Puerto Princesa Palawan, supplies 43% of Manila's fresh seafood. We are lucky enough to be able to hop down to the local wet market, or palengke and find all sorts of fresh fish at a relatively low cost, compared to Manila. Not much is more than 15 minutes away from where we live, and that includes the palengke. The main annoyance at the wet market in town are the ubiquitous gas tricycles, which clog every nook and cranny.
I don't even know what sort of fish and shells they are. I am told that the presence of parrot fish, although truly colorful, is a bad sign. It means we are over fishing and that now we are eating fish that normally would be left for scuba divers to view. I've learned to eat Lato, a seaweed grown in farms around Puerto and Palawan in general.
One business I feel more people should get into here is fish farming of popular fish like Lapu Lapu, Sea bass and the like. If I ever get enough time from building our
electric trike business, I want to do this myself with some knowledgeable partners.
The other alternate market in
Puerto Princesa, is called the San Jose New Market. It's an outdoor stall affair and they are open on the weekends, although there are now permanent stalls for native furniture, rice, dried fish etc. The vegetables though, are freshest from Friday through Sunday. It's off the National Highway and everyone knows where it is, ask any tricycle driver.
The fish and meat stalls are open all week, not just on weekends like the outdoor stalls and you can find vegetables all week long, not just on week ends anymore.
We prefer to shop at the San Jose New Market because there is a lot more parking the the old market in town. But if you are into seafood, the largest variety still remains at the wet market or palengke downtown.
Some shelled capiz clams and seaweed called Lato. Really salty and the grape like pods pop in your mouth like caviar. Tradionally served plain and then dipped in native vinegar with onions and chiles if you like hot stuff.
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Sea Urchins.....not sure how they prepare them..the Uni in them seemed scrawny.
They even eat sea shells here. I see these a lot at the New San Jose open market.
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If you prefer a more modern setting, then there is ONE supermarket in Puerto Princesa, it's called NCCC and it carries everything most supermarkets have, plus they even have a department store on the 2nd and 3rd floors.
We prefer to shop at the San Jose New Market because there is a lot more parking the the old market in town. But if you are into seafood, the largest variety still remains at the wet market or palengke downtown.
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