Penelope's Inter-Active Arts

There are many kinds of travelers. Some travel for adventure, scaling mountains and diving oceans. Others travel for business, exploring places their work would bring them. Some travel for education, others simply for pleasure, but no traveler equals the experience of a food traveller. Food is culture and it is through this culture that one could truly experience what it’s like to live in a foreign place.

Davao, among the Philippines’s most prosperous cities and the world’s biggest in terms of land area, not only boasts of tourist spots such as Mt. Apo, The Philippine Eagle Nature Center, and a number of white sand beaches, but also of palatable treats that will tickle everyone’s taste buds. Read on and go food trippin’ in Davao.

Durian

Also known as “The King of Fruits,” Durian is endemic to Southeast Asian countries including Brunei and Malaysia. In the Philippines, Davao is home to this unique fruit. Both its odor and taste have received various reviews, both positive and negative. According to natives of Davao, once you taste Durian, you will forget its rather pungent odor.

Civet Coffee

Civet Coffee, harvested from the droppings of the Asian Palm Civet, is known in Davao as Kape Alamid, after the local name of the civet cat which partially digests the coffee beans. Don’t be dismayed by that tiny little fact, it’s not the world’s most expensive coffee for nothing. Davao produces about 500 kg of this coffee a year, making it one of the rarest coffees in the world. Try it and find out why it’s worth your every cent.

Philippine Cuisine

If you want to get the best Philippine dining experience in Davao, your best bet would be Belly’s Grill along Quirino Avenue. While it is not as near to the city proper as you would prefer, you will find that the travel time is well worth the wait. Try their lechon kawali (deep fried pork belly with crunchy skin), grilled chicken liver, kare-kare (ox’s tail and vegetables in thick peanut sauce), and fried bangus (milkfish) and kick your meal off with ripe mango paired with bagoong (local fish dip).

When in Davao, make sure you try Durian, Civet Coffee, and a lot of their local dishes to complete your experience. Still, make sure to get yourself some more taste adventure. As stated, Davao is one of the world’s biggest cities and surely has a lot of other cafes, restaurants, and bars you can visit.