Minutes after stepping off the banca at Boracay and meeting Mrs. MM and The Kid at the hotel, we all rushed out to D’Mall to grab a bite to eat. It was past 2 in the afternoon and we settled on the airy looking Lemoni Café, also mentioned by several readers of 
this blog, when asked for food recommendations in Boracay. We ordered two fruit shakes, a Watermelon and Ginger Shake which was nice and refreshing but way too sweet. It’s as if they used a cup full of sugar syrup and the cloying sweetness ruined what would have otherwise been a very nice drink. The mixture of watermelon and ginger is a good one; the bartender must have just been liberal with the syrup. The Kid had a Mango Lemon drink that wasn’t as sweet and was likewise refreshing. The Kid ordered a simple tomato, basil and mozzarella on focaccia that was just okay; she left half of it untouched…
I ordered a pomelo and shrimp salad and was thrilled with what arrived. A very nice sized portion of mixed greens with shredded pomelo, steamed shrimp, peanuts, fried onions and a very spicy dressing that screamed I am ASIAN and proud of it! This 
was a very good salad, and better than most salads you find in Manila restaurants. Mrs. MM had a fettucine pasta dish with crabmeat and mussels but because they had no mussels, they replaced it with shrimp. This also had capers, olives and tomatoes, a sort of seafoody putanesca. Boo on the crabmeat sticks rather than real crabmeat. Processed sticks are made with huge white fish smushed and colored and shaped into sticks. This dish was just so-so.
For dessert, we ordered a lemon tart which was not impressive. I figured this would be their signature dish…the one by which the restaurant would be judged 
considering I thought from all the posts it was called Lemon Café (it’s actually Lemoni Café), but the crust was boring and the custard was acidic, lacking flavor. And I am always wary of places that use those plastic bottles to swirl colored sauce on a plate to make it look more expensive than it should be. The Kid had a dessert called Mango Madness that was okay and we also had a mango oatmeal cookie that was quite good, the best of the three sweets tried.
The meal as described with 2 Diet Cokes and a tip was PHP1,500. Not cheap at all. Boracay food prices are up there. But considering its remote location and the 
interesting food choices… price was not the issue… Overall, I would say Lemoni is a decent choice for lunch. An interesting small space that is bright and airy, attentive staff and some good choices on the menu… I would return to sample more of their salads if given a chance… Portions are a good size and they pay attention to presentation… Our first foray into Boracay food would probably rate a 7.0 out of 10, using the admittedly subjective Marketman & Family “Boracay Food Rating Scale.â€
Lemoni Cafe
D’Mall, Boracay
Telephone 2886781-82
Managed by Lemonhead Holdings Company, Inc
(all this according to their receipt…)
7 Responses
I appreciate some of the desserts and the shakes at Lemoni. And I just notice that the shakes tend to be sweet or bland at times. Maybe it depends with the fruit(if it is a fruit shake)?
I give them thumbs up for plating/food styling and their quaint interior.
I agree about the food — pretty good, but not special. I did enjoy breakfast there, but I do think that had a lot to do with the ambience; the place just looks so fresh and happy, doesn’t it? :-) As for the shake, since they’re the only place I’ve had watermelon with ginger (though I’ve had a wonderful ginger shake at Antonio’s Grill in Tagaytay), I’d definitely return for it. Not sure if they happened to put more syrup in your order, or if I just love my sugar. ;-)
I still am surprised about the name — I was there more than once, have read several reviews about it, and no one has ever called it Lemoni! Weird…
Katrina, you got me on that too… The cash register receipt clearly says Lemoni… maybe it was a copyright or registration issue??
one of the best places to eat at bora. dont eat at “canind-ARIA,” they have rude attendants. it ruined my last stay in boracay. one of the reasons i go to bora is to have a more than deluxe experience. that bad incident at aria felt like i was eating at a food stall in a wet market.
i may be wrong, wet market food stall attendants are actually quite nicer.
ARIA, better have your attendants trained well!
actually, i loved the Mango Madness of Lemoni cafe. it was simple yet delicious. there was a hint of pinipig polvoron flavor sa crust nila. i dont know but i loved it. it was recommended by my friend(Lemoni cafe owner’s daughter) when i went there last summer.
try their Tiger prawns with coconut risotto. very rich coconut sauce with al dente coconut flavored risotto. i think i tasted what the italians call “mantecado”? tama ba? where they stir parmesan and butter at the last minute sa risotto? it was one of their best dishes. their fish cakes tainted with laksa is good also. very moist and flavorful, not dry like other fish cakes in the metro.
haha i’ve never paid attention to this before. but its nice to see that this was featured. Fond memories at Lemoni :)