Updated with Mott32 Cebu Menu: About Mott32 | Tea | Cocktails | Mottails | BBQ | Starters | Dimsum | Soup | Bird’s Nest | Abalone & Dried Seafood | Market Seafood | Fresh Seafood & Claypot | Meat | Vegetable | Rice & Noodles | Dessert
Mott 32 Cebu was chosen by Mott 32 Hong Kong as its official branch in the Philippines. The name is a homage to New York’s first Chinese convenience store located along 32 Mott Street, marking the year 1851 as a pivotal point of Chinese migration in New York. The Hong Kong branch is iconic because of its bank vault location and dark romantic interiors that serve as backdrop to the Barbecue Pluma Iberico Pork and Apple Wood Roasted 42 Days Peking Duck. Mott 32, a favorite among many Filipinos, officially opened in Cebu with a VIP Preview last August 27, a day right after Ghost Month.
Is it worth it to fly all the way to Cebu just to go on a Mott 32 food trip? Here’s our take.
About Mott 32 Cebu
Acclaimed and award-winning Cantonese restaurant Mott 32 opens its first Philippine outlet in NUSTAR Resort and Casino, located in South Road Properties, Cebu City’s fastest emerging urban development area. The much-anticipated restaurant opening introduces to the Philippines Mott 32’s signature modern approach to Chinese cuisine—a complete feast for the senses—fusing unique culinary flavors, innovative cocktails, and stunning interiors that complete the Mott 32 experience.
The menu includes Mott 32 classic offerings from the flagship restaurant in Hong Kong, helmed by Group Chinese Executive Chef, Lee Man Sing. Mott 32 Cebu is to be led by head chef Tam Wai Sang who has 35 years of culinary experience. Chef Tam was trained by Mott 32 master chef Lee Man Sing in preparation for Mott 32 Cebu’s opening. With Chef Tam’s specialty in Cantonese cuisine, as well as a history of chefs under his generational belt, his lead in the Philippine outlet aims to bring the best out of time-honored recipes passed down from generation to generation.
The dishes are mainly crafted from a Cantonese palate with influences of Beijing and Szechuan flavors, utilizing traditional recipes, quality ingredients, and innovative cooking techniques from around the world.
Mott32 Cebu
Modern approach to Chinese cuisine by Michelin-awarded Chef Lee Man Sing
The Strip, NUSTAR Resort and Casino, Kawit Island, South Road Properties, Cebu City
📞: +63 32 520 4468
📩: MOTT32.Cebu@nustar.com.ph
Instagram: @mott32cebu
Facebook: Mott 32 Cebu
Visit: nustar.ph
Related Post: MOTT 32 Hongkong: Eating Dimsum Will Never Be the Same Again! (A Review)
The interiors by award-winning interior designer Joyce Wan is stunning, one of the best Modern Chinese interiors I’ve seen in the Philippines. It has the same New York industrial style mixed with Chinese imperial elements similar to Mott 32 restaurants in Hong Kong, Vancouver, Las Vegas, Singapore, and Bangkok.
Make sure to book the private room for your special celebrations and functions. It’s the type of ambiance where you want to wear your chic modern cheongsam dress and spend time enjoying the food and the company.
Mott 32 Cebu is even lovelier at night compared to the brightly lit lunch time setup. Make sure to book this for dinner to experience the nightly glow of the interiors.
Make sure to go earlier. Start with their signature cocktails, hangout at the bar, go outside the balcony to see the sunset and take in the view of the Cebu Strait and Cebu-Cordova Express Way (CCLEX).
Go for the booth tables for date nights and the table near the window with a long lounge chair for group dining.
It’s still hot at the al fresco balcony during this time of the year, but I could imagine how lovely it would be here at night during the cool December season. I would recommend booking the tables inside and just go out anytime to take in the breeze and have some breathing space.
Best to book the Seaview room at Fili Hotel in Nustar for your Mott32 food trip with friends.
Mott32 Food
Vanilla Infused Pisco. Passionfruit. Lychee. Chili. Lemon.
We loved this Pisco sour with fruity sweetness from passionfruit and lychee balanced with the citrus acidity from the lemon then finished with plum bits. Best cocktail drink for her.
Rye Whisky. Gin. Umeshu. Yuzu. Shiso. Ginger Beer. Chrysanthemum.
My favorite. Loved the gin whisky yuzu combination with sweetness from the ginger beer and chrysanthemum to balance the flavor. This is the kind of cocktail you’ll enjoy longer while getting the conversation going.
Starters
Yellow Mountain Honey. Limited Daily
Yes, this signature char siu tasted like the ones in Hong Kong, with honey from Anhui’s Yellow Mountain, one of China’s most famous mountains and a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
However, there was a discussion on the meat cut used because this one was quite soft and some preferred tender meat with a good bite.
Yes! The best siomai you’ll taste—with the yolk oozing from the quail egg and just the right hint of truffle that does not overpower the siomai.
This arrived still hot. Be careful not to bite it in half because the hot & sour may squirt out. Quite unique and served in its own holder but the skin was sticking to it, making it hard not to burst the skin.
This dimsum got mixed reactions, but I liked the unique take on the Xiao Long Bao.
Creamy taro with bits of chicken and prawn inside and crispy texture outside. Loved this!
Mains
Everyone raved about the black cod served smoked with apple wood and a sweet dark sauce covering that did not overpower the taste of the cod.
(Pre-order in Advance) Limited Daily
The duck was imported to achieve the high-quality required, prepared carefully with a special marinating technique, stored for 48 hours in a custom fridge and smoked with apple wood to get the same signature Mott 32 duck.
It was awesome to see how the Mott 32 chefs cut the duck—first the skin, then the breast and finally the leg part.
Note: (Peking Duck second course add on)
+ Peking Style Spicy Crispy Duck Rack (₱1,100)
+ Minced Duck, Diced Bamboo Shoot, Lettuce Cup (₱1,100)
(Pre-order in Advance) Limited Daily
The duck meat was served in 3 special cuts deconstructed with the steamed pancake wrapper, hoisin with peanut and sesame sauce, sugar, cucumber, and leeks.
It was awesome to assemble on your own and enjoy every piece. Best to taste the duck as is, with the crispy skin and fatty meaty cuts. You can enjoy the skin dipped in brown sugar.
My favorite—Black Angus Short Rib braised, baked and fried to create a unique crispy texture and flavorful meat. Loved every piece, including the sauce.
Ask for their XO sauce to add a different dimension to the meat or their chili garlic to add spice.
This one had generous servings of small pieces of beef that can make you forget you are eating beans. A good vegetable dish to complete your meal.
The duck and the Angus short rib go well with the crabmeat and roe fried rice mixed with the XO sauce. Panalo sa sarap!
Desserts
Your usual mango sago with pomelo bits to clean your palate.
This was just okay, coconut ice cream with honey comb crunch and some pomelo bits.
The desserts could be better.
Final Thoughts
Overall, this is the best modern Chinese Restaurant in the Philippines, elevating the Chinese dining scene in the country. The Mott32 signature dishes tasted the same as the ones in Hong Kong, made use of the same recipes and high-quality ingredients, and expertly cooked by its well-trained chefs.
Make sure to try their signature cocktails, Hanami and Forbidden Rose. To start, order the Barbecued Pluma Iberico Pork and the Soft Quail Egg, Iberico Pork, Black Truffle Siu Mai. For the mains, don’t miss the Apple Wood Roasted 42 Days Peking Duck “Signature Mott 32 Cut”, Signature Smoked Black Cod, Crispy Triple Cooked US Black Angus Short Rib, and Crabmeat Fried Rice. Flying Fish Roe with XO Sauce please. Hope they soon have a unique kind of dessert at Mott 32 Cebu for an awesome finish.
Is it worth it? Yes, it is worth flying all the way to Cebu (cheaper than flying to HK) plus you get to enjoy a Cebu food trip with all the other new places in the city. Although the menu prices have yet to be released when the resto officially opens to the public this early September, Cebu restaurant prices are generally lower than Manila counterparts. (Will update this post.)
Congratulations to the NUSTAR and MOTT 32 team for a job well done bringing the awesome Mott 32 experience to Cebu!
Mott32 Cebu
Modern approach to Chinese cuisine by Michelin-awarded Chef Lee Man Sing
The Strip, NUSTAR Resort and Casino, Kawit Island, South Road Properties, Cebu City
📞: +63 32 520 4468
📩: MOTT32.Cebu@nustar.com.ph
Instagram: @mott32cebu
Facebook: Mott 32 Cebu
Visit: nustar.ph
Related Post: MOTT 32 Hongkong: Eating Dimsum Will Never Be the Same Again! (A Review)
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Disclosure: Thank you to our friends from NUSTAR for the Mott32 Cebu Experience. I wrote this article with my biases, opinions, and insights.
P.S. Awesome meeting you and experiencing the Mott 32 special VIP preview session with you all!
