Rong Hua: Where to Eat Bak Kut Teh in Manila!

Rong Hua is the first authentic Bak Kut Teh (literally means “meat bone tea”) concept restaurant in Manila from one of Singapore’s oldest and most famous pork rib soup shops by founding grandfather Chua Ah Hua and Uncle Rong.

Brought to Manila by master franchisee Silver Lush Food Corporation, it has three branches in Singapore before expanding for the first time outside the Lion City. Finally, we now have a place to satisfy our cravings for our Singapore Bak Kut Teh favorite right here.

Here’s what to expect at Rong Hua Manila:

Rong Hua Bak Kut Teh Philippines
by Silverlush Food Corp
Unit A-102 Mckinley West Park, Taguig
Operating Hours: Open Daily 11.00 am to 11.00 pm
Facebook: RongHuaPH
Instagram: @ronghuaphilippines
Website: https://www.ronghua.com.sg/

First Things First

Rong Hua Bak Kut Teh’s name comes from the restaurant’s founders. In the 1920s, the restaurant’s founding grandfather Chua Ah Hua migrated to Singapore in search of a better life. When he came to Singapore, Bak Kut Teh was already a popular dish around the modern-day Clarke Quay area.

Ah Hua worked as a manual laborer who unloaded sacks of rice. By consuming Bak Kut Teh, he discovered that he found a much-needed energy boost for his exhausting job. His interest in the dish inspired him to become a kitchen apprentice at a well-known Bak Kut Teh stall owned by a village elder Uncle Rong.

Under Uncle Rong, Ah Hua mastered the art of cooking Bak Kut Teh. Both master and apprentice later created their own unique blend of the pork ribs soup recipe, which now carries their names. Before Uncle Rong passed away, he named Ah Hua as his personal successor.

The flagship branch is located at Asiatown in the new Mckinley West development flanked by buildings dedicated to Filipino and Chinese call centers.

The store is popular for lunch among Filipinos looking to satisfy their Singapore cravings and for dinner among Chinese looking for the authentic health benefits of its Bak Kuh Teh.

The Rong Hua Manila menu is focused on the soups and Singaporean specialties like smoked duck.

Bak Kuh Teh

**Pork Rib Premium** (250g – ₱350). *Slow cook premium cut of pork rib, garlic, white pepper, star anise and coriander.*

Order the premium pork rib to enjoy the flavor of the pork rib and the soup with garlic. The meat has an herby flavor, and it’s tender with a good bite (but does not fall off the bone).

The pork ribs’ meat flavor is better in Manila because the ribs are sourced fresh locally, unlike in Singapore where they are imported into the country.

**Bak Kut Teh soup**. *Hand-cut pork rib slow-cooked to perfection with a hint of garlic and pepperish flavor from the soup.*

The signature recipe has a spicy pepperish flavor from Sarawak white peppercorns, known for providing benefits such as replenished calcium, improved eyesight and enhanced immunity.

**Pork Rib Soup** (150g – ₱220). *Slow-cooked pork with garlic, white pepper, star anise and coriander flavors.*

The Bak Kuh Teh recipe typically includes meaty pork ribs simmered for hours in a complex broth of herbs and spices, including star anise, cinnamon, cloves, dang gui, fennel seeds, coriander and garlic.

Enjoy it with their dark and light soy sauce mixed with chili.

Singaporean

After enjoying the soup, you can taste other authentic Singaporean flavors.

**Smoked Duck** (120g – ₱350). *A salt and sugar cured duck, with our own in-house pineapple and sugar glaze sauce, that’s smoked to perfection.*

Our group’s favorite was the smoke cured duck with a fatty layer of skin drizzled with their char sao sauce and finished with a sprinkle of sesame seeds over a bed of lettuce.

It had the sweet smoky taste of duck ham with umami from the fat.