Manila Street Food Tour: Night Markets & Delicious Eats
A Manila street food tour is one of the best ways to experience the city’s food culture after dark. Sample must try foods like Kwek-Kwek, Balut, and Sisig. The night markets in Manila are filled with delicious eats that showcase Filipino street food.
In this post, I’ll outline the food tour in Manila that I booked and what to expect on a Manila street food tour.
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Dive into authentic flavors and local culture on a Manila street food tour. Food tours don’t just offer food, but they help you connect with local customs, cultures, and the guide or guides explain the dish and what makes the dish uniquely Filipino.
When booking my Manila food tour, I wanted to explore more then just the Filipino food scene. I wanted to see Manila at night, ride a Tuk-Tuk and Jeepney, learn about Filipino food, and check out a few markets.
Based on what I wanted, I decided to book this Manila Street Food and Night Market Tour.
I booked this tour well in advance through Get Your Guide.
There are plenty of other options out there for food tours in Manila in case you are looking for something different. Here are a few other tours offered:
Manila: Street Food and Drinks Walking Tour
Manila Street Food Tour Itinerary
I had so much fun on the Manila street food and night market tour. We wandered through some bustling night markets and tried some fantastic local favorites like kwek-kwek and even balut.
Each stop on the Manila food tour offered something unique and the journey of getting from place to place was just as adventurous. Below is the itinerary we followed while eating our way through parts of Manila.
Sample Kwek-Kwek, Sisig, Sinigang, Squid, and Barbecue at Tutuban Night Market
The Manila street food tour kicked off at Tutuban Night Market. Tutuban Night Market is located in Tondo, Manila and is a popular destination especially for locals to do some daytime shopping and going to the market in the evening for street food.
I met our guide here, we found a table, talked about Manila for a while then he started brining out plate after plate of some familiar dishes and some very unfamiliar dishes.
While seated at Tutuban Night Market, I tried Kwek-Kwek, which is fried quail eggs, similar to ones I’ve eaten in Japan. Next I tried Sisig, which I’ve had a few other times in the Philippines. Sisig might be my favorite dish in the Philippines.
Sisig is a dish made of pork and sometimes liver and it’s cooked with a mix of other ingredients like peppers, onions, and calamansi. It might come with an egg you can stir into the dish.
One of the other dishes I want to discuss is Sinigang. Sinigang is a soup that has a sour broth. The sinigang I had came with shrimp. Even with its sour taste, the soup was really good and I highly recommend you trying it when visiting the Philippines.
Balut
Trying balut in the Philippines is easily one of the most unique and adventurous food experiences you’ll have guaranteed! If you don’t know, balut is a fertilized duck egg that is incubated for a time period of about 14 to 21 days.
So far, I’ve tried balut three times, 14, 16, and 18 days old. In my opinion, 14 days was the best. Once you start getting to 16 and 18 days the embryo starts to form more and you can see the tiny duck inside.
I actually enjoy balut, I describe it as tasting like a boiled egg with a lot more texture. You crack the top of the egg, sip the soup, peel the rest of the egg, and eat it.
When you find a vendor selling balut in Manila, they usually have salt and vinegar or sometimes a type of chili to go along with the balut. I like to eat it as is without anything, to taste the true flavors.
Wander Ilaya Street Night Produce Market
We found ourselves in one of the biggest produce markets in the Philippines on Ilaya Street. The tour guide said this is one of the biggest markets in the Philippines it attracts buyers and sellers from all over Luzon (Island in Philippines where Manila is).
It was mainly a produce market and for locals to buy, sell, and trade. But I still love a good local market so it was a great opportunity and experience to walk through one of the biggest markets in the Philippines.
Dried Squid at Chinatown in Binondo
After wandering the night market at Ilaya Street, we made a brief pit stop at a local vendor in Manila’s Chinatown selling dried squid from her small cart.
Nothing fancy here, just fresh dried squid on a stick! The vendor had squid on a skewer and grilled right in front of everyone looking to snack on a squid skewer.
You have the option to dunk the squid in a sauce made up of vinegar and onions. Again, I like to try my food as is first, so I tried the squid skewer plain and it tasted just like what it is, grilled squid. It’s a great and cheap snack while walking around.
Finish the Night at the Chinatown Arch
The Manila street food and night market tour concluded at the famous Binondo Chinatown Arch. What makes it even better, is the Arch is lit up at night.
The Binondo Chinatown Arch is an iconic landmark and Manila’s Chinatown is the oldest Chinatown in the world.
Chance to ride in a Jeepney and Tuk-Tuk
The Manila street food and night market tour was more then just a food tour. Instead of staying in one area in Manila, we bounced around from one place to another.
Instead of walking, we got a chance to ride in a Jeepney, something I highly recommend doing at least once while visiting the Philippines. We also got to ride in the back of a tuk-tuk. Which was convenient when making multiple stops.
Conclusion
I felt this Manila street food and night market tour was more then just tasting local dishes. We actually immersed ourselves in the city and got to experience some unique things like walking through one of the biggest markets in the Philippines.
I always love sisig but I also enjoyed trying the variations of squid that we ate. Not only did I try many different dishes, but I got to ride in a Tuk-Tuk and a Jeepney. Also walking the streets of Manila at night was a thrill.
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Plan Your Trip: 🗺️✈️ 🇵🇭
Booking Accommodations ⛺️🛖
For booking recommendations on the best deals and locations, check out Agoda or Booking.com
Activities and Tours 🏖️🚁
Find fun activities and things to do through Tripadvisor. If you are looking for tours and day trips, Viator and Get Your Guide have a lot of great options.
In need of a car rental? 🚗🚘
I recommend checking with Rental Cars.
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