FOR self-professed “street-walker” Ivan Man Dy, the Big Binondo Food Wok is not only good for the stomach but for the mind as well.

The Big Binondo Food Wok, started four years ago, is a three-hour history and culture tour around Binondo. A “Manila boy through and through,” Dy got the idea from his trips around the globe.

“It’s all about explaining the history of Binondo and the Chinoys in the context of food,” he says. For this “walking lauriat,” Dy chooses the restaurants based on the food he loves, their history, affordability and “unpopularity.” “I don’t want the tour to be predictable so I take the participants to the not-so-famous yet fascinating nooks and crannies of Binondo. Every tour is full of surprises.”

Aside from the Big Binondo Food Wok, Dy also proffers Walls of this Content: An Intramuros Walk; Power, Palace and a Shot of Beer-Poking Around the Old Presidential Neighborhood; Mounds, Magnates and Mausoleums: A Chinese Cemetery Walk; Architectural Tours of Malate and the Far Eastern University; and Halo-Halo Special: Best of Old Manila Walks.

Memorable structures

For the Big Binondo Food Wok, participants meet at the lobby of Binondo Church, a 16th-century Baroque cathedral. In front of the cathedral is Plaza Calderon de la Barca, also known as Plaza Lorenzo Ruiz after the first Filipino saint whose statue dramatically stands on it.

According to Dy, a hotel and tobacco factory once stood near the plaza. The hotel was opened in 1889. Partially destroyed in 1945, it was later torn down to give way to a huge building. The cigar office and factory stood beautifully in the plaza for many years until its destruction by fire in 1944.

Near the church is an old chocolate shop with packages of tablea ( concentrated cacao tablets) on display in its glass stand. It’s made from freshly roasted cacao beans ground fine and cooked into thick chocolate paste that is then dried on flat baskets stacked high.

Next on the itinerary is a fast food and fine dining restaurant serving Hokkien food. Since a fire-fighting volunteer owns it, fireman hats and photos of fire trucks and firemen are displayed in the dining area. “What’s good about this restaurant is that part of the day’s earnings goes to groups of fire-fighting volunteers,” Dy says.

Along Calle Nueva is a nondescript storefront that turns out to be a dumpling restaurant, owned by migrants from northern China. The restaurant has only five tables for four people, but offers sumptuous dumplings.

Venerated image

One of Binondo’s legends revolves around the venerated image of Santo Cristo de Longos, an image of the crucified Christ said to be found by a deaf-mute Chinese at the site of an old well in the barrio of Longos in Binondo.

The original image of the Santo Cristo is displayed on a niche (with glass cover) near the side entrance of the church of Binondo on Ongpin Street. A shrine is also on San Nicolas Street.

Winding along for 10 jam-packed city blocks, Ongpin is glitz and glitter, traditional, exotic and an assault on the eardrums. To many people, a Chinese feast is enough reason to return to Ongpin despite the turtle-paced traffic and scarce parking space.

“There may be a handful of Chinese restaurants scattered around the city that are faithful to regional mainland cooking but the best and most authentic remain in Ongpin. Every eatery is an excellent choice for whatever budget you may have,” Dy says.

Carvajal, which connects the streets of Quintin Paredes and Nueva, is known for cheap market goods. On this alley, fruit peddlers lay out their seasonal offerings of cherries, peaches, and plums. Seafood dealers set their tables with hosts of fishes, shrimps and crabs. Cold storage shops sell the customary fishballs, sea cucumbers, black chicken and bean curds. Groceries offer various Chinese canned goods as well as a hodgepodge of nuts and dried candied fruits, which are measured and sold by the grams.

Finally, after seeing markets, restaurants, architecture, temples and vendors, participants head to a nice resting spot in an old Art Deco building where the restaurant serves lumpia (fried rolls) stuffed with vegetables, seaweed and noodles.

The Big Binondo Food Wok is definitely worth taking if you are curious about what great culinary finds Binondo has to offer. It’s truly a worthwhile afternoon spent eating and learning.

The tour is either in English, Filipino or Mandarin. Since participants will pound the pavement, wear comfortable clothes, with an umbrella and a bottle of water. Rest stops are provided along the way.

To celebrate the Chinese New Year, the Big Binondo Food Wok will be held Jan. 24 and 25, 8 a.m. and 2 p.m. Call 711-3823/0917-3291622; visit www.oldmanilawalks.com.

So as not to spoil the fun of participants to the Big Binondo Food Wok on Jan. 24 and 25, Ivan Man Dy requested the author not to put the names of the restaurants included in the tour.