Old Pala-Pala, Bacolod City

In Bacolod there are two Pala-palas. One is the original "bagsakan" or market for all things fishy while the other is the upscale version of the original (for upscale people). This one is the Old pala-pala, the original down-to-earth rubbing-elbows-with-the-masses stretch of mom-&-pop restaurants that is located 200 meters far down from the Capitol Lagoon.

These places are the humble equivalents of Manila's Dampa where patrons buy fish from the market and bring them to the restos for cooking. There's another option tho: the waitresses will buy them for you from the resto itself, thus, no need to go down and dirty and haggle until you're wet with sweat.

As you enter one of these restos, Hyksos Tulahan in our case, you will be greeted with monobloc plastic chairs and formica tables, the walls built of bamboo and the far on the corner, the ubiquitous his-&-hers sinks so that after a heady round of finger-licking shrimps you can wash down the oil that clings to your fingers.

People DO not go to Old Pala-pala for the ambience. They come here for the delicious food and the relatively cheap prices. You shall never earn any brownie point bringing your lover here, unless that person is a foodie too.

So what to order? Everything so far is delicious, filling and full of umami flavors. Each morsel of scallops cooked with butter and garlic is like eating heaven. The shrimps cooked in a sweet garlic sauce send your eyelids into a flutter. Hyksos' calamares is superb and it goes well some Thousand Island dressing (but my home-cooked calamares is still the best). But the best fare you'll try here is the fish: blue marlin slices cooked in soy and calamansi juice and then grilled becomes ambrosia here on earth. The succulent meat simply melts in your mouth like butter. Not to be outdone is their grilled Tanguigue which is butter soft with a more stronger flavor. Because these slices are fresh, you can appreciate the sweet flavor of the fish. Couple these dishes with garlic rice and a nice cold Coke is the perfect way to round off the night's meal.

It's good if you're a party of three or more because it will make the whole experience cheap. For us, the bill totaled ~P250 per person which is respectably affordable. So, is it worth it? A definite YES!

Hyksos Tulahan @ Old Pala-pala
Take the Banago-Libertad jeep. Or you can go down the 6th st. or at the Capitol Lagoon and take a Trisikad/Tricycle (P15-20) and tell them you wan't to go to the Old Pala-pala.

Budget: P150-350 per head