Summer Festival 2: The first annual Taste of Manila

The Taste of Manila festival was just on its first year this year. We went to Bathurst/Wilson area to check this new event out. They closed down half of Bathurst St. about a couple of blocks from Wilson, but that was pretty much it. 

Taste of Manila

It was probably a third of the size of Taste of the Danforth, but definitely not lacking in food! The mood was festive but the area did not have sufficient trash bins or activities for the kids.

One of the booths @ Taste of Manila

  There was a variety show, booths selling goods and lots of food booths. 

Taste of Manila

 It was lacking some popular Manila street food such as fish balls and green mangoes with shrimp paste, but they did sell other staples. Well, actually one booth sold fish balls but it was already prepared and kept in a steamer. Would have very much liked to have seen the traditional “tusok-tusok the fishballs”—wherein you skewer the fish balls directly from the frying pan and dip it in one of the sauce jars (sweet, spicy, and vinegar). 

Anyway, here are some things you might want to try at the Taste of Manila:

  Pork Bbq—marinated in sweet bbq sauce, try it dipped in vinegar  

  Pancit—noodles

  Lumpiang shanghai—spring rolls

  Sisig—chopped pork cheek marinated in vinegar and chili and grilled

Kapangpangan Sisig from Kabalen @ Taste of Manila

  Queck-queck—battered hard-boiled egg, try it dipped in sauce. This is traditionally quail eggs but regular chicken eggs were sold here.

Queck Queck @ Taste of Manila

   Okoy—shrimp pancakes

Okoy

   Isaw--barbecued pig or chicken intestines

Isaw @ Taste of Manila

 For drinks you might want to try buko pandan (coconut and pandan) or sago’t gulaman (tapioca and gelatin). Some booths also sold canned calamansi (Philippine lemon) or mango juice.

For dessert, you should definitely try these goodies

Turon—fried bananas wrapped in caramelized sugar-coated wrapper

Turon

  Various rice cakes:  biko, sapin-sapin, puto, pichi-pichi

 The area was packed. A co-worker checked it out at about 530pm (we were there around noon) and said that the line ups were so long.  Surely the organizers will have learned a thing or two after this first event. Food was great, though! We foresee it will be much bigger in the years to come.