During pre-pandemic years, the town of El Nido is bustling with activity as it is always crowded with tourists from different parts of the world.

When I went to El Nido earlier this year, there were some local tourists, but it wasn't as busy as it was before. Because of this, a lot of restaurants you would read about in El Nido blogs were closed. Whether they are closed permanently or temporarily, I'm not sure.

Since there weren't many choices, it didn't take me too long to decide where I was going to eat. Here's are the restaurants that I've tried in the town proper.

Rice 8 Spice

I ate at Rice 8 Spice on my first night in El Nido. I arrived late in the afternoon so I only had an hour to get settled in my hotel before going out for dinner. I immediately Googled restaurants nearby and I saw a popular Thai restaurant that has a nice beachfront location. Their Facebook page said that they are open, but when I got there, it was closed. And so were the restaurants beside it.

It was raining that night so I asked some locals to point me to the nearest place where I can get food, and that's how I found out about Rice 8 Spice.

I was pleased to discover that they have Thai food, so I was still able to satisfy my Thai food cravings. Their menu was limited. I ordered Pad Thai, and it was delicious. The portion was very good too. Plus the staff were really nice.


Pad Thai - PHP200

Garlic & Mint

Garlic & Mint is a Vietnamese-Filipino restaurant located near the port. I discovered this restaurant while walking back to my hotel after the island hopping tour. I checked out their menu and thought it was good, so I went back there for dinner after showering at my hotel.

This restaurant offers a lot of dishes, from rice meals to noodles. I ordered a chicken and rice meal, and it was really good. The chicken was cooked with lemongrass and it was quite tasty. I ate here on my second day in El Nido and so far so good.


Lemongrass Chicken, served with rice - PHP220

Angel Wish

This restaurant is quite popular in El Nido. During my trip, I asked a couple of my friends who've been to El Nido to recommend a restaurant and they both mentioned this.

Angel Wish is a beachfront restaurant that serves Filipino. They also offer fresh live seafood that you can pick out, and they will cook it for you.

I ordered a chicken dish and I was pleasantly surprised by how good it was. It has a hint of spice in it, which I thought was just perfect. I found the name of this restaurant was a bit tacky, but don't knock it out because of the name. The food here was delicious and the portions were really good.



Chicken with Mango Salsa, served with rice - PHP255

El Nido ArtCafe

Last on this list is El Nido ArtCafe, which is located near the port. If you are walking along the street leading to the port, there is no chance that you will miss this restaurant. It's in a prominent building with big letters in front saying El Nido Boutique & ArtCafe. 

This restaurant is on the second floor of the building, which means that you get a nice view of the ocean while dining.

El Nido ArtCafe offers a variety of dishes from rice meals to sandwiches to pasta. I decided to order their Penne Pesto with Chicken. Although I found it too saucy, it was actually a good dish. I love a good pesto dish and this one did not disappoint.


Penne Pesto with Chicken - PHP350

If you are planning a trip to El Nido, I would recommend adding these restaurants if you have a list of places to eat. The food in these restaurants did not disappoint me one bit. While some of them are a bit pricey, I'd still say they were worth it because the portions were generous.

That's it for this blog. More of my trip to El Nido coming up soon!