After many decades of close observation at office cafeterias and sidewalk carinderias nothing what people like to eat, I have concluded that almost everybody loves galunggong, inappropriately termed “the poor man’s fish” for reasons lost in history and folklore. Galunggong, the much-maligned fish of the hero, being partly responsible for overthrowing a President. Today, fresh galunggong no longer qualifies as the “poor man’s fish” as it costs twice as much as tilapia, the most commercially-farmed fish in the Philippines. Freshly caught galunggong even competes price-wise with bangus, prompting then President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo to comment during a field inspection trip that perhaps our fishponds should be raising galunggong instead of tilapia and bangus.

Vanzi, S. (2017, June 22). Everybody loves galunggong. Manila Bulletin, p. C-4.