Binondo by Kabisera
Binondo by Kabisera
@binondo_by_kabisera
50 E Broadway
New York, New York 10002
Chef Augelyn (Augee) Francisco opened Binondo by Kabisera in May 2025, bringing her Igorot culture, and infusing it with Chinese influence, to NYC.
Originally, Kabisera was part of the Canal Street Market, which, unfortunately, closed in 2024. However, this gave Chef Augee the opportunity to fully step into the restaurant business and open Binondo in Chinatown. Closing Kabisera wasn’t her choice, but it provided this new opportunity for her and her team to fully operate on their own.
“Binondo” pays homage to the oldest Chinatown outside of China, which reflects the current location of her restaurant and the influences to her dishes.
With this new venture, she has had her hands full, but has managed to create a warm and upscale environment, bringing culture, love, and passion to her menu. Her menu is curated from her heritage and roots, showcasing authentic and traditional dishes, with her own flare, topped with Chinese influences.
Our meal
We started off strong with a couple of their starters: mayon volcano (crispy shrimp with spicy mayo dressing) and sisig bites (seared pork belly, onions, chilies, with mayo, soy sauce, and lime).
sisig bites and mayon volcano
The sisig bite itched my sisig fix, being served in a small rice cracker, exploding with delicious flavor.
When it came to our meal selection, we chose items specific to the Binondo menu, while still sticking to our personal favorites. While sisig is still served on the main course menu, and one of my personal favorite meals, there were other dishes we wanted to try, so the sisig bites were the perfect way to begin our night of Filipino cuisine.
To accompany us throughout the night, we sipped on a couple of cocktails, Manila sunset (strawberry puree, orange juice, soda water, soju) and kuracha (fresh mango, ginger marmalade, lime juice, mint, soju), which set the tone for a modern twist on Filipino flavors.
kuracha and manila sunset
For the main show, we selected four different dishes: pancit negra, pinakbet, crispy kare kare, and paksiw sa gata.
We struggled to make our choices, as everything on the menu was making us salivate, but we ended up with an amazing spread, all coming out family style, with a side of steamed rice.
As the server presented each course, our eyes widened at the picture worthy plates, eager to dive in, but having restraint, allowing our cameras to eat first. Upon first looks, we could see how each dish had its own twist without straying from the authenticity of a hearty Filipino meal.
paksiw sa gata, pinakbet, and pancit negra
The pancit negra was unlike any other pancit I’ve ever had, infused with squid ink, giving it its black coloring and infused fish flavoring. Chef Augee explained how she has a unique cooking process to ensure the fish flavor isn’t too strong.
One of my favorite Filipino dishes is kare kare, so the crispy kare kare was a no brainer for our spread. This twist on kare kare bridged two of my favorite meals in one: kare kare + lechon kawali. The crispy fried pork belly with peanut sauce was something I didn’t know I needed. The fatty pork was cooked to perfection, remaining crispy, despite being in a shallow lake of peanut sauce. We laid it on a bed of rice, paired with bagaong and the rest was history.
We had to make sure we had enough gulay (vegetables), so we opted in for pinakbet, which coincidentally used to be my favorite Filipino meal. However, this pinakbet made me fall in love all over again. Pinakbet has been bumped to my #1 again because of this specific one. Though we didn’t add any protein, this dish is still prepared with fermented anchovies. Simmered with fish sauce, this vegetable stew was the perfect way to incorporate more veggies into our meal. What made this dish especially loveable was the way the bitter melon was cooked. Personally, I am not the biggest fan of bitter melon, but the way Chef Augee prepared it rewards itself: not too bitter, but just bitter enough. The pinakbet was my personal favorite, a love poem could be in the works.
Our final star of this show was the paksiw sa gata. This fish, served on a sizzling plate, swam in vinegar and coconut. This was my runner up to the pinakbet, a personal favorite. The fish was perfectly cooked with a buttery consistency, and the coconut provided the perfect amount of flavor to it. Chef Augee explained how she added her own flare to this dish, specific to Binondo, and not being as flavor-blasted as other recipes. It really was love at first bite, reminding me of a dish that I used to eat at my grandma’s house.
crispy kare kare
Ending with something sweet
As stuffed as we were, we had to end with something sweet - there’s always room for a little sweet treat, especially if turon is on the menu.
Our dessert spread was: estero (in a sizzling plate, stack malted chocolate cake & vanilla ice cream drizzled with house-made date sauce) and turon (fried banana spring roll served with ube ice cream).
The stack malted cake on the sizzling plate was the perfect spongy bite with sauce all over. It was just the right amount of sweetness, sweet enough, but not too sweet. I honestly thought the star of the dessert menu was the turon, though. I love turon, so this was ordered without hesitation. This fried banana spring roll honestly wasn’t the most impressive part of the platter, though. I was speechless at the ube ice cream that sat on top. This homemade ube ice cream was the best ube ice cream I have ever had. Not only did it pair perfectly with the turon, but it had such great flavor. I’ve never had turon with ice cream, and I don’t intend to continue to eat turon without it.
turon and estero
Overall experience
I’m always on a hunt for Filipino food, given it’s my favorite cuisine, and Binondo did not disappoint. I instantly felt love, passion, and community the moment I stepped into the establishment, a similar feeling when stepping into a Filipino party.
Chef Augee has created an upscale environment while still maintaining the comfort of Filipino hospitality. The way she interacts with her staff and her guests is commendable. I really appreciate her story and her ability to connect with everyone. I was fortunate enough to connect with her and hear more about her story and what brings each dish to fruition.
Honorable mention: someone was celebrating a birthday, so in true Filipino fashion, birthday music filled the restaurant, staff and guests alike sang along, and Chef Augee lit a sparkler for the celebrant.
Overall, this was a phenomenal experience and I will definitely be back to try more.
Whether you live in New York or just visiting, Binondo is definitely worth the trip!
mahals,
kaels
too bad ain’t me <3
(mahals: our abbreviation for “mahal kita” translating to “i love you” in Tagalog)
