Jordy Navarra, Toyo Eatery (Manila)
Jordy Navarra Source: The Entree.Pinays
"People tend to eat out and let the traffic subside before going home," saad ni Jordy, "so in a way, this led to a restaurant culture which was less common before. In the past, people ate out during special occasions like birthdays or after church. But now, you can't go home straight away if you live in the city".
Ayon kay Jordy, dahil marami ng nakatira sa siyudad, mas kumonti na rin ang espasyo para sa kusina. Dahil dito, nabago ang pag-iisip ng marami na ang pagkaing Pinoy ay niluluto ang kinakain lamang sa bahay. Habang marami pa rin ang magsasabi na "my mum's cooking is better than yours," may mga bagong henerasyon na ng mga Filipino chefs na nakakagawa ng masarap ng pagkaing Pinoy na "you're willing to pay for".
At pagdating sa pagkaing Pinoy na "you are willing to pay for", ang Toyo Eatery ni Jordy ay isa sa mga restawran na hindi nakakahon sa isang kategorya, kundi natutukoy dahil sa kalidad ng mga pagkain dito.
At Toyo Eatery. Manila sees an emergence of Filipino food in its burgeoning restaurant culture. Source: Toyo Eatery
"In the world of restaurants, there are so many categories. There's sit-down, casual, fine dining," aniya, "but for us, we lose the essence of the food and the experience of eating when we do this. So we used the ambiguous term 'eatery'. Don't think about whether it's fine dining or casual, just eat".
Habang naitatanghal ngayon ang terminong "fusion" pagdating sa pagkain at lutuin, nilalabanan ni Jordy and kathang ito. Ang mahalaga para sa kanya ang paggamit ng mga lokal na sangkap at paraan ng pagluluto, at ang pagtugon sa potensyal ng bawat lutuin at chef na dumadaan sa kanyang kusina.
"We want to focus on what else the Philippines has to offer, on what else the Filipino chef can do," saad niya.
At ang naitaguyod ni Jordy ay isang restawran na nangunguna sa kompetisyon sa Maynila. Ang Toyo Eatery rin ay naitanghal bilang isa sa Asia's Top 50 Restaurants sa 2018 at 2019.
"We want to focus on what else the Philippines has to offer, on what else the Filipino chef can do." Source: Toyo Eatery
Habang masaya na si Jordy na patuloy na nagpupunta ang mga tao sa kanyang restawran, may ibinahagi ang New Yorker restaurateur na si Nicole Ponseca ukol sa tagumpay ng kanyang kaibigan.
"It’s hard to speak about yourself sometimes, but one of the reasons why I think [Toyo Eatery] has cut through and has stuck around is [that he is] executing a point of view and, not pandering to expectations," saad ni Nicole, "he’s doing what his education has taught him. When you’re doing it with such moxie [as he does], people pay attention."
Nicole Ponseca, Maharlika and Jeepney (New York)
Nicole Ponseca Source: The Entree.Pinays
Ninais ng New York restaurateur at cookbook author na si Nicole Ponseca na magpahayag na kanyang opinyon. Nagtatrabaho siya noon sa advertising, ngunit ninais niyang pag-aralan kung bakit hindi kilala ang pagkaing Pinoy sa Amerika na mahigit apat na milyong Pilipino ang naninirahan doon.
"For me, it was a sociological study," aniya, "We speak English. We fought for the US military. Why are we still behind Vietnamese, Korean? I really wanted to figure out – why not us?"
Sa kanyang pagtugon sa tanong na "why not us?" nahanap niya ang mga sagot na naka-ugat sa kolonyalismo na nagbuhay ng maling paniwala na hindi kasing-sarap ng ibang pagkain ang pagkaing Pinoy. Mula sa mga sagot na ito, gumawa siya ng sarili niyang mga kontrobersyal na opinyon na nagtulak sa kanyang lumaban sa maling paniwalang ito.
Ibinahagi ni Nicole na lumaki siya sa isang gender-neutral household. Ayon sa kanya, lagi niyang pinaniwalaan na ang "bathroom [she] went to never predicted [her success]. Napagtanto lamang niya na "the air became more rarified for my gender" noong nakatamo siya ng tagumpay noong 30s niya.
"[Some of our guests in Jeepney and Maharlika would say to me] 'Oh you make such a great host! You are an amazing hostess! Your boss must be so proud of you! Then I would say that I am the boss," saad niya.
At Jeepney. "Oh you make such a great host! You are an amazing hostess! Your boss must be so proud of you! Then I'd say that I am the boss." Source: Jeepney NYC
Bilang boss at restaurateur sa New York City, natutong lumaban si Nicole sa isa sa pinakamahirap na industriya sa mundo.
Naalala ni Nicole ang pinaka-una niyang food event kung saan gumawa siya ng menu na puro pagkaing Pilipino.
"I put adidas [grilled chicken feet] and balut [boiled duck embryo] [on the menu]. I remember my partner’s mum at that time was like, Why are you putting adidas and balut on the menu?" aniya, "but lo and behold, the first couple that came in was looking very Abercrombie and Fitch, and they not only ordered one of each, they ordered two. So I was like, okay we’re on the right track".
At habang natutuwa siya na napapansin na ang pagkaing Pinoy ng iba, paniwala niya na hindi natin kailangang sabihin pa ng iba na masarap ang pagkain natin.
Balut, one of the dishes Nicole first featured in a food event, is also part of Maharlika's menu. Source: Maharlika Filipino Moderno
"I think when we look to others to validate ourselves we can get into a very dangerous playing field," saad niya, "I'd rather say, it took them a while to catch up. You gotta stand up and say this is what the food is - unmitigated".
Yasmin Newman, food writer and author (Sydney)
Yasmin Newman Source: The Entree.Pinays
Kahit pinanganak at lumaki si Yasmin sa Australya, patuloy na nangingibabaw sa kanya ang pagka-Pilipino niya dahil sa kanyang "mother who is very Filipino but who didn’t impose her culture on us" at imbis ay tinulungan silang alamin "who we are as Filipinos through the food that she made for us".
Madalas bumisita si Yasmin at ang kanyang pamilya sa Pilipinas. Dahil sa mga bakasyong ito, natuto niyang intindihin ang mga "quirks" ng kanyang ina, at ang kahulugan ng pagiging isang Pilipino.
Growing up, Yasmin and her family would visit the Philippines often. She continues this tradition with her own family today. Source: Yasmin Newman
"It became a sense of pride. I loved everything about the Philippines. I loved sharing those stories with my friends and it definitely was the driver to become a journalist, a food writer. There was always this questioning," saad niya.
Ang pagkukwestyon ang nagdala sa kanya sa realisasyon na ang kanyang pagmamahal sa pagkain ay nakaugat sa kanyang pagmamahal para sa pagkaing Pilipino.
"I think here [in Australia,] food can be somewhat functional, whereas food in the Philippines is communal,"aniya, "It's more than eating together. It brings you together. In the Philippines, [food is] used much more as a communication tool. Food is how you talk to each other. It’s how you say thank you. It tells someone that you’ve been thinking about them. That to me, is what shaped my notion of food more than anything."
Ang kanyang paniwala at pagmamahal para sa pagkaing Pinoy ang nag-udyok sa kanya na ipag-alam sa iba ang ukol dito.
Gamit ang kanyang sariling plataporma, ipinagkalat ni Yasmin ang balita ukol sa pagkaing Pilipino sa kanyang mga artikulo sa SBS Food at Delicious. Ibinahagi din niya ito sa librong niyang 7,000 Islands.
"I genuinely felt that there was an interest there. It’s not as if people weren’t interested in Filipino food. They didn’t know how to find out more. There were no restaurants to go to here. There were no books to refer to. It was like I needed to provide a resource for people to know and understand what Filipino food is."
Yasmin talks about her book and love for Filipino food during the Melbourne Food and Wine Festival. Source: Yasmin Newman
At kagalakan ang nararamdaman ng kanyang pangunahing resource - ang kanyang ina.
"My mum is immensely proud of what I’ve done; but in the process of writing, there was a lot of vetting," aniya, "there [will always be] very strong opinions from one’s mother - especially [when she's a] Filipino mother".
Ross Magnaye, Rice Paper Sister (Melbourne)
Ross Magnaye Source: The Entree.Pinays
Habang nagtatrabaho ang Rice Paper Sister Head Chef na si sa kusina noong Barrio dinner series, alam niyang may bahagi siya sa isang mas malaking layunin. Maaaring maging umpisa na ito ng malawakang pagkalat ng pagkaing Pilipino sa Australian culinary scene.
"I think [Barrio is] just the start of it. I don’t think we’ve actually scratched the surface yet, but people are starting to take notice," saad niya.
BASAHIN DIN
"I think [Barrio is] just the start of it. I don’t think we’ve actually scratched the surface yet, but people are starting to take notice." Source: Maysie Lecciones
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Ang pag-angat ni Chef Ross Magnaye
