CAI HOK SEAFOOD RESTAURANT: Where Excitement Over Its Promos Dwindle After Your First Bite

My family was curious to try out Cai Hok Seafood Restaurant as people have been raving about its Peking Duck promo (a whole duck can go as low as P1200 and opting for a second way would just require a top-up of P300) and discounted Suahe (P800/kilo). Of course, the fact that it’s always fully-booked definitely hyped us up even more!

XIAO LONG BAO (P195 – 6 pieces)

We opted to start with their Xiao Long Bao – which was a steal at P195. With the price point, of course, you can’t expect it to be fully stuffed. However, the bare minimum for a good XLB would be its tasty soup filling – which was unfortunately underwhelming in terms of flavor.

STEAMED SPARERIBS WITH TAUSI (P105)

Its Steamed Spareribs with Tausi was decently done – each meat came with a perfect meat to fat to bone ratio and was perfectly tender.

STEAMED PRAWN ROLL

The Steamed Prawn Rolls serve to satisfy – wrappers came with just the right thickness and texture; each one comes enclosed would be a sizeable shrimp with chives and aromatics stuffed inside; all on a bed of light soy sauce.

SALT AND PEPPER SPARERIBS (P620/P930)

The Salt and Pepper Spareribs were also just okay – it’s definitely not mind-blowing but the dish was executed well – each glistening deep-fried piece comes with a good enough ratio of meat to fat; and sprinkled with a decent serving size of aromatics (it could be more flavorful though)!

BIRTHDAY NOODLES (P550/P825)

Birthday Noodles is a dish that’s pretty hard to mess up – just toss in the right ingredients and make sure it’s seasoned well, and you’re bound to satisfy – but unfortunately, Cai Hok ruined such an easy-to-please dish by adding loads of liver meat to it.

SALTED FISH FRIED RICE

The Salted Fish Fried Rice was a decent rendition – aromatics aid in amping up its flavor; but there’s nothing mind-blowing about it.

“PEKING” DUCK PROMO (P1200)

Its Peking Duck promo is insanely priced – but when it was served on our table, it resembled more of a traditional roasted duck, instead of an actual Peking Duck. Judging it as a roasted duck, it was juicy and had a nice skin to meat to fat ratio; but it did come with an odd aftertaste. It was served with the usual pancake wrappers, hoisin sauce and the works – which I guess essentially aided in providing the ‘peking’ duck experience.

FRIED PRAWNS (MARKET PRICE)

The only dish which truly impressed us in the two visits my family made to Cai Hok would be the deep-fried prawns – wherein a single piece commanded hundreds of pesos, but boy, these were absolutely glorious! It's an indulgent treat, definitely - but I'd be as happy eating Benjarong's prawn cakes to be honest.

Overall though, I guess the promos were so effective at being clickbait that it really drew my family TWICE to the restaurant but honestly, for the promotional items, you really only get the quality that you pay for. As these are just a couple of items, you’d have to also supplement your meal with their regular menu offerings – which aren’t really the most affordable – especially when you consider that these are mostly mediocre at best. Somehow though, Cai Hok commands a strong following – usually you’d really have to book ahead to get a table; but honestly, there are way too many Chinese restaurants to visit than this one!

Cai Hok Seafood Restaurant

Year of Visit: 2023 with Wilson Chua, Lily Chua, Jared Chua and Jem Chua