CHINATOWN FOOD TRIP (Binondo, Manila)

I've always wanted to visit Chinatown, so when one of my friends agreed to go on a food trip with me there, I immediately planned our Binondo Adventure!

The Chinatown here in Binondo, Manila is the oldest Chinatown in the world. It was established on the year 1594.

(Arch of Goodwill and Carriedo Fountain----Plaza Sta. Cruz Chinatown, Binondo Manila Philippines)

We actually started our adventure in Quiapo, but we only went there to buy some stuff. We walked from Quiapo church to Ongpin street. There were three of us on this trip, my friend ate janet, my cousin ate tsen and me. It was all our first time to visit Chinatown and we're all excited.

The Arch of Goodwill at Plaza Santa Cruz welcomed us to our Binondo adventure.

(The Arch of Goodwill----Chinatown, Manila Philippines)

Plaza San Lorenzo Ruiz and the Binondo Church on the other hand welcomed us to the heart of Binondo. However, we weren't able to take a picture of the plaza, but here's a glimpse of "The Binondo Church". 

(Binondo Church----Chinatown, Manila Philippines)

(Binondo Church----Chinatown, Manila Philippines)

(A Lion Statue in Chinatown, Manila Philippines)

After passing through the Arch of Good Will, we started our walk down the chaotic street of Ongpin. 

(Chinatown, Manila Philippines)

When we arrived on this part of Ongpin St., it started to drizzle so we immediately looked for a place to go to. We saw this place and we decided to try this Tea House called Meisum.

OUR FIRST STOP, MEISUM Tea House! 

(Chinatown, Manila Philippines)

It's like atypical Chinese restaurant where Chinese families eat together. The place was huge and it has a second floor. The ambiance and their service was okay.

We tried three dishes in here. They're the following:

Five (5) pieces Pan Fried Dumplings, P58.

(Chinatown, Manila Philippines)

Three (3) pieces Hakaw (Shrimp Siomai), P65.

(Hakaw!!!---Meisum Resto, Chinatown, Manila Philippines)

Chinese Pancit Ho Fan with Asado Sauce, P173.

(Ho Fan with Asado sauce --Chinatown, Manila Philippines)

I highly recommend this dish to those of you who haven't tried eating at Mei Sum's yet.

(Ho Fan with Asado sauce --Chinatown, Manila Philippines)

The food is super good, we finished it all. If i were to rate this resto, i will give it 4 out of 5 stars. The Ho Fan was super good and it's super tasty. My least favorite among the three dishes that we tried here is the hakaw. 

(The Aftermath----Chinatown, Manila Philippines)

We got free ice creams! yay!!

(Free Ice Creams at Meisum Tea House----Chinatown, Manila Philippines)

After trying out Mei Sum Tea House. we noticed that the light drizzle has already stopped. So we went on walking down Ongpin St. We saw a lot of interesting stuff like this traditional Chinese Shrine on one of the corners of Ongpin.

(Tsinoys' Shrine----Chinatown, Manila Philippines)

Tsinoy's Shrine at the corner of Ongpin and Tomas Pinpin St. In this shrine you'll see some of the Tsinoys who light incense sticks as they pray infront of the shrine.

(Chinatown, Manila Philippines)

Many esteros (cannals) were constructed in Binondo. We passed by more or less, four esteros in the length of Ongpin.

We checked out one of the famous spots in Chinatown, the Kainan sa Estero in Binondo or more famously known as the Estero Food Alley or Estero Fast Food. (I'll blog about it next time, for we weren't able to try any food from here, we just checked it out.)

The esteros Food Alley offers a lot of different Chinese and Chinese-Filipino Cuisines, one of the food stalls in there even offer some exotic dishes such as fried frog legs, however, i didn't have a lot of courage to try those.

LAST STOP, THE TEA! :)

(Chinatown, Manila Philippines)

 We looked for a place where we can have dessert, but our feet led us to this cute Tea House named The Tea!

(Chinatown, Manila Philippines)

 The interior of the establishment is super cute and the ambiance is also very cozy.

The Tea has a wide variety of milk teas to choose from. They also have smoothies, milkshakes and a lot more.

(Black Milk Tea with Pudding---The Tea, Chinatown, Manila Philippines)

Their milk tea and milkshakes are good. :)

(Strawberry MilkShake---The Tea, Chinatown, Manila Philippines)

After we finished our drinks, we went on with our Binondo Exploration. . We passed by some hopia vendors and bought some freshly made chinese hopias. 

There are a lot of bakeries scattered around China Town. We saw unique designs of cakes and pastries. 

(Chinatown, Manila Philippines)

(Chinatown, Manila Philippines)

This baked good looked sooo delicious and enticing. Who doesn't love marshmallows right?. But i was quite disappointed when i ate it, cause it wasn't what i expected it to be. It doesn't have real marshmallows in it, it's made with whipped cream instead marshmallows. :(

(Chinatown, Manila Philippines)

 I thought it's melted marshmallows shaped like a tear drop coated with chocolate fudge, but no, it's not. It's a rich whipped cream coated with chocolate fudge resting on soft and moist brownies. It's not that bad, it actually tasted good but its just that it's not what i thought it was. 

(Chinatown, Manila Philippines)

(Chinatown, Manila Philippines)

We also checked out some chinese stores/boutiques which has a lot of unique and cute items.

Some cute mini Chinese figurines that we saw in one of the Chinese stores. Kawaii!! :)

(Chinatown, Manila Philippines--photo credits to Charity Temple)

I know we weren't able to try a lot of different food. It's because of the fact that during that time, the weather was not in our favor. I promise to try more of Binondo's prides the next time i visit the area.

After our long walking tour around China Town, we already decided to leave and proceed to the Dapitan Arcade to look for some stuff and to see the place as well.

We went back to Plaza Santa Cruz where we hailed a jeepney to bring us to Mayon. And that is how we ended our Binondo Adventure.

ADIOS! ;)

-The Palawenya Explorer.

Credits to my cousin Charity Temple for some of the photos. :)