Wai Ying Fast Food — Restaurant in Manila

Too good to be true based from reviews.

Servers: after we have decided what to order we had to call out the servers' attention numerous times. I first called a guy server and he only looked at me. I, then get the attention of the lady server and told me to wait 🫸 by gesturing her hand without saying a word.

No waters served until you get your food. We asked like 5 times for water and they just keep on ignoring us. The servers look tired and don't want to be bothered. Not sure if they're under staffed but they looked too busy.

So, they finally gave us water but with no ice (oh lord). But they forgot the glasses. So, we asked for it again. We were 5 persons and they only gave 4. My friend asked the waiter for another glass, and they waiter told her to get a glass underneath a metal table. And guess what, the glass had 1/4 cup water in it which means it can be a used glass. 😤

I even noticed the Chinese lady beside our table who asked for sabaw (soup). She ordered a soup dish, but they apparently forgot the broth itself 😅. She asked the guy waiter for soup but was ignored so she asked another waiter. Then, she followed up her order which hasn't been served yet. The waiter responded in a rude voice which is almost screaming at her face. He keeps talking in Tagalog to the Chinese woman where obviously the latter wouldn't be able to understand hence some misunderstanding. The waiter looks aggravated while the Chinese lady handled and chilling like a queen (slay 💅). She just didn't mind I guess.

Food: not that much. Hakaw is a bit good and pancit is tasty. But siopao, just refer to the pic. The bun was so dry and not appeasing to your taste buds.

The dining area was a bit hot since the a/c unit doesn't cover everything. Yeah but it gives ypu this authentic oriental vibes.

We asked for the bill, and the waitress put it in front of my face like literally 3 inches away...

Ah, Wai Ying Resto in Binondo, the place where you can practically have a front-row seat to the duck grill extravaganza right at the window. I mean, who needs TV when you've got ducks sizzling away as entertainment, right?

Now, let's set the record straight – Wai Ying's isn't exactly the spot for a leisurely, kick-back-and-relax meal. Nope, it's more like a tiny, bustling Chinese fast-food joint. So, if you're planning to hit it up with your pals, prepare for the classic table-waiting dance or, hey, maybe opt for the upstairs seating, where there's more room to maneuver.

Now, the foodie journey! We dove into the pork sioma, and oh boy, that's my personal jam right there. But, let's not forget the kutchay dumplings – they were decent. And the Hakao? Divine.

But here's the kicker – we had to wait for nearly two hours in line just to get a taste of this culinary adventure. It's one for the books, but not exactly "change-your-life" level stuff. So, here's a pro tip: bring your trusty umbrella for those surprise rain showers during the wet season and a hand fan to combat the dry season heat. Price-wise, it's fair game.

Now, I've got to be honest here – aside from a bit of a cleanliness hiccup, Wai Ying left me with a decent impression overall. But here's the plot twist – I'm leaning towards thinking this place might be slightly overrated. It's like, neither the restaurant nor the food is shouting, "Look at me, I'm extraordinary!" It's more like they've got the everyday crowd locked in, and that's their jam.

Now, don't get me wrong – I'm still curious about their other offerings. But here's my game plan: order 'em to-go or have 'em delivered so I can enjoy 'em from the comfort of my own pad. If you're feeling patient and don't mind queuing up, sure, give it a whirl. Otherwise, this one might just be a "take it or leave it" kind of...

I was hoping that I'd get a glimpse and a taste of what the you tube vloggers were raving about, so I gave this joint multiple tries over the course of 3 years. Prior visits were unremarkable, but today's visit was the straw that broke the camel's back.

Quite inattentive staff pointing fingers at who will take the order while I was only the 3rd customer in an otherwise not busy brunch hour. They were busy watching on their phones.

The place is filthy, and the smell inside could spell death to a government health inspector 😆

Food: The noodles and wonton are already parked on bowls near the window waiting for broth when ordered. So when it comes to your table, the insides of the wonton are cold, and the noodles are still a bit undercooked and stale. Since the broth is not piping hot, and the noodles and wonton aren't blanched separately before putting broth in, it's a fail. This shortcut is unnecessary and kills the experience. Centuries old ways of doing noodles, meat and soup is hard to mess up. Somehow they found a way to do it here in the heart of Binondo. Their sister resto Ying Ying has the same ingredients and possibly vendors, but their food lands differently on your table. The steamed pork spareribs were also cold and flavorless.

The kuchai dumplings were fine. It was steamed for a long time, so it came out the way dimsums should (piping hot).

Sayang. This was my 10th time to dine in, and majority of that was the same poor standards - despite non peak times...