Comments on: What Does PHP100 ($2.20) Buy You in Manila Markets Today…

By: Bim

Bim — Tue, 24 Feb 2015 02:54:29 +0000

Thanks, Marketman! I will look for Mary next time I visit AANI Market. Thanks again!

By: Marketman

Marketman — Mon, 23 Feb 2015 12:05:56 +0000

Bim, yes, for now, AANI and FTI are one and the same market. You need to get there early, say 6am, at which point you have first pick of the produce and berries. I generally buy mine from “Mary” who has produce straight from Benguet… strawberries always suffer some casualties from the transport, but generally they are okay if the top layer is still okay. Let them ripen for say a day more on the kitchen counter or in your fridge if you like, outside of the packaging. They do sell strawberries by the kilo at the Salcedo market, but for exorbitant prices, so it’s better to buy at FTI and throw out the bad ones. I just bought beautiful organic strawberries at the Centris Sunday market in QC, double the price of FTI, but they were tastier and sweeter and smaller (smaller is often better).

By: Bim

Bim — Mon, 23 Feb 2015 08:19:52 +0000

Hi Marketman,

I found your site via google. I like your posts, very educational. Just a question, in FTI Taguig you mentioned strawberry. Is that sold per pack? Or per kilo? I bought strawberries in a pack at AANI Market (don’t know if these two places are the same) but I am not satisfied with the quality. Some are already overripe. Too bad you can’t see them at one glance because they are well hidden at the bottom of each pack.

If you know a place in Manila where they sell strawberry per kilo, please let me know. Thank You and more power to your site!

By: Risa

Risa — Fri, 07 Feb 2014 04:26:04 +0000

I have to agree with MM that parrot fish WAS considered third class fish. Although white, the meat gets tougher than lapu lapu. But because of overfishing it’s become part of what is regularly available.

By: Marketman

Marketman — Thu, 06 Feb 2014 23:48:38 +0000

dobby, I like the Aranque market, did a post on it a while back. I need to visit it again soon. And yes, Jan/Feb is the best time to get veggies!

By: dobby

dobby — Thu, 06 Feb 2014 18:36:53 +0000

Today at Aranque Market I got:

A medium head of cauliflower for P10
A quarter kilo of asparagus for P45
A medium head of brocolli for 40
and
A bunch of baby garlic for 10

I exceeded the budget by 5 pesos but I’m a big spender, hahaha :D

Must be a really great season to buy vegetables. I would have bought more, they had different lettuce varieties,different beans,they even had Dal lentils and lots of other stuff you wont see in a grocery or the neighborhood market, but I only had 150 in my pocket and I had to leave money for my fare home, hahaha

Just sharing, I love your blog and I talk too much :)

By: ami

ami — Tue, 04 Feb 2014 02:43:34 +0000

My love affair with chicken wings started after my friend brought us to the restaurant that started buffalo wings in Buffalo, NY. Back home, we try to replicate that flavor profile using Frank’s Red Hot sauce.

By: Ken_L

Ken_L — Tue, 04 Feb 2014 00:52:00 +0000

Navotas is a huge and fairly chaotic wholesale market by the way … find what you like and start looking around for someone to tell you the price. Usually there’ll be a minimum order of 3 or 5 kg. They’ll expect you to supply the plastic bags (those big red white and blue ones are on sale there), they’ll chuck your fish in the bag and take it to a scale, then give a docket to the sales clerk. Pay her and you’re on your own! I can’t find a good picture online but this gives a hint of what to expect https://www.texaninthephilippines.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/Navotas-The-Fishing-Trading-Capital-of-the-Philippines.jpg

You can get a pedicab out the front to take you back to wherever you parked your car, or to C4 road to get a taxi.

By: Botchok

Botchok — Mon, 03 Feb 2014 18:11:16 +0000

I miss eating “binawangan” using those young garlic, my grandma used to cook it when young garlic is in season.

By: Mila

Mila — Mon, 03 Feb 2014 11:30:29 +0000

Here’s a comparison of food prices in Shanghai, specifically the chicken wings. I went to both a wet market, a local supermarket, and an international supermarket (TESCO, although the items are primarily sourced in China). Price differences were about 10% different, where the wet market was selling chicken wings between 115-180pesos per 500 grams (based on the current exchange rate of CHY1=PHP7.5), and TESCO prices were closer to 130-200 pesos per 500 grams. What was interesting to discover was that the drummettes were cheaper than the tip and midjoint. All the three sources charged more if you buy just the tip/joint, but considerably less if you just want drumettes.
Looking at this post makes me want to do a cost comparison of how much one can buy with 20rmb or 100 pesos (give or take a few pesos).
Happy Chinese New Year MM and family!