The maiden edition of Pinoy Travel Bloggers’ (PTB) Blog Carnival presented you the Best Place in the Philippines then followed by the “Quaint, Unfamiliar and Strange towns“ on its second offering, now on its 3rd edition, we will bring you the “Best place” to eat the “Strange food”
(blow the trumpets please)…
WEIRD.
WILD.
and mouth-WATERING?
We call it PINOY QUIRKY FOODS! It is something that is beyond the usual, something that you make you think twice of putting it to your mouth, food that you don’t eat during noche buena or birthday parties. But is worth a try! And I say it again, WORTH A TRY!
Filipinos are people who are in-loved with food. I can say that, whenever there is a Filipino gathering, there is food feasting. And yes, I believe that the Philippines can be a destination for quirky foodies. Mr. Anthony Bourdain & Mr. Andrew Zimmern you are welcome to try any of these:
The Philippines’ Balut
BALUT is a popular (if not the most) Filipino street food which is a fertilized duck egg or chicken egg with an almost-developed embryo that is boiled and eaten in a shell. It has been considered as a trademark of Filipino culture because they say you can’t call yourself Filipino unless you’ve eaten one.
Edcel of SoloflightEd shares his experience as he tried it for the first time in his life. Have a taste of it by checking the Confessions of a First-Time Balut Eater.
Cebu City’s Lansiao
Lansiao, soup #5, bull testicle (and penis) soup, you name it and its said to raise the level of your sex life and hardness of one’s rod.
After a bowl full, Estan of Langyaw asks “I really don’t know if one should feel something after eating it or in a few minutes or hours, dilate the veins down under. I didn’t get a hard on or was walking with a boner. Or is it all in the mind to help one perform better in bed? But was it just a coincidence that I was under the sheets a few hours later?” Read how he was able to taste this Bull Testicle Soup in his hometown Cebu.
Palawan’s Tamilok
Tamilok Ceviche (Kinilaw) is a worm found in dead mangrove trees. It is a perfect appetizer to the more adventurous, a perfect beer match as you want to wash the taste of it with a dab of cold beer. It is served with local vinegar spiced with chopped onions, garlic and chili.
I tell you, you must not miss this after a tiring island hopping tour in Puerto Princesa City. I have given a step-by-step instruction on how to enjoy Kinilaw na Tamilok.
Pampanga’s Crispy Kamaru
These crickets which are naturally eaten by birds are served in Pampanga. This dish can be ordered at Everybody’s Cafe: The Home of Authentic Kapampangan Food.
Lilliane of Wanderlass.com recounts her Pampanga food trip dubbed “Tour of the Glutton” and see more quirky foods she and her barkadas tried.
Pangasinan’s Kaleskes
KALESKES is a Pangasinense term for intestine. The dish also includes Pa le (pancreas) and some meat cuts. It is up to the customer if he’d like to add dugo (blood) or sebo (sebum) to add more ‘quirk factor’ to the dish.
Mica of Senyorita.net invites everyone to try this when you are in town, care some? Visit Kaleskesan in Dagupan City to know the basics.
Davao City’s Ginamos
Ginamos, as it’s known in Lois hometown Davao City, is made of fermented small fish that has been allowed to rot. It looks, sounds and smells disgusting. But for Davaoeños like myself, and people from most parts of Visayas and Mindanao, we hoard this delicacy like it’s gold!
Lois of WeAreSoleSiters.com poses a challenge of eating a mud colored, funny smelling fish that’s been rotting for days, even weeks. Why taste this? Visit the link “Would you try this rotten fish?” to know more about this concoction.
Surigao del Sur’s Tayom
If you have ever snorkeled or dived, or even just swam along the corals, you know what a sea urchin looks like. Called tayom in the Filipino language, it looks really scary, especially underwater.
Aleah of SolitaryWanderer reminisces her childhood stories of how locals eat this raw sea urchin. This sea creature is very pricey in Japan, so I suggest you try it here. See more of the story at Dare to Eat a Sea Urchin.
Bicol’s Laing on Pizza & Pasta
Bicol is known for everything spicy add gata (coconut milk) and gabi (taro leaves) and you have an authentic Bicolano dish. But to put it of pasta? But wait there’s more, how about on your slice of pizza?
Claire of LakwatseraDePrimera raves about this dish when she tried it with some family membersduring one of her homecomings. See more of these fusion restaurant in Legaspi City, Laing on Pizza & Pasta.
Zamboanga City’s Satti
Satti is a famous Zamboanga breakfast food. The soup is made of siling labuyo, ginger, dulao, onions, oregano, tumon and other “secret” ingredients and well, coloring. This is paired with sticky rice and of course, the very cute beef barbecues.
Carla of Crazysidviciouslover tried this when she went to her hubby’s hometown and all she can say was “BIEN SABROSO GAYOD!” You can choose more varieties by visiting Yang’s Satti.
If you are planning you next food tour, maybe this location map can help you find your way to these wild, weird and mouth-watering foods:
Ready for a food tour adventure?
____ ____ ____ ____ ____
You can click the PTB Blog Carnival Logo to see the past topics.
Would you like to suggest the next theme to be discussed by Pinoy Travel Bloggers?
Just let us know and maybe your idea would be chosen. 🙂

i will have to try the quirky foods when i get a chance
Pingback: Confesstions of a First-Time Balut Eater | SoloflightEd - Travels and Foodtrips
Pingback: Kaleskes: Quirky Food from Dagupan City, Pangasinan « SENYORITA: Travelogue of a Twenty Something Single Filipina
Pingback: Bicol Cuisine: Laing on Pizza and Pasta | Lakwatsera de Primera
Nice work James, you finally did it 🙂
thanks claire! na-pressure ako sa’yo. hahaha thanks for contributing to the carnival. your next?
Ginamos and Tamilok look really gross ah. I love the map effort! Bon Apetite!
thanks lil for the pampanga entry. na-miss ko yung kamaru & frogs. yung ginamos parang basurahan…sorry for the term lois. 🙂
Waah! All of you have such nice pics! I gotta buy a camera na!!!! Good work, James 🙂
🙂 thanks aleah. i dont have camera too. dalawa na bilihin mo.haha thanks for your great contribution
great job here James! I know it’s really tedious to be a blog carnival host. Props to you for the hard work!
great great great! i think tamilok is the most quirky here. lol
Great job James! I loved it! Great job on associaiting the quirky foods with different areas in the Philippines.
mouth watering post James, ima head to the nearest Quirky food cafteria if there’s any within Makati…but I’ll make sure to try these dishes when I visit these places… 🙂
Pingback: » Lansiao (bull testicle soup) ta bai! | Langyaw: Sojourns and Off-the-Beaten Path Travels
sayang.. dapat sinali ko yung pinakbet pizza from paoay, ilocos norte. yummy.
Love this post! Excellent relating each dish with the region. I learned so much. I love food, so this will give me a great idea about what is interesting in each region once I actually explore the PI for about 3 months.
wow 3 months huh?!! dont forget the slimy thing in palawan 🙂
Waaah! Katakot yung iba like yung worms. Hahaha. Di ko kinaya. 😀
ahahaha!
but it taste good, trust me! oh btw, i really like your blog
sarap ng balut
Thanks for this post. Job well done! I would eat all this anytime! I think the original for soup #5 is mindanao. And we call it “remember me” or soup #5 but we have had this since early 80’s. And guinamos is yummy and has no gross factor. When you go to the palengke in mindanao, ask for “tinabal”. But thanks for promoting adventure n our own culinary!
for sure! thanks for reading 🙂 what is tinabal?
Filipino dishes really do vary depending on the region it came from. I guess it’s not that appealing to foreigners maybe because of the presentation or the use of internal organs. But Filipino foods is very delicious and I consider one the best tasting in the world. Also the variety of food makes it an adventure to taste.