Manila Diaries: Quick Nibbles in Binondo

When Miss Gigi told the group we'll attack Chinatown for the weekend, we automatically thought of food! Although I am not a fan of Chinese cooking, I signed in for the trip because I have never been to Binondo. And visiting the place with a group of journalists, majority of which were also Binondo virgins, also helped.

(Disclaimer: I am not a food critic and this blog entry will not in any way criticize the restaurants we visited during the trip. Rather, its actually to practice my photography.)

Shrimp Noodles

Our first stop was Dong Bei Dumplings, a hole-in-the-wall dumpling restaurant along Yuchengo and V. Tytana. The place was one of our stops of the trip because it has been a favorite among my editors. They always remember the place when one mentions food and Chinatown in one sentence. 

Beef Noodles

The small dining area can probably house 20-25 people. People, mostly Chinese locals, go in and out quickly after a fulfilling meal. What was eye-catching when we arrived was the pair of workers making dumplings right in front of the eatery!

Pork and Mushrooms

The menu offers quick fixes and what seems to me as Chinese comfort food. Among our orders, this one became my favorite:

I forgot what its called, though. Now I have no means of ordering this again when I return. :(

The main impression: Clean. The food tastes clean. No, I am not saying the place or other places were dirty--I meant the dishes were not overpowering on the palate. A meal had one distinct taste, a surprise since my orientation of Chinese cooking (limited, I believe) was always of overpowering powerful tastes.

A meal per person can cost P150-200. An order of dumplings cost P180 (30 pieces), P200 if you're taking fresh ones at home.

Unfortunately, we only had two stops for the trip as we got preoccupied with shopping. (It can't be helped, we were mostly girls!) The last was the famous President Teahouse, the spot where the current president (Yes, PNoy) reportedly takes his tea. We opted to dine in the smaller one and nibbled on these dimsum staples:

Hakaw

Siomai

Quail Egg Dumpling

If there's one thing I love in Chinese food, its the dimsum--they never fail to make me happy. (But for some reason, I like David's Hakaw better. I wonder why.)

And the long food-turned-shopping trip ended with our stomachs filled with good Chinese favorites. By the time we're on the taxi to Makati, we all wanted to come back and try some more Chinese food. We only crossed two from our list and we'd be glad to come back on another day.- 1/27/2014