Where to buy Chinese frozen dishes - Diao Eng Chay's (DEC), Binondo, Manila

Being partly Chinese myself, I crave for authentic Chinese food from time to time, and although a lot of food shops and restaurant claim that they are authentic, not all seem to really appeal to my palate. However, there's one that I'm loving very much lately, and that is Diao Eng Chay (DEC). 

Every other week, my father comes home with a haul from Diao Eng Chay, and this often includes fresh lumpia, kikiam, siomai (wasn't able to take a photo) and kiampeng. This makes us all excited to take 'em out of the plastic bags, and binge on them! 

Where can you find DEC?

Now, if you happen to be craving these as well, and you plan to have Chinese lunch/dinner at home, DEC definitely will be your reliable source. While one of the first branches is in Binondo, there are some supermarkets around the Metro that offers DEC products, particularly SM Supermalls and Waltermarts.

According to a little bit of search, these are the areas where you can find DEC products:

• Main branch - Binondo (845 Salazar Street, Binondo, Manila)
• Secondary branch - San Juan (203 Wilson Street, Greenhills, San Juan)
• Retail Stores in Makati: SM Supermarket Makati and Waltermart Makati
• Retail Stores in Mandaluyong: SM Megamall (A & B) and SM Savemore Light Residences
• Retail Stores in Quezon City: SM Supermarket North EDSA and SM Fairview
• Retail Stores in Pasay: SM Mall of Asia (Hypermarket) and Waltermart Pasay

What are good dishes to buy and/or take home?

The Fresh Lumpia stands by its name when it comes to freshness. It's very authentic as this is how my grandmother used to prepare and cook this dish herself. There's richness in the variety of vegetables included in its, and all gives this crisp bite -- an indication of freshness. The sauce is rightly sweet enhancing the flavors even more! Excellent. 

The Kikiam is another stellar choice. It's great either fried or heated via oven toaster (I prefer the latter). It has this harmonious blend of Chinese spices that gives the meat a jolt of savory taste for every bite. Hands down. A family favorite!

While I currently don't have a picture for it, the Diao Eng Chay's siomai is another classic that you should try. Each piece is hefty in meat, and I couldn't sense any fillers to it (if ever there's any, it's negligible). Same with the kikiam, the flavors all seeped into the meat fibers, and once you take a bite, these locked-in flavors ooze out along with its juiciness. Excellent.

Last for this haul is the Kiampeng with Taro. It's my younger brother's favorite, and it surely is good (probably not as good as how my grandmother cooks it), but still nostalgic. There's a good variety of mushrooms, nuts and spices which make this savory as well. This goes well with either the siomai or kikiam (but why not both?). 

Diao Eng Chay can be found in Salazar St., Binondo Manila and can be reached via telephone number of 8244-8816. There's also another branch in Wilson St. of San Juan, Metro Manila with telephone number of 8721-1105. Also some SM Markets and Watermart branches have them.