Philippines: Quiapo Market
On our single full day in Manila, we decided to check out Quiapo Market. Ten minutes into our GrabCar ride from our Airbnb in Makati, it felt like we were in a completely different city. Shining skyscrapers gradually gave way to buildings that'd seen better days.
When we finally arrived at the market, we found it bustling with people:
We were on a quest for food and we kicked it all off with Globe Lumpia House:
The interior essentially consisted of a lumpia assembly counter and that was about it:
I was expecting a fried lumpia, so I was surprised when CL handed me this fresh spring roll (P 20):
The wrapper was crepe-like (similar to the kind you get with Peking duck) and filled with assorted veggies and this tangy sauce:
We toyed with the idea of getting a bowl of noodles at Ma Mon Luk:
But wary of filling up too quickly, we walked away with only a siopao instead:
This steamed bun was soft and filled with pork:
From there we followed the smell of something delicious and found our way to Rosa's Pancitan:
The food stall was so popular that we couldn't get a seat. We had to peer over the heads of seated patrons and to try to get a look at the giant pots. We had no idea what we were looking at and it obviously showed. Ultimately, we just relied on the awesome ladies at Rosa's to tell us what to eat.
There was this peppery glass noodle soup:
And this super long fried lumpia:
A short walk later, we happened across this dessert stall:
Most of it looked like it was made with glutinous rice, which meant it was right up my alley. We picked this one because of the beautiful colors:
Sticky and coconut-y, it was everything I enjoy both texture-wise and taste-wise.
Then there was this block of sweet sticky rice with some kind of thick caramel topping:
While delicious, it took us some time and effort to unstick our teeth afterwards.
CL was most excited about Master Hopia Factory:
Traditionally, these flaky pastries are filled with mung bean paste, but Master Hopia Factory offers a wide variety of flavors, such as cheese, ube, and coconut:
I, on the other hand, was more interested in Excelente Ham:
As its name suggests, Excelente is known for its ham. We weren't about to buy a whole ham hock though, so we settled for their ham sandwich (P 95):
If you like your ham sweet, Excelente is the place to go.
Our favorite discovery of the day, however, was this man:
And his coconut ices:
On such a hot day, they really hit the spot. After we finished our cups, we were sorely tempted to turn around and find the coconut ice man again.
Even though we were focused on the food, you can find just about everything at Quiapo Market, from household utensils to karaoke machines. It's easy to get distracted by all the knick knacks and to get lost in all the side streets.
While we had fun at Quiapo Market, the heat really got to us. We kept trying to duck into stores with air conditioning to catch a break from the sun. Finally, we couldn't take it any more and went back to our Airbnb for an afternoon nap.
Ah, vacationing in your 30s.
When we finally arrived at the market, we found it bustling with people:
We were on a quest for food and we kicked it all off with Globe Lumpia House:
The interior essentially consisted of a lumpia assembly counter and that was about it:
I was expecting a fried lumpia, so I was surprised when CL handed me this fresh spring roll (P 20):
The wrapper was crepe-like (similar to the kind you get with Peking duck) and filled with assorted veggies and this tangy sauce:
We toyed with the idea of getting a bowl of noodles at Ma Mon Luk:
But wary of filling up too quickly, we walked away with only a siopao instead:
This steamed bun was soft and filled with pork:
From there we followed the smell of something delicious and found our way to Rosa's Pancitan:
The food stall was so popular that we couldn't get a seat. We had to peer over the heads of seated patrons and to try to get a look at the giant pots. We had no idea what we were looking at and it obviously showed. Ultimately, we just relied on the awesome ladies at Rosa's to tell us what to eat.
There was this peppery glass noodle soup:
And this super long fried lumpia:
Most of it looked like it was made with glutinous rice, which meant it was right up my alley. We picked this one because of the beautiful colors:
Sticky and coconut-y, it was everything I enjoy both texture-wise and taste-wise.
Then there was this block of sweet sticky rice with some kind of thick caramel topping:
While delicious, it took us some time and effort to unstick our teeth afterwards.
CL was most excited about Master Hopia Factory:
Traditionally, these flaky pastries are filled with mung bean paste, but Master Hopia Factory offers a wide variety of flavors, such as cheese, ube, and coconut:
I, on the other hand, was more interested in Excelente Ham:
As its name suggests, Excelente is known for its ham. We weren't about to buy a whole ham hock though, so we settled for their ham sandwich (P 95):
If you like your ham sweet, Excelente is the place to go.
Our favorite discovery of the day, however, was this man:
And his coconut ices:
On such a hot day, they really hit the spot. After we finished our cups, we were sorely tempted to turn around and find the coconut ice man again.
Even though we were focused on the food, you can find just about everything at Quiapo Market, from household utensils to karaoke machines. It's easy to get distracted by all the knick knacks and to get lost in all the side streets.
While we had fun at Quiapo Market, the heat really got to us. We kept trying to duck into stores with air conditioning to catch a break from the sun. Finally, we couldn't take it any more and went back to our Airbnb for an afternoon nap.
Ah, vacationing in your 30s.
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