A MICHELIN Bib Gourmand Vietnamese restaurant from Vancouver’s Commercial Drive is expanding to Manila.
The Lunch Lady shared the news on its new Manila Instagram account, tagged in Bonifacio Global City (BGC) in Taguig.
Its website already lists a Manila address on Forbestown Road, but no opening date has been announced.
The name goes back to a street stall in Saigon.
Mrs. Nguyễn Thị Thanh cooked a different noodle soup there every day, from recipes passed down through the women in her family.
Anthony Bourdain ate at her stall on No Reservations and gave her the nickname that became the restaurant’s name.
In 2020, Michael Tran and his mother, restaurateur Victoria Tran, opened The Lunch Lady at 1046 Commercial Drive with chef Benedict Lim, working with Thanh to bring her food to Vancouver.
The Drive restaurant is on the Bib Gourmand list in the 2026 MICHELIN Guide Vancouver.
The brand opened its first Toronto location in June 2025, and earned its own Bib Gourmand this year.
That opening came just weeks after Thanh passed away in May 2025, shortly after arriving for the launch.
The Manila announcement is written as a tribute to her, ending with “A new home. A new city. The same heart that started it all.”
So if you have friends or family in Manila, this is one to send their way.
Back home, you’ll still find the original restaurant on Commercial Drive and a Lunch Lady counter at Time Out Market Vancouver in Oakridge Park.
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Address: Forbestown Road, Bonifacio Global City, Taguig, Metro Manila, Philippines
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