The Philippines is a beautiful country that is known for their beautiful beaches, romantic sunsets and amazing food! It has been on my list for a while and I am so happy that this year we were able to make it a reality! However, as opposed to most trips to the Philippines, we never went to the beach. There is water in some of my pictures but that was from the harbor in Manila (not a beach) and lake Taal. I know, I know a lot of people are thinking what a waste to travel all the way there and never see their world famous beaches! But we really wanted our first time in the Philippines to be more of a cultural trip and to really learn about the countries history, food, culture and to get to know the people that live there.
Lets talk food!
So much food! We were eating the street food everyday and it was amazing! The food we saw most often were the fish balls. There was a vendor on almost every corner and these are a must try! They have different kinds of sauce from garlic to sweet and spicy. These were great for when I needed a quick snack!
Kwek Kwek is an other great street food snack that I loved! it is deep fried quail eggs.
Sigsig is one of the most popular dishes, it is more of a meal then just a snack and I was a bit dissapointed that by the time I got my sigsig I was already so full from eating all day, but I loved it anyways! But really what is not to love? it is meat, usually made from pigs head but I saw beef and chicken as well, chopped up and grilled with egg mixed in and a fried egg on top.
Then of course there are all the grilled foods: Isaw (pork or chicken intestines), Adidas (Chicken feet), betamax (chicken blood), and then the basics like chicken teriyaki, grilled beef, etc. Pretty much you can find anything grilled on a stick. My personal favorite was the betamax. I was surprised at how good it got the charcoal taste and I really like the slight chewiness of it.
When going into street food: level advanced there is balut and day old chicks. We actually never got the chance to try balut (there is always next time) but we did eat day old chicks. I am not going to lie, I was scared! these poor looking baby chicks did not look appetizing at all. But I absolutely loved it! Imagine a hard boiled egg mixed with a flavorful and tender chicken.
Going back to beginner level street food there is lechon. Lechon is beautiful! Crispy skin, tender meat, perfect level of fat and spice. Lechon is usually the whole pig roasted on charcoal and you cant go wrong when ordering lechon!
The Philippines is amazing for street food lovers. We ate so much more than I posted about, I only posted on the few that made a deep impact. But I really did not try anything that I would not have again. Eating street food in Manila is not always recommended because it is not the cleanest, so be careful if eating on the streets in Manila and bring plenty of Pepto Bismol LOL
Here are a few more clips from the market and more food and drinks!
We did find a good a “clean” place with all the great street food. It is called Hott Asia Bazaar located in Poplacion, Makati right next to the Gramercy Residences. This bazaar had great food, drinks and live music almost every night. We came here several times during our stay.
So to not make this post too long, I will leave it at that. Next post I will talk more about what we did while staying in Manila. We volunteered at Project PEARLS (https://www.projectpearls.org/) while there and I will have a post on more information on that. So, till next time!
Lollygaggers 