Punong Restaurant in Tagum City

We made a side trip to Tagum City before checking-in at our hotel in Davao City later in the evening. From Davao International Airport, we boarded a Bachelor Express bus with signage Butuan, which will pass by our first destination in the city, Punong Restauant, located along the national highway, about 10km before reaching Tagum City proper. The restaurant is Malay inspired: elevated on stilts, with pitched roof and high ceiling.


Surrounding the restaurant are fish ponds, or punong in the Visayan language, from which the restaurant got its name. Among the fishes raised in these ponds are tilapia and bangus (milkfish).


The Tancu-an River feeds water into the fish ponds, bringing in rich nutrients from the nearby Bincungan wetlands. During low tide, the river recedes and instantly becomes the best place to catch shrimps and crabs.


Connected to the river by a wooden boardwalk, Punong Restaurant serves as the jump-off point of the 8.8-kilometer Tagum City River Cruise, an eco-tourism project launched by the city government in July 2011 aimed at preserving the city's wetlands. This will surely be included in our itinerary for our next visit to Tagum.

with Mr. Leo Timogan of Tagum City Information Office (CIO)

We would like to thank Mr. Leo Timogan of the Tagum City Information Office (CIO) for touring us around Punong Restaurant and for assisting us during our day trip to Tagum City. To read more about Tagum City, please visit Mr. Timogan's blog: Tagum Exposure

For more information on the Tagum City River Cruise, please visit Mr. Timogan's blogpost: Tagum River Cruise: An Enticing Ride and Commune with Nature

How to get there: from Davao City: at the Davao Overland Transport Terminal, take a bus bound for Tagum, Mati or Butuan. Tell the conductor to drop you off at Punong Restaurant. Travel will take 1.5hrs. from Davao International Airport: walk towards the national highway, on the same side of the road as the airport, take a bus bound for Tagum, Mati or Butuan. Tell the conductor to drop you off at Punong Restaurant. Travel will take 1hr.

How to get back: to Davao City: on the opposite side of the road as the restaurant, take a bus bound for Davao. Get off at the Davao Overland Transport Terminal.