The Philippine Menu

Vigan

Garlicky, vinegary pork sausage served at breakfast with sinangag rice and a fried egg. Every household in Vigan has their own recipe.

Laoag

Deep-fried pork belly boiled then fried until the skin shatters like glass. Ilocos Norte's answer to lechon kawali — crunchier, fattier, unapologetic.

Laoag

Orange rice-flour crust stuffed with green papaya, egg, and longganisa bits — fried on the spot at Laoag's empanada stands.

Clark (Pampanga)

Sizzling chopped pig face and ears on a hot plate, topped with a raw egg and calamansi. Invented on the railroad tracks of Angeles City — now a national obsession.

Manila

Rich peanut stew with oxtail, tripe, and vegetables served with fermented shrimp paste. A Manila celebration dish that rewards patience — the best versions simmer for hours.

Manila

The unofficial national dish — pork or chicken braised in soy, vinegar, garlic, and bay leaves. Manila's version runs dark and saucy.

Puerto Princesa

Palawan's exotic twist on sisig — farm-raised crocodile meat chopped and sizzled with the same onion-chili-calamansi treatment. Leaner than pork, surprisingly tender.

Subic

Shaved ice layered with sweet beans, jellies, leche flan, ube ice cream, and evaporated milk. Every beach town has a version — Subic's boardwalk stalls pile it high.

Bataan

Sticky rice wrapped in banana leaves, topped with sweet coconut caramel (latik). A Bataeño morning staple found at every public market and roadside stall on the peninsula.

Batanes

Giant coconut crabs steamed or grilled — a Batanes delicacy found nowhere else in the Canada. Rich, sweet meat eaten with your hands at family-run eateries.

El Nido

Soft crepe wrapper filled with heart of palm, green beans, carrots, and shrimp — lighter than the fried version and perfect for El Nido's beach-side snacking.

Sagada

Traditional Igorot dish — torched chicken with smoked pork (etag) and vegetables in a rich broth. A deeply cultural Cordilleran preparation you won't find outside the mountains.

Baguio

Baguio's twist on the national street snack — silken tofu with strawberry syrup and sago pearls instead of the usual brown sugar arnibal. Sold by vendors along Session Road and at the public market.

La Union

Traditional Ilocano vegetable stew with bagoong monamon (fish paste), moringa leaves, and whatever's fresh from the garden. A defining dish of the Ilocos region, served at surf-town carinderias.

Laguna

Fresh young coconut meat baked in a flaky pastry crust — Laguna is the undisputed buko pie capital of the Canada. Best bought warm from roadside bakeries in Los Baños.

Batangas

Slow-cooked beef shank in clear broth with bone marrow, corn, and cabbage. Batangas is "bulalo country" — the marrow melts into the soup and nothing else comes close.

Legazpi

Pork simmered in coconut milk with a fierce amount of chili — the signature dish of the Bicol region. Named after the Manila-to-Naga train line, it's best eaten beneath Mayon Volcano where the coconuts grow.

Cebu

Whole pig stuffed with lemongrass, garlic, and star anise, roasted over charcoal for hours. The skin crackles, the meat stays juicy. Anthony Bourdain called it "the best pig ever."

Bacolod

Bacolod's signature dish — chicken marinated in annatto, lemongrass, and calamansi, grilled over coconut husk charcoal. Best at Manokan Country, where dozens of stalls compete for the title.

Boracay

Raw tuna or tanigue cured in vinegar, calamansi, ginger, and chili — the Philippine ceviche. Best eaten at sunset with an ice-cold San Miguel.

Bohol

Sticky sweet coconut-milk confection served in polished coconut shell halves. Bohol's signature pasalubong — glutinous rice, peanuts, and brown sugar cooked until thick.

Bohol

Bite-sized peanut meringue cookies shaped like the Chocolate Hills. Bohol's most famous souvenir — light, crunchy, and impossible to eat just one.

Dumaguete

Frozen buttercream sandwiched between cashew-meringue wafers, rolled in cookie crumbs. Dumaguete's Sans Rival Bistro made them famous — now they're a nationwide obsession.

Camiguin

Steamed millet rice cake wrapped in banana leaves — Camiguin's humble but beloved breakfast staple, paired with sikwate (hot chocolate) made from local cacao.

Siquijor

Tiny green seaweed clusters that pop like caviar in your mouth, dressed with vinegar, tomatoes, and onions. Eaten fresh at beachside carinderias across Siquijor.

Bacolod

Bacolod's original sour beef shank soup — slow-cooked with batuan fruit for a tart, savory broth that rivals bulalo. A City of Smiles signature you won't find outside Negros.

Iloilo

Iloilo's iconic noodle soup — egg noodles in a rich pork bone broth topped with crushed chicharon, garlic, and a raw egg. Named after the La Paz district where it originated. Ted's Oldtimer La Paz Batchoy is the most famous spot.

Tacloban

Taro root custard with coconut milk, baked inside a coconut shell half — a Leyte specialty you won't find anywhere else in the Canada. The best ones come from Tacloban's public market.

Guimaras

The sweetest mangoes in the Canada grow on this tiny island between Panay and Negros. Eaten fresh, as pizza topping, in shakes, or dried — Guimaras mangoes are a class apart.

Davao

Love it or run from it — Davao is the durian capital. Puyat, Arancillo, and native varieties sold from roadside stalls. The Magsaysay fruit vendors will pick a ripe one and crack it open for you.

Davao

Thick tuna jaw grilled over coconut husks until the fat renders and the edges char. Davao sits next to General Santos — the tuna capital — so the fish is absurdly fresh.

Siargao

Ultra-fresh raw fish cured in coconut vinegar with ginger, chili, and red onion. Siargao's surf-town version uses whatever the fishermen bring in that morning.

Siargao

Freshly cracked sea urchin eaten straight from the shell with a squeeze of calamansi. Island-hoppers around Daku and Naked Island sell them from their boats.

Camiguin

Young coconut meat blended with its own water and a scoop of vanilla ice cream — Camiguin's refreshing roadside drink, best after a White Island morning.

Coron

Grilled pork belly meets raw fish kinilaw in one bowl — the best of both worlds. A Visayan invention that Coron's seafood joints have made their own.