After the din and squalor of Quiapo, Binondo presents a
respite. Although as densely urbanized, the Manila district, home of
the country’s Chinatown, is more orderly but can get vibrant especially
around the time of the Chinese Lunar New Year’s eve. The streets are
festooned with red lanterns, gently bobbing over traffic and rows of
vendors selling the plumpest and shiniest fruits and beribboned plant
roots and stalks. An alleyway is brimming with exotic items and fresh
produce such as cherries and sea cucumber. Venturing into Binondo is
like stepping into another world, which reminds many of busy Hong Kong,
full of things both familiar and novel.Many consider Binondo as the world’s oldest Chinatown. Before the coming of the Spaniards, the Chinese had made the place a bustling center of trade with the locals. In 1594, the governor general of the Spanish colonial government, Luis Pérez Dasmariñas, gave a piece of land for the settlement of the Catholic Chinese, across the river from the walled city of Intramuros, which is now Binondo. For numerous years, the Chinese immigrants, mostly Hokkien and Cantonese peoples from southern China, has developed Binondo to what it is today, bringing with them their age-old culture and traditions. Binondo is an important part of the heritage of Manila.
And an important part of the heritage is the food. Tourists as well as Metro Manilans have recently discovered the wealth of the Binondo gastronomic landscape. This place perhaps gave rise to the Philippines’ first dining places. Here, one finds the oldest restaurants and eateries, and traces the origins of some of the country’s popular dishes. Aside from the visual feast, Binondo offers a explosion of smells and flavors. There are about a hundred dining places here, offering Chinese cuisines, local fares and localized versions of Chinese foods or Chinese-Tagalog-Hispanic fusions.
The recent interest in the Binondo food scene is arguably spurred by the Binondo Food Wok tours conducted by Binondo resident Ivan Man Dy, who operates the Old Manila Walks tours. The three-and-a-half walking and tasting tour provides an introduction to the interesting culinary finds of Chinatown, which tickles the mind as well as tantalizes the taste buds.
