U Story Resort Bar & restaurant

U Story is a French-run boutique resort with a bar and restaurant on the Circumferential Road in Tag-ibo, San Juan, east of Coco Grove and well away from the busy Solangon strip. The open-sided restaurant sits in a tropical garden above a rocky shore, with hammocks, a pool and stone steps down into the sea, where turtles are often spotted by snorkellers. There is no sand beach here, but the sunset view from the terrace is the reason many people come.

The kitchen mixes French and Filipino cooking with fresh local produce. The Sea Matador, a seafood platter for two, is the order for couples, and the steak and the U Story salad get repeat mentions. Frozen margaritas are the house favourite at the bar, and it is one of the few places on the island pouring decent wine by the glass, along with rose for sunset. You can reserve the canopy table for an anniversary or special dinner.

Opening hours are not published, so call +63 967 044 3921 before you ride out. Prices sit well above the island average, and wine is marked up. It is cash or GCash only. Non-guests can use the pool for ₱500 on top of what they order. Book a sunset table and bring a mask if you want to snorkel before dinner.