Caloocan is not a destination for fine dining, but it is a good place to eat the everyday food of working-class Metro Manila. Carinderias — small open-fronted eateries with steam-tray menus — serve cheap and filling Filipino classics like kare-kare (oxtail in peanut sauce), sinigang (sour tamarind soup), and rice meals with fried fish or chicken. The streets around Monumento and Caloocan Cathedral are full of them.
For grilled meats, look for an ihawan stall in the evenings, where skewered pork barbecue and chicken intestines are cooked over charcoal and served with rice and vinegar. The Monumento Wet Market also has a row of food stalls serving regional Filipino specialities at unbeatable prices.