The food that surprised me most in the Philippines

I didn't go to the Philippines with big culinary expectations, I have to admit — it's not a destination that sells itself on food the way Japan or Italy does. I was pretty wrong, and here's what surprised me most over 14 days between Manila and the islands.

The first thing was the seafood right by the water in El Nido and Coron: simple, unpretentious grills, served practically with your feet in the sand, with produce so fresh that no elaborate preparation was needed. Some of the family-run stalls with no "official" name that we stumbled on fed us better than plenty of restaurants with a name and a laminated menu.

Then there was the buffet of local food at Secret Lagoon, during the island-hopping tour — rice, fish, tropical fruit, prepared by local people for the tour's own boats. It sounded like unassuming excursion food, and it ended up being one of the meals we remember most from the entire trip.

In Manila, the contrast between traditional Filipino cuisine and Makati's international scene made us realize the city has a much higher culinary level than it's usually given credit for outside the country.

In the Philippines, eating well depends less on spending a lot than on being close to the sea and letting local people who really know their stuff make the recommendations.