By Maevn Hauser
Hello MetroVan Independent readers! I’m back! This is a series of my experiences in the Philippines as a Balikbayan (returning citizen). What to do, where to visit and many others.
In this issue, I’ll be featuring a place in the Philippines where our fellow kababayans will be interested to taste a variety of street food.
Does anyone still remember these terms like “beta max” (pork or chicken blood solidified into cubes), “canon road” (chicken intestines), “helmet” (chicken head), “adidas” (chicken feet), “kwek-kwek” (quail egg wrapped in an orange flour) and “tokneneng” (chicken or duck egg wrapped in an orange flour)?
Well, these were all Filipino street dishes that have been prepared and cooked properly and sold at a very good price.
One night, I asked 3 of my good friends (Sherwin, Bien and Christian) to bring me somewhere that has great things to offer at a very affordable budget. We found a place at 3rd Avenue near Gate 2 of Camp Crame in Quezon City just a few blocks away from EDSA – Santolan.
It’s a corner street with at least 5 sets of 4 tables and chairs. At first, I was quite hesitant to stay because I am not an avid fan of street food (it’s not that I’m fussy… I just wasn’t too familiar with street food). But, I got excited and made myself comfortable. They asked me to choose the type of barbeque that I wanted and which hot soup I wanted to eat. We ordered most of what the store offered like the “tuhogs” (barbeques), “goto” (congee), “tokwa’t baboy” (tofu and pork ears/meat sliced into small pieces), “mami with eggs” (noodle soup) and bottles of soft drinks.
Even though these stores are located right on the street, they still practice cleanliness and proper courtesy. The vendors always wear a smile which is an added bonus. What surprised and amazed me is that when we got our bill, it was only P240 (Philippine Peso) which is equivalent to $6 – $7 Canadian dollars. Come on, who wouldn’t agree with me that we cannot feed 4 people now with this cost? It’s only in the Philippines! We were all very satisfied and happy with what we had and I even ended up taking some food to go.
I’m pretty sure there are still some places out there that has the same thing to offer. It can be cheaper and a much better ambiance. The only good thing in the Philippines is that in spite of the economic crisis and international price hike, we can still sustain and think of something that will help our fellowmen to at least have some enjoyment to eat out either with our families, relatives or friends.
If you guys get the chance to visit the Philippines, have a watchful eye because you’ll never know what places and things you might discover that you’ve never seen before.
