I love salmon and it is a treat every time we get to eat a delicious salmon dish.

Now here are some of the desserts you can enjoy at Hog’s Breath…

Mississippi Mud Cake – comfort food for food trippers out there who like chocolate cake. A guarded recipe since hog’s Breath started in 1989. It is served with cream and ice cream.

Banana Split Sundae… that I find sweeter than I expected.

Apple Crumble… home style served with caramel sauce topped with cream and ice cream. It makes me think of that fave dessert served in a resto.

 They also serve pizza, burgers, wraps, sandwiches and salads. They also have Hogsters Kid’s menu for kids.

Now here are some of their drinks…

Banana Smoothie and their Mango & Apple Smoothie

They have a bar that serves mojitos, smoothies, cocktails, shooters, wines, beers and spirits.

They also serve coffee liqeuer, coffee and tea.

They also have a nice function room customers and diners can use without the usual minimum food order.

If you want to have an exclusive date with your loved one or accommodate your family for family gathering during special occasions, you can reserve the room and arrange with the Hog’s Breath staff.

I find the resto more spacious than I initially expected. It has a nice and cozy ambiance that family and friends can dine comfortably, drink at their bar and hangout even just to chill during weekends. This part of the resto is where we would most probably be choosing when we get to dine with my boys there once again.

Hog’s Breath Cafe has 80 branches in Australia while there are 4 in New Zealand, 1 in Singapore, 1 in Thailand, 1 in Vietnam, 1 in Papua New Guinea and 1 in the Philippines this one right here in Davao City. And they are still counting. According to Ms. Roxie, they plan to expand in the future in GenSan, Cebu and Manila.

To know more on their updates and promos, visit the Hog’s Breath Café Davao Facebook page on www.facebook.com/HogsBreathCafeDavao and you can also follow them on Twitter @HBCafeDavao for regular updates.

Hog’s Breath Café Davao is located at Unit 147 – 149 Ground Floor, SM Lanang Premier, Lanang, Davao City. It is near the SM Lanang Supermarket entrance/exit going at the Fountain Court.