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Our 3rd Sunday for Davao Food Crawl ended with Cuencos Rice & Noodle Bar. Situated in Tulip Drive in front of Fuente De Villa Abrille, this cozy restaurant offers just what the name suggests: Rice and Noodle Bowls. The Spanish word “Cuencos” translates to earthenware bowls. The idea behind the restaurant is to bring comfort food in bowls. I liked the interior of the place; the wooden chairs and tables making it feel a lot more local and homey.

Since it was a Sunday night, the crowd we met was sparse; mostly families and people picking up their orders. However, I could tell that Cuencos had a lot of fans on account of all the Foodpanda riders picking up orders. The Chef behind Cuencos food is the same chef behind Tatler’s Best Restaurants Tiago Progressive Filipino Cuisine (2014) and Huckleberry Southern Kitchen and Bar (2015 and 2016), Kenneth Villaluz. 

We were served three dishes: two rice bowls and one noodle bowl. All the dishes looked appetizing and incredibly satisfying.

The first dish served was the Pad Thai Noodle Bowl. I’m not exactly a fan of Pad Thai but the dish they served was a great mixture of flavors you look for in a Pad Thai dish. The noodles were soft yet chewy enough that the sauce and the flavors cling to it. This dish costs Php 170.00.

The next dish they served was the Malaysian Nasi Lemak. Nasi Lemak is rice cooked in coconut milk, usually accompanied by sambal sauce and fried crispy anchovies. Their version of the Nasi Lemak was also very tasty and flavorful. I liked how their chicken strips were crunchy. Their anchovies lacked the crunch I was looking for, though. Although it might be because we took the time to photograph the food, too. The Nasi Lemak costs Php 185.00.

The last dish they served was the Filipino favorite, Bistek Tagalog Rice Bowl. Out of all the dishes that were served, this was my favorite. Maybe because in terms of comfort food, the Bistek Tagalog hits close to home. The fried rice was buttery, the meat was tender and the egg was just perfect enough to coat the fried rice. I’m drooling as I’m typing this down.  (TMI! haha). The Bistek Tagalog costs Php 195, which in my opinion, is perfectly priced for the amount of food you get and the satisfaction of getting your comfort food.

Overall, Cuencos delivers in what they promise: comfort food served in bowls. They are located along Tulip Drive and are open for lunch from 11 AM to 2 PM & dinner from 5 PM to 10 PM.