Craving for a home-cooked pork binagoongan and a plateful of pancit malabon? How about a classic afternoon merienda of lugaw and lumpia? If you happen to pass by Quezon City, I have just the place for you. Neatly tucked in a quiet street, an eatery called Lola Idang’s Bahay Pancitan.

The place is not that big, with only about ten tables set on a 35-square meter eating space. The restaurant is so unassuming that you’ll hardly take a second look at it; plain white tiles flooring, simple decors, plastic Orocan chairs, and tables laid with generic plaid table clothes. What distinguishes this small diner from the throngs of eating places in Quezon City though is their food.

Soft, slightly sweet buns contrasting with an umami-filled meat filling—be it saucy pork asado or juicy bola-bola, siopao is one of the Philippines’ most delightful comfort foods. It was introduced by Chinese immigrants during the Spanish period and it has since become a staple, not only in Binondo—Manila’s Chinatown—but in every Chinese restaurants in the country as well.

But have you tasted the best siopao in Metro Manila? Here’s a list of the best and unique ones I’ve actually tried. I’m sure that there’s more out there, so drop a comment if you have a siopao recommendation. I’ll update this best siopao list from time to time.

Cabangan is one of the thirteen towns that make up the province of Zambales. It sits right in the middle of the province, bordered by the towns of Botolan on the north and San Felipe on the south. Its western side directly opens to the West Philippine Sea. It’s about two hundred kilometers from Manila, which would take around four to six hours travel time.

It was once a laid-back town with just a handful of resorts and tourists, with residents mostly farmers and fisher folks. Within the last couple of years, resorts have started to mushroom all over its beachfront and tourism started to pick up, due probably to the booming surfing scene at the neighboring town of Liwliwa.

Even with this, Cabangan is still pretty laid-back. If you’re looking for a beach getaway with not much tourists, Cabangan may just be the weekend getaway for you.

Staying in the town of Cabangan in Zambales means you’d have to eat there too. Most food places in the province really isn’t located there—it’s far from being the food capital of Zambales—still, there are a handful of unique places you can dine in when in Cabangan. And during the past years, as tourism started to bloom in town, the number of places to eat in Cabangan started to grow too.
   
Here are a few of the most interesting food places in Cabangan. These range from roadside stands and food shacks, to swanky cafes and full blown restaurants. These made the list because they’re somewhat unique, have good food, are institutions in Cabangan, or simply because I’ve personally tried them and found them to be worthy, naks.

My Zambaleño food experience was always about mangoes, freshly caught tunas, and delectable kakanin rice cakes. But the past Dinamulag Festival weekend introduced me to more than the usual table fares in the province, discovering the more metropolitan side of eating places in Zambales. From local dishes and Filipino comfort food, to street food and posh café offerings, I was pleasantly surprised at the variety culinary places in Zambales worthy of a side trip from its beaches and mountains.