I’ve called California my home for over 15 years now, but all it takes are some 70s pop hits and the smell of pork barbecue at a Seafood City to bring me back to my very humble beginnings in Manila, Philippines.

Last month, my partner Dave and I got the chance to actually revisit the places of my childhood and a few more, stuffing ourselves with the local cuisine along the way (sharing with family and friends, of course!) Living in the San Francisco Bay Area, I’ve been blessed with access to a good amount of Filipino food and ingredients, but as many of you who grew up in kitchen-focused households know, you’ll always crave the authentic, slow-cooked, labor-of-love dishes your mom/grandma/auntie used to make and there will be nothing else in the world like it.

So I had to go back to the source. Sadly, my mom is no longer with us, but I was glad to find on this trip that I could still enjoy many of the delicacies and cooking techniques of my Filipino childhood (as long as we knew where to look–again, friends and family are really helpful for that!). It was also fun to be able to introduce Dave to “my cuisine” and see him experience it as a novelty.

Part 1: Welcome to Manila!

We flew into Manila by way of Tokyo (we got a really good deal for ANA Air on CheapOAir, by the way!) and got a free hotel breakfast of classic Filipino Garlic Fried Rice with choice of Tocino (sweet cured pork) or Longganisa (sweet pork sausage):

After a day trip to Intramuros (the famous Spanish Colonial-period “walled city”), we went “malling” (the best activity in the peak of Philippine summer). This is “mall food” in the Philippines (at Crisostomo Restaurant in Resorts World Casino):

The Paella wasn’t done quite in the original Spanish style (where everything is cooked together–the restaurant cooked the rice separately and topped it off with the seafood and meats), but the rice itself was still very good Spanish rice. We also ordered some Bulalo (boiled beef marrow) and Laing (coconut milk-simmered taro leaves). This version of Laing was quite sweet (Dave thought it was a dessert), which I was not expecting. I’m used to the original Bicol (a province) style that is savory and spicy. Sounds like a recipe recreation challenge for me :-)

And instead of actual dessert, we went for a Pulutan (“stuff you pick up and eat while enjoying a beer”) platter of dilis (small, snackable fish), fried calamari, skin and intestine chicharon, and some Adobong Pusit (adobo squid). We like to call these “killing me softly” bites, as your arteries slowly clog up… :-)

On another day trip, we visited Taal Volcano and the surrounding area of Tagaytay. We had yet another feast (a trademark of a Filipino meal is that there is always lots of everything), this time in the open air at Balsa Restaurant along the river. This sounds pleasant in general, but with weather in the high 90s, my face pretty much melted off and I was revived only by the arrival of the food…

We dined on fresh-caught fish, squid, roast chicken, Pinakbet, pork barbecue, and Filipino-style Chopsuey. Dave especially liked the Lechon Manok, which I would describe as like a rotisserie chicken, but marinated in a distinctly Filipino blend of calamansi (Philippine lime), soy sauce, vinegar, garlic, banana ketchup, and fish sauce. It’s the kind of flavorful roast chicken that tastes as if every fiber of meat was injected with marinade (and in some restaurants, they actually do this!). Truly one of a kind.

On the drive back to Manila, we stopped by a few “street fruit” stands. I got to taste fruit like Mangosteen, Santol, and Chico that I hadn’t had in decades!

Part 2: Road Trip to Vigan

The next day, we got up very early to start a very long drive (about 10 hours total) from Manila to Vigan, a UNESCO World Heritage site in the northern region of the island of Luzon. By the way, Dave and I were road tripping with two of my sisters, and anytime you get the three of us in a van with ten hours and some Kool & the Gang…oh boy. Apparently it was like listening to live fireworks. Or a really bad cat fight in the night. We didn’t notice because we were too busy having fun!

Anyway, to get around the historic city, we hailed an “only in the Philippines” kind of cab: the Kalesa!

Vigan-style street food consisted of fresh green mangoes sliced up like fat french fries and dipped in Bagoong (shrimp paste). Trust me, it was delicious. Even my American-born partner of Italian food sensibilities loved it.

And of course, we could not miss out on the famous Vigan Fried Empanadas! I’m not sure how the obsession with frying things started in the Philippines because when you’re baking in the sun the last thing you want in your hands is a hot pastry filled with chopped cabbage and ground pork. But somehow, I managed to eat it ;-)

We could have easily spent a couple more days exploring Vigan, but we had a schedule (and an upcoming beach retreat) to keep to. Back in Manila, we spotted a row of Lechon (traditionally cooked over charcoal, slowly rotating, for about ten hours) right on the street, like giant barbecue pork sticks! I tried not to think about all the dust and pollution they were soaking up :-) But anyway, you know you’re at a real party when they bring the Lechon out. And of course, the Mang Tomas (an equally iconic brand of dipping sauce made from pork liver).

Part 3: Beach Retreat in Palawan

Soon after we were headed to another part of the Philippines, in the southwestern direction of Palawan. We stayed in a breezy casita at the Busuanga Island Paradise resort where I found a Sweet & Sour Lapu-Lapu (a bright orange grouper fish) dish that miraculously tasted so much like my mother’s. I later found out that the resort’s owner herself was also Kapampangan (coming from the province of Pampanga–renowned for culinary achievements), like my mom!

We had more Filipino-style breakfasts in Palawan, the most amazing homemade Mango Pineapple Jam, and fresh coconut juice straight out of the husk.

While it was hard to beat our record of feasts up to then, having our lunch cooked and served on a boat just off the shore was an especially unforgettable and unique experience. With just a tiny grill and a fan, our Filipino “chefs” created delicious plates of fresh fish, crab, and pork chops with a refreshing seaweed salad on the side and sweet mangoes for dessert.

On our last day at the resort, we just relaxed at the casita and snacked on fresh fruit coolers (my favorite was the Buko-Pandan shake).

For the last dinner of the trip, we joined family and friends at the Mesa Grill (I heard Sharon Cuneta owns this? Is this true, my Pinoy friends?) back in Manila. What a great last round of Filipino food: two versions of Laing (one dry, one moist–really fantastic and almost like Bicol-style Pinangat), more Adobong Pusit (also delicious–I suspect some shrimp paste was added to this and would love to get the recipe from the chef), more fruit coolers.

We so enjoyed ourselves on this trip and will definitely return! Perhaps to Batanes and Mindoro next? My fellow foodie travelers out there, do you have any suggestions?

Pin this Post!