Food Coma Alert! Where to Eat in Binondo if You Have 12 Hours (Or Less)

Foodie or not, walking through the streets of Binondo means spotting authentic eats in just about every corner. Binondo, also called Manila’s Chinatown, is a bustling business district where you can dine at Spanish-inspired restaurants that marry Filipino and Chinese cultures.

If you only have 12 hours (or less) to explore the Filipino-Chinese community of Binondo, we have selected six restaurants that are within walking distance from each other for you to check out. Get ready to feast your eyes and stomachs on foods that should be on your “must-try” list.

Vege Select

Let’s take a stroll down Ongpin Street, which is known for being a treasure trove of Chinese eateries and pastry shops.

If you only have a few hours to spend in Manila, you should make your first stop at Vege Select. This Chinese restaurant is home to crave-worthy vegan meat recipes including crunchy pork skin, lare-kare, barbecue, and vegan kiampong, to name a few. Each viand is priced at P120 and a cup of plain rice costs P25, while a bowl of soup is P140 per serving.

Bring the vegan experience into your kitchen with Vege Select’s plant-based products, such as a coffee drink mix made with mangosteen and moringa, an enzyme juice, as well as burger patties, tapa, and sausage made with ground wheat and soy protein. The store is open daily from 7 AM-7:30 PM.

Location: Vege Select, 739 Ongpin St, Binondo, Manila

The Original Shanghai Fried Siopao

One of the most favorite food stops in Ongpin Street is the dim sum restaurant Shanghai Fried Siopao. Since it opened in 1985, locals and tourists have eagerly lined up to taste its famous fried siopao (P35 each) made with pure ground pork with no preservatives and extenders added. It is guaranteed to be tasty, so much so that no sauce is needed!

Aside from its soft and moist siopao buns, you shouldn’t miss trying its bichu-bichu, machang, siomai, shark fin siomai, and kikiam.

Location: The Original Shanghai Fried Siopao, 828 Ongpin Street corner Bahama Street, Binondo, Manila

Chuan Kee Chinese Turo-Turo

Complete your Binondo food crawl along the district’s famous Ongpin Street when you visit Chuan Kee.

It is one of the crowd favorites because of its “comfort Chinese fast food,” which includes the original lava buchi, signature kiampong rice, chicken cucumber with malunggay, regular xiao long bao, pork xiao long bao, and more. It is also home to one of the best kiampong, maki, gokhong, and lechon kawali. To quench your thirst in a healthier way, Chuan Kee offers Snow White Fungus with red dates drink for only P80.

The Chinese turo-turo (small eatery in English) is open daily from 7 AM-10 PM for dine-in, takeout, and delivery via Grab and Pick.A.Roo.

Location: Chuan Kee, 650 Ongpin St, Binondo, Manila

Wai Ying Eatery

Just three minutes’ walk from Ongpin street is the Wai Ying Eatery. It is one of the fastfood Chinese restaurants in the city that specialises in authentic Cantonese cuisine, notably dim sum.

Its menu features a wide selection of chicken rice, chong fan, roasted dishes, fried and frozen wanton and dumplings, bihon, congee, rice toppings, vegetables, and more. On the menu, you'll find short orders that are suitable for two to three people, such as fish fillet with cream sauce or sweet and sour sauce, chicken mushroom, curry beef and chicken, beef brisket, pork chop, lemon chicken, sweet and sour pork, and honey baked ribs. Each dish is priced at P380 (as of December 2021).

Wai Ying Eatery in Binondo is open daily from 7 AM-9 PM daily and from 7 AM-5 PM for takeout orders. You may also find its branches across the city, including in Tondo, 168 Mall, Divisoria Mall, and Lucky Chinatown Mall.

Location: Wai Ying Eatery, 810 Benavidez St., Binondo 296 Binondo, Manila

Toho Panciteria Antigua

A great food crawl in Binondo also means trying out the Chinese heritage cuisine offered at the “oldest restaurant in the Philippines” – Toho Panciteria Antigua.

Just a six-minute walk from Wai Ying Eatery, the original branch of Toho Panciteria Antigua has been popular among locals since 1888. As a self-proclaimed local ambassador of promoting Philippine tourism, Paul Francisco claimed that the Toho Panciteria Antigua Binondo branch is the “best” among other branches.

Some of the dishes you may order here are yang chow rice, pancit canton, crab and corn soup, beef with broccoli, sweet and sour pork, Toho rice, chopsuey, chorizo, and more. The restaurant is open from 10 AM-9 PM daily.

Location: Toho Panciteria Antigua, 422-424 Tomas Pinpin St, Binondo, Manila

Grand Café 1919

After a long crawl, reward yourself with some cold drinks and freshly brewed coffee at one of the most exquisite heritage destinations in Binondo, Grande Café 1919, which is a six-minute walk from Toho Panciteria.

This neoclassical-style café, previously an HSBC bank, embodies the rich history of Chinatown through its finest Pinoy staples and favorite dishes from China, Spain, and the United States.

Its list of coffee includes caramel macchiato and muscovado latte for P180. Other hot beverages available are café Americano (P150), affogato (P200), and classic and hot chocolate (P150), among others. If you crave cold drinks, the café serves caramel frappe and mocha frappe (P120), as well as yogurt smoothies, iced beverages, and fresh juices.

Location: Grand Café 1919, 117 Juan Luna Street, Binondo, Manila