Have you had a problems with the owner of the Bambulo Resort previously? You seem to have a bend against Bambulo Resort/Management with continued negatived comments against the food and management.. Even your comments with the buck stops here did not acknowledge that the owner did take care of the staff problems, if he had ignored the problem he could have stayed as the problem was not centered on economics. Being a foreigner he did not have the right to ignore the laws as the citizens of this county have when operating a business. Go talk to owner and he may tell you the real problems before you make to many too many judgments against Bambulo Resort or him. The other alternative would be to buy Bambulo Resort and show everyone how you think it should be run. Personally I ran my own professional service company for over 45 years in the US and I would not consider managing/owning that type of company here as there is few professionals, and such a low level of personal service knowledge here in the Philippines. Just watch the typical employee in the large corporate owned business here, or better yet try to get them stop talking in a group as you meander through the aisles looking for someone to help you. Most large companies do not even have 100% percent employee employment, but use contract labor vendors to provide most of the the employees so they do not have liability issues with the employees. Being a corporation with employees is different that being a small independent business. Being a successful business person here is difficult unless you run your business with you own rules, disregarding employees rights and the laws, which is how most of the the small business operate here. One national retail company in town had there retail sale ladies working 11 hours days, including 20 minute lunch, 365 days a year for 185 P a day until a couple of months ago. ( a little over 35 cents an hour) and yes they were responsible for any inventory losses in their area. There were not operating in a legal manner but they did operate though out the Philippines, with no consequences, even when caught with employees locked upstairs of the retail outlet at night in one location when it caught fire, killing over a half of dozen employees.Could that happen in your mother county and the corporate retail company continue operating on under the same name? Is it any wonder why people sell their votes here when their wages do not provide enough rice for them and the employer does not act in a good manner? I getting way off the thread but there are large problems in this county... too many for this simple thread to solve, or me either.
That is a very good statement of awareness of food tastes. How do you make a simple hamburger that matches the definition of a good hamburger for a European, an American, a New Zealander, and a Filippino all siting at the same table or even the same restaurant. I mean I have never had a hamburger with cucumber on it in American, yet i continue pick them off the hamburgers here. You can not meet the expectations of the international tastes with "foreigner food" as there is no such thing as common foreigner food other than maybe McDonalds, KFC certainly is not very close. The concept of foreigner food is a joke and a point of frustration for restaurant owners here because how ever they make foreigner food, half the customers do not like it because it is not what they expect. The owner of Bambulo is European, so he is not going to perfectly match the expectation tastes of the Americans, New Zealanders and Filipinos, etc. The only food that can be defined as good food is probably the Filipino food because it is the only food we measure, and evaluate by similar standards that we have come to acknowledge while living here. There are highly touted foreigner restaurants here that do not meet my taste standards. I gave up ordering my favorite beef dishes in restaurants here because even the restaurants serving "imported" beef seem to screw it up. I would rather eat something other than beef than accept what they call beef dishes here at any restaurant and be disappointed, , even the American chain restaurants found in parts of Manila do not match the American equivalents.My American taste of beef has prejudiced my acceptance of any other thing they call beef here. The point is you are most likely never going to please everyone, especially with foreigner food. I mean what ever they put in their mouth Filipinos have a tendency to chew and smile (it always makes you stomach feel better than starving) .... while we expats have a tendency to eat and complain that it does not meet our mothers cooking standards. The also have mixed drinks and their Milky Rum drink is some thing I have not experienced in any other place in the world. A small pitcher does wonders for my dates inhibitions and is always been a good investment for me. Enjoy the the environment, pools and cleanliness at Bambulo resort. You can always eat a some other place but you will probably not find a nicer environment to enjoy your sunny afternoon, or romantic evening iincluding the candle lite tables at than Bambulo Resort. The staff and the customers are nice to spend time with there. (Personally I have given up addressing the food critics and skeptic here, I will eat what I like at Bambulo, ignoring the dishes I do not like, and enjoy the environment. We need to lighten up here until we can all come up the perfect restaurant because there are not a lot of clean, well maintained themed resorts here in the area, I would hate to lose another one. Bambulo Resort is more than just a restuarant, try enjoying the other characteristic of the place while you are looking for the place the pleases everyone all the time. By the way it was not economics that closed Bambulo Resort for two months but staffing issues, more information regarding that issue would create liability for too many people, maybe even the forum to disclose further.) ..
I see things as they are from my point of view, and I am sure that differs from others, but is that not what a Forum is all about ? Here are some positive experiences I can share. I have found these restaurants have very good food, good service and reasonable prices commensurate with the quality of the food, and the Management is user friendly and have the correct people/personality for the job. The Japanese Restaurant outside Robinsons but I forget the name...., Pasta King, ....Guiseppes,.... White Chocolate, ....Moon, ......Blue Monkey, .......Gabbys. If I am going to pay for food, it needs to satisfy all my requirements or I am not interested in returning to spend good money after bad, which I experienced at Bambulo, even though I gave it a second chance. I will add that I am very spoiled, as my lovely wife is an excellent chef.:D Therefore we both are very particular where we eat out. Oh,:oops: I forgot one, the Jollibee, where I particularly like their burger called _ "aloha champ" and their fries are not too bad either.
Bambulo is one of the prettiest resorts and nice pool area. Hope to try it again soon. Also it is a peaceful place to stay for relaxing away from the noise and no tv forces you to read or get some exercise. I give it a top rating and always nice staff.
This shows that we all have different expectations. Jollibee burgers are absolutely disgusting to my palate and I have, very reluctantly, tried all the burgers on the menu. Even here in Afghanistan at the European restaurants (operated by Europeans and food imported from Europe) the burger has the same qualities; an over-sized bun with a small slimy-textured piece of "meat". Seems like the meat-sandwich ratio for European burgers is always 10 percent meat the rest bun and some crap sauce between. IMO only ketchup and mustard or mayo is acceptable as a condiment on a burger.....and never should a cucumber be found on a burger (unless it has first been pickled). While Jollibee burgers are crap, IMO, they have some excellent fried chicken....usually, (consistency is not a common thing found in Filipino restaurants, which is why I usually give many chances before I decide to not eat the specific item again). A side note that hits on @quicktrip burger question: there is a place in Angeles City called Bunny Burger. It's an Australian owned place that served burgers that catered to American, Australian, European and Filipino tastes. (But all of the burgers were really good....even the Filipino one.) This was the first place I had ever heard of beets (beet root for you Aussies) being put on a burger....and to my surprise was quite good. There are many bad things you can say about Angeles and Olongapo, but the food ain't one of them, and expats from many different continents agree. So it is possible for a restaurant to successfully cater to a wide range of expat palates here. @Oz-Roger: You said you have given Bambulo a second chance, I'm curious if you have done so since they have reopened or if you are basing your opinion on their previous kitchen staff. You are certainly entitled to you opinion but I think that the previous experiences at Bambulo are irrelevant since they have completely revamped the kitchen and menu(?). I had never been to Bambulo myself.....as I had heard their food wasn't that good in the past and I have a swimming pool in my front yard, but I am certainly interested in making a visit now that I have seen some good reviews posted here. Would be nice if some members posted their experiences with specific dishes on this thread.
Having been there quite a few times before I have nothing to say on the new set up But, the grounds and day Cottages would be a very good location for a DI get together if Dustin likes his visit. No one would need to be Overpowered or feel left out, the grounds lend themselves to the family attending too. Wives would not get Bored here:D Mums and Kids around the pool area, Lads in a day Cottage to have a few SMB"s Just a Thought. JP
