Take it from Pareng Anthony Bourdain, this is the best, but how do you make sure you’re getting the best?

Everybody is raving about the deliciousness of Filipino Lechon, if you based it on all the Travel Vlogs you see on Youtube about the Philippines, a series about the country is not complete without a review about this dish that surely made Anthony Bourdain declare it as the best pork this in the world.

The thing is, it is not a guarantee that one gets to taste the best ones without proper research and a lil bit know how. To all our foreign friends here’s a pro tip in getting the best lechon in the Philippines:

1. Lechon is a Filipino Dish just like adobo and sinigang and as such every part of the country has its own style of cooking and serving the dish.
2. Cebu lechon is widely accepted as the best, it is spiced type of lechon, with lemon grass, garlic, lots of salt and sometimes with bullet peppers for that added layer of heat to intensify the flavor. Because of its savoriness and spice, it is best served with soy sauce and vinegar combo with freshly crushed garlic and chopped bullet peppers (labuyo sili).
3.  Another version is the Tagalog Lechon, which id not overly spiced compared the cebuano variety but is equally delicious. Lola Berta’s Lechon in Pateros City is a good example of this type of lechon. Former Councilor Albert Tanga’s family has been serving their Lola Berta’s Lechon recipe to the people of Pateros and nearby cities for a long time. It’s has the same juicy meat and crispy pork’s skin but what it lacked in spice, you gain the pure flavor of the pork that is best served with lechon gravy sauce.
4. Cebu lechon is categorized into  commercialized, classic original and gourmet. One example of Commercialize is CNT Lechon, it is mostly found in malls, transport terminals. The Classic Original type  are the ones located locally within Cebu island of which the Carcar Lechon Alley is the best example. The gourmet kind are Zubuchon and Rico’s Lechon. They are restos that specialized in cebu lechon and has been in odds in claiming to be Cebu’s best Lechon.
5. The best parts of the Lechon are the Nape, Belly and Buttocks. Each part offers a different perspective of flavor and texture of lechon. The Nape offers the thickest and the most crunchiest lechon skin. The Belly offers the best robust flavors of the lechon since the area typically gets drowned with the juices of the lechon and the stuffed spices, it also offers the ribs and the belly meat which is the most sought after meat of the pig. The Buttocks offer the most tender and chunkiest meat, it is less salty and offers the purest flavor of the pork meat.