Vietnamese and Thai food in Manila

Vietnamese: pho, bun cha and banh mi

Em Hà Nội is a family style restaurant on the ground floor of F1 Hotel in BGC, cooking the dishes of Hanoi, and it holds a Bib Gourmand in the MICHELIN Guide Manila. Order phở gà, the chicken pho, crisp nem rán spring rolls and rice noodles with grilled pork. Tatler notes that many ingredients come straight from Vietnam, and the salt coffee is worth staying for. GF, F1 Hotel, 32nd Street corner Lane A, BGC. ₱₱. Daily 10:30am to 10pm. Tip: book on 0981 046 9999 for weekend dinner.

Ha Noi Pho is the bright yellow house on J.P. Rizal Avenue with Hoi An lanterns over the gate. It is run by Vietnamese owners and spread over two floors, and the bun cha, grilled pork and meatballs with noodles and a vinegar dipping sauce, is the dish people compare to Hanoi. The beef pho is a big bowl, and the egg coffee comes in a bowl of hot water to keep it warm. 925 J.P. Rizal Avenue, Poblacion. ₱. Daily 10am to 11pm. Good to know: weekend dinners can mean a wait of 40 minutes or more, so come early.

ManMan Sai-Gon is a small, Vietnamese owned room on Molina Street, on the quieter side of Poblacion, decorated like a Saigon home. The house special pho comes with beef, tendon, tripe and meatballs, and regulars order the banh hoi with roast pork next. Molina Street, Poblacion. ₱. Good to know: hours vary by listing, so check before you make the trip.

Thai with a MICHELIN nod

SOME THAI is the Thai Bib Gourmand, a modern room in a red building on Tomas Morato in Quezon City. The menu covers papaya salad, pad thai and tom yum, but the curries are the reason to go: beef short rib, and a crab curry made with local crab, tender eggs and a little coconut milk. End with mango sticky rice. 195 Tomas Morato Avenue corner Scout Fuentebella, Quezon City. ₱₱. Daily 10am to 11pm. Book on 0976 439 4356.

Benjarong at Dusit Thani Manila cooks Royal Thai food, the palace style of Bangkok, and is MICHELIN Selected. It is the most formal Thai meal on this list and suits a celebration or a client. The Experience Menu runs five courses for ₱4,298 net or eight for ₱6,754 net, and needs booking 24 hours ahead. Ground Floor, Dusit Thani Manila, Ayala Center, Makati. ₱₱. Lunch daily 11:30am to 2:30pm, dinner 5:30pm to 11pm. Smart casual.

People's Palace is a long running Thai restaurant at Greenbelt that moved beside Greenbelt Park in 2020, into a high ceilinged room with garden seating. MICHELIN says the kitchen cooks Thai classics without MSG, with heat set for local tastes. Start with tod man pla fishcakes (₱620) and save room for the Mussaman lamb curry (₱1,080). Ground Floor, Greenbelt 3, Esperanza Street, Makati. ₱₱. Daily 11am to 11pm. Tip: groups of 12 or more can pre order set menus from ₱1,880 a person, plus 10% service charge.

Thai for a group in BGC

Sabai opened in 2025 on the ground floor of Shangri-La The Fort, from the team behind Uma Nota next door. Chef Tob, Puwadol Assavadathkamjorn, grew up in Hat Yai in Southern Thailand and trained in MICHELIN starred kitchens including Sühring in Bangkok, and five more chefs moved from Thailand to cook with him. The menu names each dish's region. Order the Panang curry with beef shank (₱1,150) and the tom yum kung (₱890), and ask for medium heat unless you mean it. Ground Floor, Shangri-La The Fort, 30th Street corner 3rd Avenue, BGC. ₱₱₱. Sunday to Thursday 11:30am to midnight, Friday and Saturday to 2:30am. Good to know: three private rooms seat 6 to 20, and two have karaoke.

Mango Tree is a Thai group that started in Bangkok, and its Manila flagship is on 7th Avenue in Bonifacio High Street Central. It is the steady choice for a family dinner after a walk around High Street, with a menu drawn from Thailand's four regions and vegan dishes for the table that needs them. 7th Avenue, Bonifacio High Street Central, BGC. ₱₱₱. Sunday to Thursday 11am to 10pm, Friday and Saturday to midnight. Book on 0917 534 9145.

Thai late at night

Thai-Noy Cuisine on P. Burgos is where to eat Thai after midnight. The room is green and full of plants, the menu runs from pad thai and green curry to a few fusion plates, and there are bands and DJs at weekends. 5022 P. Burgos Street, Poblacion. ₱₱. Daily 11am to 3am.

When the table wants both

Spices at The Peninsula Manila cooks across Southeast Asia and India, so a Thai salad and Vietnamese grilled prawns can share a table with a rendang. The kitchen is halal certified and the room looks onto the hotel gardens, which makes it the calm choice in central Makati. Ground Floor, Makati Tower, The Peninsula Manila, Ayala Avenue corner Makati Avenue. ₱₱₱. Daily 11am to 2pm and 6pm to 10pm. Casual dress.

For more, see every MICHELIN Star and Bib Gourmand in Manila, date night in Poblacion and the best bars in Poblacion for after dinner, or browse the eat and drink hub and the Poblacion and BGC pages.

Before you go

• Getting there. Ha Noi Pho, ManMan Sai-Gon and Thai-Noy are all in Poblacion, a short Grab apart. Em Hà Nội, Sabai and Mango Tree are within a 10 minute walk of each other in BGC. SOME THAI is in Quezon City, so plan for traffic from Makati.
• Booking. The small Poblacion places are walk in. Call ahead for Em Hà Nội, SOME THAI, Sabai and Mango Tree on a Friday or Saturday night, and book Benjarong's tasting menu a day ahead.
• Heat. Thai kitchens here often tone the chilli down. Sabai will cook it Thai hot if you ask, so ask with care.
• Payment. Hotel and mall restaurants take cards. Bring cash or GCash for the small Poblacion places.
• Service charge. Most of these add 10% service charge to the bill, and "net" on a menu means tax and service are already in.

Questions people ask

What is the best Vietnamese restaurant in Manila?

Em Hà Nội in BGC is the one the MICHELIN Guide picked, as a Bib Gourmand for its Hanoi cooking. In Poblacion, Ha Noi Pho and ManMan Sai-Gon are both run by Vietnamese owners and were both on Tatler's 2026 list of the best Vietnamese restaurants in Metro Manila.

Where can I get pho in Makati or Poblacion?

Ha Noi Pho on J.P. Rizal Avenue does a large northern style beef pho and is open daily until 11pm. ManMan Sai-Gon on Molina Street does a Saigon style house special pho with tendon, tripe and meatballs, in a small or a large bowl.

Is there a Thai restaurant at The Peninsula Manila?

Spices, on the ground floor of the Makati Tower, covers Thai food alongside Vietnamese, Indonesian, Malaysian and Indian dishes. It is open for lunch and dinner every day and its kitchen is halal certified.

What Thai restaurant is in Shangri-La BGC?

Sabai, on the ground floor of Shangri-La The Fort, cooks Southern Thai food with a Thai chef from Hat Yai. It opened in 2025 and stays open past midnight, with three private rooms for groups.

Is there a Thai restaurant on Bonifacio High Street?

Mango Tree, the Bangkok brand, has its Manila flagship on 7th Avenue in Bonifacio High Street Central, open until 10pm Sunday to Thursday and until midnight on Friday and Saturday.