[3][4][5] Such feasts traditionally served the food on large leaves such as banana or breadfruit spread on a table, with the diners eating from their own plates.

[10][12][13] The Tagalog term "kamayan" is formed from the root word kamay and the noun-forming suffix "-an" which indicates "collectivity, object, place, and instrument.

Kamayan also describes the traditional communal feasts or family meals, where rice and various colorful dishes are placed on banana leaves and eaten together.

The banana leaves are washed and slightly wilted over open flames to bring out an oily sheen and then laid out on a long table.

[6] In the Batanes Islands in the northern Philippines, large breadfruit (tipuho) leaves are used instead in a serving tradition called vunung or vunong.

originated from the term "boodle", which is American military slang for contraband sweets[26] such as cake, candy and ice cream.

Typical dishes aside from rice, includes inihaw (barbecues, including lechon, whole roasted pork), lumpia, fried meats (like crispy pata), tocino (cured pork), tapa, longganisa (sausages), pancit (noodles), boiled eggs or salted eggs, seafood, dried fish, and blanched, fresh, or stir-fried vegetables.

Desserts are also included, like ripe or unripe Philippine mangoes, pineapples, watermelons, papaya, young coconut, leche flan, and various kakanin (rice cakes).