Delicious food tour

For quite sometime now, we have been asked by friends to organize a food tour of the Philippines and/or of our neighboring countries. Because of other things we never got to do this until the opportunity presented itself when our second daughter (who has lived abroad for nearly eight years with her husband and son) planned a visit and expressed a desire to go and indulge on the food she has missed—pancit, lechon, daing and many more.

When she finally arrived, we became tourists for 10 days, confirming that indeed, the country, particularly Manila, is a food paradise, where offerings range from exotic to simply delicious. First off, we prepared paella and pancit bijon, getting chorizo from Terry Selection (P238) and saffron from Santis (P145 a gram), and bijon labeled Crystal (P50 plus in all stores). We were going to order crispy pata, but due to the horrific cost (from a well-known eatery) we did our own for a little over P140 (unahan or front leg).

The epicurean odyssey started at the SM Mall of Asia. We did not go to the full-service restaurants but sat along one end of Hypermart where the Food Court is. We missed the Thai counter, but we were heartily satisfied at the Filipino stall, where the gracious staff volunteered to get pancit miki-bijon from another outlet then served us grilled squid and barbecued chicken—for less than P400 (with drinks). Dinner was at Zong in Alabang, with no service charge and no MSG. Service was quick and before we could say Chinese food, the meal was on the table—the usual dimsum, noodles, beef and chicken.

In any food tour, Market! Market! must be included. Our visiting daughter got chicharon from Lapid, which now has an expanded line of products labeled Lapid Foods. Goldilocks, inside the tall building, has likewise diversified, from being a cake and pastry supplier to producing ready-to-eat packaged food: Paksiw na Lechon, Dinuguan, among others. Just boil water and submerge the pack for a few minutes. From the Tinapayan Festival, we got authentic Probinsya Ensaymada (P5 each), the variant we have been missing. Lunch at Portico was initially al fresco, as the power went off for a while. But it was a cool day and we were not bothered. The place was full but they managed to give efficient service.

The popular 168 Mall was the next stop. Luckily there was no crowd and it was easy finding a table on the third floor where the Fast Food area is situated. Believe it or not, our lunch of miki-bihon (again!), grilled tilapia in soy sauce and spring onions, plus rice and drinks, cost the three of us an incredible P210. Needless to say, tourists will not confine themselves to eating but will go through the shops and buy all sorts of things, from clothes to placemats. Of the latter, we found some made of strips of wood, in a combination of vibrant colors, for P20 each. Great for pasalubong.

On to Tiendesitas and we were refreshed at Mahaw na! (Ilonggo for Merienda na!) where the halo-halo is served three ways: Pampanga with banana, macapuno and leche flan; Manila with additional ube, langka, beans and nata and Laguna with mais and buco, each at P60.

For gourmet food and elegant ambiance, we thank a nephew who treated us to an Asian lunch at Spices of The Peninsula. Service is always impeccable and the food exquisite—grilled prawns in garlic and butter, phad thai and the beef (whose name we cannot pronounce or spell).The last dinner was at GloriaMaris in Alabang for dimsum all day long. With a selection of hakaw, etc. one can order a half Peking duck , done two ways.

For take-home goodies, if allowed through customs of course, every place in the itinerary sells a good selection of pasalubongs: crispy anchovies (dilis) and slip mouth (sapsap) from Miki’s, each tub weighing 125 gms; bottled duck stew deboned and done a la caldereta from the people who have innovated on balut, bottling them in a variety of flavors. The company is Deli de Lata based in Imus, Cavite.

Next time you have visiting relatives and friends, do a food tour. It can be as flexible as you want it to be. There’s nothing as joyful as eating and shopping, and bonding with people one has missed a lot. Tour operators might want to consider a food tour of Manila and/or the rest of the Philippines, to appeal to both balikbayans and foreign nationals. Sell the country through its delicious food and fun shopping.

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