Pansit Palabok of Liliw

When we got to Liliw, the first thing I did was to look for that old foodhouse that serves special palabok. It was delicious the last time I tasted it that my mouth slobbers just remembering it. I knew the exact place, I wasn't just sure if the eatery is still there.

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This wasn't it. But I got attracted to this bahay-kubo inspired foodhouse. Outside are native homemade sweets sold in packs for pasalubong. Filipinos have always been enamored with giving pasalubong when they come home from a trip. The idea was turned into a profitable business and tourists are always the good target. Next to the foodhouse is an old bakeshop selling cheap but delicious bread.

Ah, finally! This is the eatery I am talking about. It's located at the lower end of that long, narrrow street that sells an assortment of footwear. It's easy to miss because they don't have a huge name board. The owner has an austere taste when it comes to adorning her small eatery. It looks exactly the same when I got here, 3 years ago. One would be a bit disappointed with the ambiance but if you're not that picky, it's a swell. The lady serve the best pasit palabok. Yeba, yeba!

Here ya go! Pansit palabok is a Filipino specialty dish with Chinese origin. It is actually rice vermicelli poured with yellow-orange sauce, and heavily topped with an assortment of seafoods. There are a lot of foodhouse that offers pansit palabok in the country, the big difference lies on: 1) how the rice noodles was cooked, 2) how the sauce was made, and 3) the choice of seafood toppings. This particular palabok contains: squid, shrimp, hardboiled egg, smoked fish, chicharon (grind crackling pork rind), shredded chicken, osyster, green onions, and lots of garlic. This is eaten with some drops of citrus (kalamansi), making the dish more delectable. But it's optional, it depends on your preference. Personally, I like it with kalamansi.

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