My friends Miki, Mike, Vic and I had an awesome steak dinner in Cagayan de Oro just recently. It was to welcome Vic home as he has been living in the UK with his family for several years now. We went to Steak Paraiso, located in Canitoan, Cagayan de Oro. I met the owner of this popular steakhouse during the pandemic, when he still ran a wagyu place in Malaybalay City. At the time, I was with my Bukidnon-based friends including Roger, an Australian friend of mine, who ended up praising the owner because we were served top quality Kitayama Wagyu and other meats. Mind you, Australians know their roast beef and steaks so for Roger to only have compliments is a big deal. Anyway, because I had a great experience then, I knew Miki, Mike and Vic would also love it at Steak Paraiso CDO. I was right!
We started our meal with salads and wagyu salpicao. The salad had fresh, crispy vegetables and we liked the homemade vinaigrette. Serving was generous and shareable. The wagyu salpicao, on the other hand, is a must-try. Trust me! The beef was tender, perfectly seasoned and flavorful. One thing about salpicao is that it may seem like an easy dish to prepare but the truth is, you have to choose the best chunks of meat, make those very chunks of meat absorb the flavor and cook those chunks of meat in such a way that they won’t end up too tough to chew. The challenge is that the salpicao should be succulent and juicy!
Our entrees that night were smoked pork belly with sausage and Kitayama Prime Rib steak. The owner of Steak Paraiso said that the smoked pork belly was “melt-in-your-mouth.” So my friends and I teased the server that it should really BE “melt-in-your-mouth.” And IT WAS! The slab I got was cooked to perfection! As for the prime rib steak – well, what can I say? It was the pièce de résistance that night. We asked that it be cooked medium rare. The steak was juicy. Give it a try, too! We also ordered mashed potatoes for our sides.
* Photos of the smoked belly and prime rib are courtesy of Miki (The Gourmand Geek)
Here’s an interesting fact: did you know that Steak Paraiso is housed in an antique Filipino home, which was originally located in Vigan? Slowly but surely, they pretty much “transferred” the house from Vigan to Canitoan, Cagayan de Oro. Furniture pieces are mostly wooden. Pretty cool. Space is a little tight but there are tables good for a large group, a barkada (just like ours) and those for romantic dates.
Steak Paraiso is open daily. Lunch service is from 11 AM to 2 PM while dinner service is from 4 PM to 9 PM.
Location: Back of Canitoan Parish Church. Call 0952 566 3378. Best to reserve a table.
(L-R): Miki, Vic, me, Mike
BTW – I love this little group. We learn from each other, help each other and respect each other. We all love pretty much the same things — coffee, good food, great conversations, loads of laughter, little fun discoveries, digital marketing, social media and more. Choose your friends, guys. The type of company you keep will say so much about you.
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Mindanaoan is a multi-awarded blogger, content creator, seasoned social media strategist and publicist with undeniably successful track record. 2012 International Visitor Leadership Program (for global leaders) alumnus and O visa grantee (for people with extraordinary skills and who have risen to the top of their field). Avid traveler and a proud relief operations volunteer. Regular resource person for social media, blogging and content creation. Available for work and travel – [email protected]
