The biggest buzz of the week, Tim Ho Wan finally opens in Manila. Its first location is at the newly opened Mega Fashion Hall in SM Megamall. I dared to visit during lunch hour and not surprisingly, a huge crowd has already gathered. Expect long queues to go on for months. These pork buns sell for P50 a piece, just a tad bit pricier than the HK price which sells P120-P130 for one order / 3 pieces.
Tim Ho Wan apparently means “add good luck” in Cantonese. It’s supposedly the cheapest or most affordable Michelin star restaurant. I’ve tried Tim Ho Wan in Hong Kong during a business trip where I forced my former boss and COO to hunt it down for dinner – I’m that goal-oriented, not only in business but especially when it comes to good food. We had to wait 15 minutes to get seated but it was fairly quick. We ordered quite a number of dimsum items, almost everything in the menu since everything seemed dirt cheap.
It couldn’t fit our table. Honestly, the dimsum were good but nothing outstanding – except for the raddish or “carrot” cake I guess which I always highly favor anyway. But my oh my, if there’s anything that sets apart Tim Ho Wan from other dimsum places, it’s their BAKED STICKY PORK BUNS.
These baked pork buns are legendary. I actually once hand carried 60pieces from Hong Kong to Manila. Crazy eh? Crazy for the love of food.
Forget the chubby cheeks.
Tim Ho Wan’s baked pork buns are served warm and have a lovely crusty exterior that you break open to reveal the tender marinated pork in sweet and salty sticky sauce. It’s steamy, enticingly seducing you to take a bite even if it burns your tongue. The light pastry is slightly doughy yet fluffy, at certain points, crumbly. It is freshly baked with a richly satisfying barbecue filling that could silence any rebellious soul. Of course, consuming it within 10-15 minutes fresh out of the oven is best but reheating it is still as rewarding.
I checked out the newly opened Tim Ho Wan flagship branch in Megamall for lunch today and found the queue too long for my liking. Have to wait another day.
Tim Ho Wan
G/F SM Mega Fashion Hall, SM Megamall,
Mandaluyong City, Philippines.
Operation Hour: 12nn-9pm
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