the great buddha cafe

new noteworthy place to visit when you drop by chinatown binondo! 👲

from the traditional dishes (hk asado, soy/white chicken) to dimsum and xiaolongbao! name it, they got it! you might think this is just another typical chinese restaurant that offers so many choices. but a lot of dishes were truly remarkable and unique! 👌

here are some of our favorites:
1. beef tendon claypot rice 🍲
- super big portion, the sauce mixes so well with the meat, traditional chinese taste that will surely please auntie and uncle (meaning it's that good it will pass their standard)
2. pan fried dumplings 🥟
- super malaman and the base is super crispy. very comparable to the local dumplings we had back in shanghai
3. cream cheese naicha🥤
- super loaded with cream cheese topping. 😍 can't get enough of it!!
4. peanut balls 🍡🥜
- solid. siksik. crunch in every bite. a must try for dessert
5. ham sui kok 🍞
- savoury deep fried dumpling crisp to perfection. think of it as empanada but chinese style. surely you'd love this for a snack. 🥢

review as of august 2018

the eng bee tin group recently opened a new restaurant inspired by hong kong cuisine. the great buddha cafe is equal parts cafe and restaurant. the restaurant itself is not too big but quite cozy and the staff incredibly attentive.

dishes i've tried, recommendations are marked with a star (⭐) :

dimsum
- pork & shrimp siomai ⭐
- ham sui kok
- pan-fried dumpling

entree
- beef tendon claypot rice
- soy chicken
- hk style honey asado ⭐
- pork ribs glazed with honey garlic sauce ⭐

dessert and drinks
- golden custard buchi
- peanut balls
- cream cheese nai cha ⭐

your one stop shop/latest tourist destination in binondo is finally here! an establishment that absolutely stood out among the other stores around in binondo! here you will experience a brand new look for their eng bee tin store! it is more bigger and spacious! perfect to cater to more customers! what’s new in their business is that on the second floor, you will find the great buddha cafe! a perfect place to enjoy authentic chinese food! this time, you know it’s clean and in quality! dining in there feels very safe! you guys must try their beef tendon and their cream cheese nai cha! the best! here, you will also find a filipino-chinese souveneir shop! what’s good about this is that the prices are fixed! lastly, on the 3rd floor, which is still under construction, you will find........(secret! surprise!) overall, it was awesome! can’t wait to come back once the third floor is done! 😍

the great buddha cafe is a restaurant owned by eng bee tin (chinese deli chain based in binondo, manila, innovator of the hopia industry). it is located on the second floor of eng bee tin building. the place is spacious and has a bright lighting, yet it maintains the traditional chinese theme and interiors. the place is air-conditioned and well-ventilated. i must say, their comfort room is pleasant and big! service is good. the managers are welcoming. the servers were very assisting.

they also aim to revive the tourism in binondo, manila. the restaurant comes with a souvenir shop promoting and supporting our local handicraft makers. they are now building a mini museum/showroom on the 3rd floor (this is exciting!).

if authentic hong kong cuisines are what you're looking for, they all have it here. it is prepared by a well-experienced cantonese chef. among the dishes that we tried, thsee are my favorites:

pork and shrimp siomai (4 pcs / p128.00), each serving is big. it was meaty and filled with larger servings of shrimp (than pork).

ham sui kok (p148.00) - crispy and toasted on the outside, while javing a savory meaty filling inside. this is a good one.

beef tendon claypot rice (p260.00) - a serious bestseller. the tendon was so soft. don't feel guilty eating this, this isn't the fatty part, it's a tendon.

pork ribs glazed with honey garlic sauce - it was too tasty. the honey garlic sauce gave it a sweet touch. seriously after eating this, i forgot the taste of other dishes. it marked my taste buds.

cream cheese nai cha (p130.00) - according to them, the best way to drink it is to drink it as it is, no need to mix the cream cheese on the milk tea. it was milky sweet with a hint of bitterness. i enjoyed scraping the cream cheese haha.

golden custard buchi (p98.00) - it was an authentic buchi. it was so soft. they use custard as its filling and it was tasty.

overall experience is excellent. price is reasonable. it's a must-visit restaurant/store in binondo.

great buddha cafe is a newly opened resto in ongpin. it’s located at the second floor of the eng bee tin building. their resto is big and has lots of tables and chairs. they also have a souvenir shop inside their resto. ambience is nice, it’s well lighted and ventilated too. all the food we tasted are delicious. my personal fave are pan-fried dumplings (a must try), beef tendon claypot rice (their best seller), and soy chicken. i recommend that you try dining here too.

we’ll definitely go back here but i just wish they’ll have a branch in qc too. :)

the restaurant has a cheerful aura because of its unique interiors and bright lights. food wise, typical chinese food and dimsum, limited choices and nothing spectacular. for me, the asado and buchi were both very good, asado was tender and flavorful and buchi was crunchy outside, soft and creamy inside, really yummy. for someone who eats dimsum on a weekly basis, their dimsums are very ordinary and expensive. lots of diners were drawn to this place because of its instragrammable and unique decors specially the big golden buddha in the most visible area of the restaurant. the only chinese restaurant that doesn't serve service tea and a pot of tea, though refillable with hot water, costs p150, pricey! my major complaint, lots of flies flying around, not just around the common area but on our food, how can anyone enjoy the food when you're busy shooing away the flies. even when we put a lighted candle on our table, these pests just won't leave us to eat in peace and not only in our table but on other diners' as well.

place - the great buddha cafe is located on the 2nd floor of the newly opened eng bee tin and it is actually near a eng bee tin (again, so many branches in binondo. haha) & mr. ube rice & noodle house. restaurant is nice and spacious. i really like the design of the place and to the fact that you can take picture every area as it was instagramable. btw, you can take a photo w/ the golden buddha there (the owner said it was made of bronze in china). however it seems that seats were short since we had too wait and i think i was #18 that time (or maybe since i came here at chinese new year).

service - staffs were friendly and polite. maybe a bit understaffed because of the volume of people and the chinese new year celebration.

food - ordered the honey asado w/ rice, xia long bao, jasmine tea and cheesy nai chai. asado was good, tender and the sweetnes of the honey complimented the meat. xia long bao was steaming when it came in our table, it was also good.