According to Marc Matsumoto, author of the food blog, No Recipes: Cooking is More Fun Without Them, "Bulalo is a light colored soup that's made rich by cooking beef shanks and beef marrow bones for hours, until much of the collagen and fat has melted into the clear broth. The seasonings vary from chef to chef with some using only salt and black pepper while other variations call for patis, bay leaves or even garlic. But at its core, Bulalo a simple cattleman's stew, best made in a large cauldron with whatever (vegetables) are growing near by."
While health freaks may balk at consuming bulalo, its fans tag it as "pampalakas ng tuhod." Though many foodies swear that the best bulalo places are in Batangas or Tagaytay, our task was to find good bulalo spots in Metro Manila. That being said, SPOT.ph lists 10 places in the metro where you can get good bulalo...for whatever purpose it may serve.
10. BULALUHAN SA N. RAMIREZ
55 N. Ramirez St., Galas, Quezon City
Tel. no. 731-1818
Open from 10 a.m. to 5 a.m. daily
Plain Bulalo, P65 and Bulalo Special, P115
This establishment has two faces. The first is located along its actual street address, where it maintains an informal, turo-turo style outlet for its regular customers comfy with sturdy metal chairs and tables bolted to the floor. However, for those who want better seats and a little more privacy, they can choose to move to the other end of the establishment But the food--bulalo and otherwise--remains the same. The soup of its plain bulalo is based on sinigang. The broth is lightly seasoned and the meat is nicely tender. It's a no-nonsense dish, which is to say you can suck the marrow from the bone without much trouble.
9. BULALUHAN SA ESPANA
2166 Espana corner Josefina St., Sampaloc, Manila
Tel. no. 781-7353
Open 24 hours daily
Plain Bulalo, P62 and Bulalo Special, P110
This is as basic as you can get. Its plain bulalo dish is served in a medium-sized bowl filled with nothing but two pieces of beef cooked in a clear sour stew. The lightly salty broth complements the beef nicely. Diners--and tipplers--flock to this spot for a hearty fix of bulalo. Marrow retrieval is also a breeze.
