A Weekend of Good Eats in Manila...

...is the subject of our feature story in today's edition of the Wall Street Journal Asia 'Weekend Journal'.

The article is meant as a gentle intro to the city's offerings for Philippine food newbies, so residents will find nothing new. Still, if we're able to convince just one Philippine food naysayer (and there are way too many out there) to give the nation's cuisine another look, then we will have satisfied our mission.

Comments

[Barbara]

Thank you very much for a very interesting presentation of our cuisine for the international market. Yes, unlike our SE Asian neighbors, Filipino cuisine is often overlooked and easily dismissed. Which is sad because as your article showed, we have much to offer especially in terms of variety. But slowly but surely, articles such as yours in WSJ and your blog will help Filipino cuisine find its place among the world's most popular and loved cuisines.

[christopher hyde]

nice piece. do you have any favorites when it comes to Filipino cookbooks? That's one thing that I could stand to have in my collection...

[Robyn]

Hi Barbara - I tell you, folks who diss PHI food just don't know what they are missing. Look for more print media PHI cuisine boosterism in a couple months.

Christopher - I really like 'Memories of the Philippine Kitchen' by Amy Besa. Some Filipinos grumble that it's not completely authentic, bec there are some ingredient substitutions or her husband (who's a chef) fiddles a bit with presentation. But Philippien cuisine has been evolving for centuries - a bit of change is nothing new. I love the sinigang recipes, the pancit luglug recipe, the pinakbet recipe. Haven't had the courage to try the choc sans rival recipe but one of these days.
There are also wonderful books that are probably not available in the States but that you can order from the PHI (or perhaps you can find them on EBay); Filipinos are lucky in that they have got quite a strong food writing genre. If you're interested let me know and I'll list them.

[Cheska]

I've been reading your blog for a few months already. I am a Chinese-Filipina and I am proud of Filipino cuisine. Most of our dishes, when not prettified, doesn't look as appetizing as our SE Asian neighbors. But I'm hoping the world can look beyond the appearance and really taste the food.
Thank you for writing about Filipino food. :) And I hope you get to enjoy more of our different cuisines in the future :)

[bee]

thank you for the wonderful virtual culinary journey. your pictures bring the whole scene alive.

[Franco]

Hi Robyn. Thanks for writing this feature. Filipino food often gets overlook among our asian neighbors' cuisine. I'm hoping you article will convince people to take another look.

[Mila]

Hi Robyn and Dave, what a wonderful intro to Filipino food for non-filipinos, thank you for writing it.
On a bit of a segue, I got to nang leong market with the help of your articles and enjoyed my time checking out the food vendors. Chatted with one of the residents and petted the white dog of the drinks concessionaire.

[Simon Majumdar]

Thanks, Robyn

And, thanks to your recommendations and the generosity of my relatives in Manila, The Philippines was one of the highlights of my trip around the world.

I am still thinking about the sisig in Angeles, the lechon at Salcedo market and the adobo made for me by my cousin

I have it earmarked to go back soon. As you told me, it is one of Asia's great undiscovered culinary treasures

Simon

[Frank]

I found this site which has a lot of cool information on Asia..

http://www.travelmonks.com

[Beth (kewl_jive)]

Your site is very interesting. I love it and I adore the shots and the presentation. I'm a Filipina currently living in Tokyo and seeing those pics with familiar places and food make me miss my homeland. :)

[Marvin]

Thanks so much, Robyn and Dave, for providing this great story. I find comfort in knowing that there are people out there trying to shed some light on Filipino cuisine.

[Jude]

Thank you Robyn, for the wonderful read. Born and raised in the Philippines, I still found it very informative. There are so many regional specialties that I've only heard about.

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[The Philippine Island]

Philippine foods are very unique that makes it very special. Aside from it, our foods here in Phils are very delicious and nutritious too.