Food courts in the Philippines

Forget about sightseeing - the only thing I want photograph when I travel is food.

A trip to Manila for a wedding offered limited free time and we ended up spending much of it shopping. Even then, I found myself continually gravitating toward the sights and smells of the food court.


Kusina ni Gracia

Food courts. What's not to love?

We ended up shopping at the SM Mall of Asia, the fourth largest shopping mall in the world with 750 shops and 220 eateries, and Green Hills Shopping Centre which was near our hotel.

It's no surprise that I had more fun wandering the stalls and checking out the food on offer than visiting the stores.

Food is cheap and cheerful in the Philippines - most hot meals cost AU$2-$5.


Inihaw - offering pre-cooked foods and grilled seafood


Deep fried crab


Dishes at Inihaw


Sisig with chicaron balat (display sample) 79 pesos / AU$1.90

I couldn't resist the promise of sisig (sizzling chopped pigs head) and chicaron for lunch.


Sisig with chicaron balat 79 pesos / AU$1.90

Alas my resultant chicaron was a lot drier than the sample dish on display. For two dollars though, it was a cheap, if fatty, meal.


Potato Corner

I kept meaning to get some chips from Potato Corner -- french fries tossed with spices, drizzled with melted cheese or served with chocolate sauce in their new dessert flavour -- but somehow I ran out of time.


Coconut drinks




Turk's Shawarma - found everywhere and super cheap
with shawarma available for less than AU$1


Deep pan pizzas at Sbarro


Dairy Queen


Chocolate-dipped waffle cones from Dairy Queen


Hecky's Lechon


Lechon cebu roasted pig in the display case

It's a roasted pig in the display case with crackling for sale by portion size!


R Lapid's Chicharon

Did you smile at the mention of crackling? If so, then the Philippines is the place for you!

Standalone carts selling nothing but pork rinds are commonplace here, and locals carry around little bags of chicharon or scratchings everywhere, and munch on them like peanuts.


Snackage for everyone

The Filipino people don't just appreciate pork rinds. They love chicharon bituka made from pig or chicken intestines and chicharon manok deep fried chicken skin too.


Chichabog


Chibit (chicharon bituka) chicken intestines


Chibab (chicharon bituka) pork intestines and
chilak (chicharon bulaklak) pork omentum

Chicharon bulaklak is pork omentum, the fatty sac that protects the small intestines. Bulaklak means flower, referring to the appearance of the omentum when it is deep-fried.



Manila - home of a crackling good time!


Related Grab Your Fork posts:
Manila 2010 - Suckling pig, Jollibee and sizzling sisig
Manila 2010 - Supermarkets, ensaymada and cheese ice cream
Manila 2010 - Turtle stew, black chicken soup and a wedding