Shylin at Paranaque's Dampa

For years, I had held the contention that Dampa’s restaurants were quite overrated. In the several times I dined there, the cooking was mostly passable as it did not merit the prices they attached to it.

Probably the best thing about Dampa’s set-up was your assurance that, since you were the one who chose it in the market, the food was fresh. But then again, despite your assiduous combing of the fresh foods stalls, the cook of your choice restaurant could always “murder” your goods through some terrible culinary disaster, rendering your market exploits practically useless. That was why I would eat at Dampa only when someone else was paying the bill.

Such was my firm belief until the night my friend Nick invited me to celebrate his wife and daughter’s joint birthday celebration at Dampa’s Shylin, located at the 2nd floor of the innermost recesses of the restaurant complex, a predicament that may have made me miss it in previous lives. It was this joint that reversed my perception of Dampa’s cuisine.

ALL the dishes served - sinigang na maya-maya, lapu-lapu in sweet and sour sauce, halabos na hipon, shrimp tempura, squid barbecue - all these simply tasted fabulous. Even such simple fare as calamares and adobong kangkong were elevated into remarkable gastronomic delights. And, although it was Shylin’s staff who did the market purchases, our palates sensed the sheer freshness of what we were eating.

The feast satisfied our party of 15 adults and 6 kids, excluding toddlers. Plus there were take-home leftovers to feed each attending family for at least 1 more meal. We had a whole, fully air-conditioned hall to ourselves, with a dreaded videoke machine that was absurdly gullible in giving out singing scores.

With contributions from his family members, Nick paid around Php6,700 for the whole caboodle, which amount would have been extremely high for my standards, but my friend did not mind as the event covered both birthdays of his wife and daughter. And it really pleased them that for once they held a feast without having to cook and clean-up afterwards.

Next time you are at Dampa, check out Shylin. The place’s notorious parking area would have more spaces after 8pm. And the beer would most probably be refreshingly cold.