CEBU TABOAN MARKET: A Fishy Tale

‘Danggit Bai!’

So the ladies and gents of Cebu’s Taboan Market beckons every tourists who sets foot in this famous dried fish haven. Salted and unsalted danggit, pusit, fish bones, fish tapa, fish tocino, espada, dilis etc etc can  be found here. The moment you alight from the jeep or your vehicle there is no denying that you have reach Taboan for the very distinct fishy smell will assail your senses.

Taboan Market maybe the country’s most popular source of dried fishes and I know that most if not all tourists, especially first timers to the province, pay this mercado a visit. And the great thing about Taboan is that this is the central hub where majority of  the dried fishes haul of Cebu and nearby islands gets to be dropped off hence danggit, pusit and others are cheapest here!

The only downside to every visitor’s experience is that the very strong fishy smell of the dried items will stick to the clothes, as in!  You can try whisking perfumes and colognes but it won’t help much, you need to wash your clothes to get rid of the  odor. That’s why I  advice friends and tourist that when they do their Taboan pasalubong shopping to bring extra clothes so they can change after leaving the market or better yet head back to their hotel and take a shower. 🙂

Hmm, other contends that  the fishy smell is what makes Taboan experience unique! I tend to agree hehehe

the dried fishes of Taboan

Business services in Taboan has also improved especially the packaging of its products. Because of the bevy of tourists some stores (mostly the front ones) offers customers different packing options, you can have your items packed in sealed clear plastics in the quantity that you like – example  1/4 kilo , 1/2 kilo, 1kilo packs. And you can also request the tindera to place your goodies in a box and sealed it up. Now it’s ready for the airport (“,)

sample sealed packing of Taboan Market Danggit

fish tocino, fish tapa, bones, espada… name it Taboan has it!

Cebu’s famous chorizo 🙂

one of the many dried fish stores

There are many ways to go to Taboan Market.  It’s easier when you are already in Colon, you just ask around where you can ride a jeepney that plies the Taboan route, Guadalupe 06A (passes in front of San Jose Recolletos University), Lahug 04D (passes in front of Cebu Coliseum) goes there and some other jeepneys. From colon street, Taboan is just around 15 minutes tops by puj. You can also hail a jeepney from SM Cebu that passes by real close to the dried fish market. Ride a 10H jeepney bound for Bulacao,Pardo, tell the driver to drop you off in the corner going to Taboan, it is before reaching Cebu City Hospital. The moment you get off the jeepney you will see a small bridge cross it and you are already in the vicinity of the market and you can see all the stalls selling danggit, pusit etc.

The dried fish stores in Taboan market  starts closing around 5pm ( a few extend until 7pm), It’s best to go there early in the day. If you are pressed for time, you can make Taboan your one stop pasalubong shop as  other cebuano delicacies like dried mangoes, mango puree, otap , chorizo, chicharon are also available there. Prices of these other delicacies are similar to the prices you can find elsewhere.

Can’t wait for breakfast tomorrow, yum!

Note: Prices in Taboan Dried Fish Center this May 2011 for danggit is around P700/kilo, and the real good ones are around P750. Sellers there are even saying that June of last year danggit reached P800 per kilo and this year may soon follow the trend. But don’t take my word for it, go there and check for yourself.  The rest of the dried fish prices increased too but just a bit, so no cause for alarm.

Note September 24, 2011 – I’ll be updating the prices here as next month some friends are coming over here in Cebu and Taboan is of course one of the stops. 🙂 Although I think danggit prices most likely have normalized by now around P430 to 500 per kilo, am just not sure. Will keep you posted guys!                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                      

October 22, 2011  Update on Taboan : My friends went direct to the source and bought their pusit and danggit in Bantayan Island while on beach vacation and unsalted danggit and pusit in Bantayan sells for P95 per 1/4 kilo. The day after they went to Taboan to buy Cebu chorizo and checked the danggit and pusit prices and Taboan vendor prices  for this Cebu delicacy ranges from P120 to P135 per 1/4 kilo. fyi =)

If ever I’ll find myself in Taboan anytime this 2012, I’ll update this post with the latest Taboan Dried Fish prices =). Keep posted. And please share this article if you find this useful =) 

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