First mistake was that we went there too early. It was about 8:30am and most of the restaurants were closed. In fact, most of the stores too. We walked along Ongpin Road, like lost ducks, trying to find an open restaurant or cafe.
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| first drink of the day - cane juice for P15 |
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| bought some lucky charms |
Finally found a restaurant open in Benavidez st. called Wai Ying.
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| tina waiting for food |
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| According to the waiter, this is one of their specialty - sliced fish congee (P120). Taste was clean, not fishy at all, but wished it was piping hot. Not bad at all and the serving was more than enough for one. |
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| Kuchay Dimsum (P70) which took forever to be served. Not good at all . The wrapping tasted gummy and might not have been prepared fresh that day. The filing was tasteless. |
After our disappointing breakfast, we walked a bit more before deciding to have an early lunch at the Estero, a row of fast food eateries near one of the canals in Binondo selling cheap Chinese food.
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| buttered chicken (P130) |
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| decided to be adventurous and ordered salt and pepper frog legs (P120) |
What can I say? The buttered chicken tasted like butter while the frog legs tasted like ... chicken (really). After being served, I realized the folly of ordering two fried items which tasted alike. However, I blame our waitress for this because she was the one who recommended the two items. I would have wanted to order something else a little bit more Chinese like Hototay soup but we were already full.
After our early lunch, we decided to visit Lucky Chinatown Mall in Divisoria. We had to ride a motorized sidecar because we were advised by the local vendors that it was a bit far. Paid around P50 for the ride.
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| Lucky Plaza is brand spanking new and huge! Most of the stores were still closed when we arrived. |
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| couldn't figure out if this was only for decoration |
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| found these delicious ice cream pops in one of the more modern Chinese mini-stop |
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| Tina had the corn pop (P45) while I had the pistachio siciliano (P65). |
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| Don't know what the 'sicialiano' part was for but it was delicious! |
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| swanky |
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| Kakaloka coffee beans - "insanely good" |
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| one of the open areas of the Lucky Mall |
The stores in Lucky Chinatown Mall are the same in other malls. Although most of them are high end - as far as I can see, no Bench or Penshoppe. The only thing that makes Lucky Mall different from other malls is the architecture (styled after Chinatown in Singapore) and the unusual number of swanky Chinese restaurants. I saw a lot of Chinese eating in the restaurants while fresh dumplings are being made seen through a looking glass in the kitchen. Maybe I should try one of the restaurants here one of these days but I have a sinking suspicion that it may cost me.
Not willing to go home without eating at least one decent dumpling, we decided to try once more and head back to Binondo to Tasty Dumplings located beside the Binondo Church - just a store away from the famous hopia place, Eng Bee Tin.
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| Surprisingly big restaurant that can seat 80-100 people. My phone decided to die on me so I wasn't able to take pictures. Photos courtesy of www.happyfoodies.com |
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| streamed dumplings |
One of the more surprising thing here is that there is no siomai. Forgive me if I show my ignorance by thinking that a dumpling place will have siomai. Nevertheless, we ordered steamed dumplings (P150) and small steamed buns (forgot the name).
The steamed dumplings were actually a disappointment. Yes, the wrapping tasted way better than the ones in Wai Ying but I felt that it was still thick and chewy. The filling were measly and unsatisfying. The steamed buns were not very good either. It was ... okay. Based on what people are eating at the other tables, it looks like the fried porkchop is their best seller. Ironic for a restaurant called Tasty Dumplings.
All in all, my food tripping in Binondo was not really a success. I wasn't able to find good Chinese food. In hindsight, I think should have stuck to the old favorites such as Sa Lido or Sincerity. Oh, well ... next time!
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