Where to Eat in Palawan

Palawan's dining culture is a busy reflection of its coastal geography and multicultural heritage, where fresh seafood dominates menus alongside indigenous Palaweno dishes that have been passed down through generations. The local cuisine blends Tagalog, Spanish, Chinese, and indigenous Cuyonon influences, resulting in distinctive dishes like tamilok (woodworm delicacy), chicken inasal marinated in local calamansi, and kinilaw na tanigue (raw fish ceviche with vinegar and spices). The island's dining scene ranges from beachfront bamboo huts serving the morning's catch to air-conditioned eateries in Puerto Princesa and El Nido, with an increasing number of farm-to-table establishments showcasing organic ingredients from Palawan's interior highlands. Most dining experiences center around communal eating, where sharing large platters of grilled seafood and rice is the norm rather than individual plating.

Key Dining Features:

• Puerto Princesa's Baywalk and Rizal Avenue: The capital's main dining corridor features concentrated seafood markets where you select live fish, prawns, and crabs (₱400-800 per kilo) and have them grilled on-site with garlic butter or sweet-sour sauce, while Rizal Avenue offers Filipino comfort food restaurants serving budget meals for ₱150-300 per person.
• Signature Palawan Dishes: Essential local specialties include lato (sea grapes served with tomatoes and onions in vinegar), binakol na manok (chicken soup cooked in coconut water inside bamboo), crocodile sisig (sautéed crocodile meat from licensed farms), and cashew-based desserts since Palawan produces 80% of the Philippines' cashew supply.
• Price Ranges and Value: Carinderia (local eateries) serve filling meals for ₱80-150, mid-range restaurants charge ₱300-600 per person, while beachfront dining in El Nido and Coron runs ₱800-1,500 per person; fresh seafood is remarkably affordable at public markets (whole grilled fish ₱250-400) compared to tourist-area restaurants where the same dish costs ₱600-900.
• Seasonal Dining Advantages: The dry season (November to May) brings the best seafood variety with calm seas allowing daily catches of lapu-lapu, blue marlin, and squid, while the rainy season (June to October) sees restaurants focusing more on farm-raised fish and highland vegetables; mango season (March to May) floods markets with sweet Palawan mangoes sold at ₱60-100 per kilo.
• Unique Island Dining Experiences: Beach kamayan feasts involve eating with hands from banana leaf spreads loaded with grilled seafood, garlic rice, and tropical fruits, while island-hopping tours to places like Coron and El Nido include freshly prepared beach lunches where guides grill fish and prepare kinilaw directly on the sand during midday stops.

Practical Dining Tips:

• Reservation Practices: Reservations are unnecessary at most local eateries and carinderias which