Once upon a time in ChinaTown
4 minute
Photo: Ba Lù Coffee
Address: 193 Phùng Hưng street, ward 14, district 5
Đông Nguyên Chicken Rice
Photo: Cơm gà Đông Nguyên
Hainanes chicken rice is a Chinese dish that is well-loved by Saigonese for its juicy boiled chicken and the rice cooked in chicken broth to maintain the pleasing aroma of the chicken, paired with the signature sweet and sour ginger sauce.
Known to be opened in 1945, Đông Nguyên has been one of the oldest places that serve Hainanese chicken rice in Chợ Lớn. Many people of Chợ Lớn until this day, have claimed they grew up with the memories of going to Đông Nguyên Chicken Rice with their families to enjoy a nice weekend dinner.
After nearly 80 years, Đông Nguyên's distinct elegant flavors in each of their dishes still continue to leave pleasing impressions and good memories in the hearts of the people of Chợ Lớn.
Opening hours: 9:30am-8:15pm
Address: 801 Nguyễn Trãi street, ward 14, district 5
Ông Bổn Temple
Photo: Bùi Thụy Đào Nguyên
Back in the first developing years of Saigon's ChinaTown, a group of residents from the southern coastal area of Fujian province of Quanzhou and Zhangzhou moved here and decided to build a first common guildhall for both their communities.
The guildhall is known as Ông Bổn's temple because it was built to worship of the human deity Bổn Đầu Công, and is the only place where this deity is worshiped.
This 300-year old temple possesses the signature Fujian architecture style with key features such as hammock roofs decorated with dragons and elegant pottery details. But the place is most recognizable for its “Tiger-eyes” on the front facade, which are two symmetrical circular windows with bamboo stems bars.
Opening hours: 9:30am-4pm
Address: 264 Hải Thượng Lãn Ông street, ward 14, district 5
*Source: Wikipedia, Tản Mạn Kiến Trúc
Hà Chương Guildhall
Photo: Bùi Thụy Đào Nguyên
After founding Ông Bổn temple, the group of Zhangzhou compatriots decided to establish their own guildhall, which was known as Hà Chương guildhall, Ông Hược pagoda or Bà Hà Chương pagoda.
The guildhall is also a representation of Fujian’s influence, but they have a key feature that no other Fujian temple in Saigon used, that is the engraved dragon column.
This style of sculpting temples’ columns into dragons to create elegant stands for the roof is a typical feature in every building of Fujian in territories outside China, but in Chợ Lớn, only Hà Chương guildhall owns it as a proof of wealth.
Opening hours: 9:30am-8:15pm
Address: 801 Nguyễn Trãi street, ward 14, district 5
*Source: Wikipedia, Tản Mạn Kiến Trúc
Ôn Lăng temple
Photo: DoktorMax
Another temple that embodied Fujian's architecture style in Chợ Lớn that you can stop by on your stroll in town is Ôn Lăng temple. This place belongs to Quanzhou fellow countrymen, and has various names such as Ong Lào pagoda, Quan m pagoda.
Besides typical features of a Fujian's temple such as the hammock roof, the curving blade, the treasured collection of artisan Hoa Mai pottery ornaments, Ôn Lăng temple also has an associated garden with an artificial pond, decorated by Taoist motifs relief panels, that is separated from the main temple by the street.
Opening hours: 9:30am-8:15pm
Address: 801 Nguyễn Trãi street, ward 14, district 5
Photo: giuademdong, nguyentrac
Address: 476 Đ. Trần Hưng Đạo street, ward 14, district 5
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