The Pinoy food blogging event Lasang Pinoy focuses this month on “street food” and I thought what better way than to focus on one of my favorite public places in Manila: Quiapo. Although the nouveau riche would rather hang out in the sanitized confines of Greenbelt, I agree with Carlos Celdran when he said that “Quiapo shows you what Manila truly is … dirty, noisy, colorful and full of soul.” Maybe because the place is so rife with contradictions. As I’ve said before: where else can you find a Church where they sell abortifacients outside and tell fortunes like it was Gospel-truth? Catholics flock here on Fridays and yet the Muslims rule via their temptingly illegal pirated DVDs trade. Maybe Quiapo’s appeal to me lies in the fact that there is a secret waiting to be unravelled in its every nook and cranny. In any case, it is a bargain shopper’s paradise. My friends would say I court an element of danger everytime I go here but danger is exciting and I get to love Manila all the more because of it.
In Quiapo, street food is a given. There are vendors on every corner and young kids never fail to badger you to buy their plastic bags for so-and-so. The energy begins in the area around Plaza Miranda with its countless stalls selling flowers, candles, all kinds of novelty items and of course food.
Even though my digital camera was in danger of being snatched anytime,I had a heyday documenting the extensive variety of street food, as the pictures would show.
Whenever I am in Quiapo, I never fail to buy the sinaing na tulingan sold by the vendors coming from as far as Laguna and Batangas. This one is great as a dish paired with rice or flaked to make an excellent topping for tulingan pasta. The laing and ginataang hipon they sell is also great and cost only from P25 to P30 per order.
The vendors from Bulacan, on the other hand, have two tents full of their culinary specialties on Hidalgo St. going to the old SM Shoemart.Here, they sell all sorts of lumpiang prito, kakanin and assorted pansit for as little as P15 per order. Street food never came this cheap.
wow, daming pagkain. i want one of those huge woks holding the different pancit variations. i wonder where i could get those :). of course i want the food in it too..hehe.
i love sinaing na tulingan! but you have to remove the tail when you cook tulingan diba? somebody once served it to me without removing the tail, and i got violently sick! hmm..mabuti na lang my tummy dormers are very powerful, kinaya yung powers ng tulingan!
nice nice post, ajay!
One food I miss from Quiapo — Sariwang lumpia!! Kaya lang di ko alam kung nandun pa yung suki ko.
E-mail mo ko when you have time!
omigad, nagutom ako sa katitingin sa pics 😯 CAMANAVA ang route ko dati kaya laging mami sa monumento 😎
bad idea to visit here before breakfast! kumalam tuloy sikmura ko. ajay, you’re a foodie’s foodie — risking your life and your camera for streetfood? LOVE your entry — daming pics!!!
Fishball lang alam ko na street food and yung ibang common… . Nakakatuwa naman dyan sa Quiapo. Dito sa Baguio wala masyadong variety sa mga binebenta nila sa City Market.
I’m a Quaipo denizen, I love ogling all the interesting bits and pieces on sale. Especially in the underpass. I think the very possible risk of something being snatched from you adds thrill to the fun (haha, SM ba?). Everytime I go down the LRT Station I am drawn by all the food vendors calling. Someday I’ll muster enough courage to try them all!
Thanks for a very interesting LP3 entry, Ajay!
These pictures brought me home. Nakakatuwang tingnan lalo na yung mga buko, iba’t ibang kulay nung maliliit na puto at saka yung ice candy. Tawag dito sa Canada ng ice candy ay freezies. Nice post.
wala akong napapansin na tulingan, puro yung mga adobo lang na parang nde masarap kasi gula-gulanit na thew flesh of the chicken. Pero i’ll check next time kasi fave ko ang sinaing na tulingan 🙂
Isang fave shop ko sa Quiapo yung Excellente Ham shop… hehe
Thanks for dropping by peeps…and good to hear all your Quiapo anecdotes. Of course am only talking about street food here. Wala pa dito ang fifty peso massage by the sidewalk (hehe), the mall in front of Quiapo church, the rows upon rows of DVD pirates, camera shops, the Chinese food stores where they sell baking ingredients/ catering ware, Killion merchandising where most caterers/resto owners go, and the Excelente ham store, among others!
why didn’t you include the old ma mon luk restaurant? i’m just not so sure if you would consider their siopaos street food. 😀
i haven’t been to quiapo in ages! natatakot kasi ako! it’s wonderful to read about it here on your blog. parang ang sarap-sarap naman ng sinaing na tulingan.
Arnold, buhay pa ba ang Ma Mon Luk sa Quiapo? It seems I haven’t seen it…
Conquer your fear Tonigurrrl, hehe 😛
🙄 Mukang di ko na nakikita ang Ma Mon Luk sa Quiapo, meron ba? Yap, di complete ang New Year’s Eve namin kapag walang Excelente Ham, kahit mahal yummy talaga. I buy some of my baking needs in Quiapo, especially nuts. Medyo mas makakamura kasi pake-pakete lang siya mga 100 gms. pwedeng makabili.
Isa sa pinakamasarap na natikman kong liver sandwich ay sa Good Earth Emporium canteen sa may Carriedo. At iyong Ice Cream International sa may Ongpin. When we were in high school, my brother and I saved our allowance so that we can buy ice cream, liver sandwich and milkshake. Wala na ngayon ito doon, sayang. 😛
Hi Lani. Thanks for sharing your bit about Quiapo. Good Earth was also a part of my childhood. Too bad some of those memorable landmarks are now gone:cry:
ajay : yup. bandang likod ng isetann.. dun sa may ung overpass bago dumating ng quiapo church.. 😉
Let me check it out Arnold. Thanks for the tip:razz: The only Ma Mon Luk I see these days is the one on Quezon Av:wink:
Sounds yummy, can i try some??:lol::wink::mrgreen::cool:
there’s also ma mon luk along benavidez st, it’s called masuki now but it’s still the same… mas malapit compared sa Q. Ave…. Just a tip if u want to try good food…. there’s a small chinese restaurant along nueva near carvajal st., the name’s Quiksnak… Sarap ng food lalo na their fried lumpia na may kasamng vinegar na maraming garlic for sawsawan…. it’s not streetfood though but if you’re a food afisionado u might want to try it out…
A good friend based in Hawaii is craving for Excelente Ham. But how do I send it. Problem No. 1 – shelflife. Problem No. 2 – Will the US accept it as a fedex shipment? – annrym
At 6pm nagiging P10 yung mga pansit, pag inabot pa ng 7pm, P5 na lang!
Favorite ko rin ang quiapo for the food. May sariwang lumpia sa street at meron din sa Globe (malapit sa Raon). When you go to the area selling dvds there are also carinderias selling Muslim food (curries and such). Who said being a foodie needs to be expensive? Isn’t that the essence of it? Quiapo is actually not that dangerous provided you’re not stupid enough to a) put your wallet and other valuables where it will be easily picked and b) dress like you’re going to the mall of asia, making you a likely target for gleaming eyes and itchy fingers. Some vendors even actually warn you to take care. Sanay na rin naman sila sa mga kumukuha ng pics, after all, andun ang photographer’s street. If you don’t want to venture too far, go to plaza miranda (in front of church) where street food vendors converge at late afternoon. I have been going there for several years and i have not had a single stomach ache (pwera na lang pag nasobrahan ka talaga). I guess it’s not for those with weak dispositions, though. Thanks for the space! 🙂
May masarap bang kainan ng pares sa quiapo?