Hinahangad ng Entree.Pinays na makilala ang pagkaing kinalakihan nila, pati na rin ang mga re-imagined na pagkaing Pilipino.
Kilalanin ang Entree.Pinays
Isang grupo ng mga malilikhaing Melburnian Filipina na mga negosyante, ang Entree,Pinays ay kinabibilangan ng co-founders nito na sina Fides Santos-Arguelles at Grace Guinto; Felis Sarcepuedes, na namumuno ng community buiding; culinary curator na si Kristina Náray; media manager na si Sandra Tan; at photographer at visual designer na si Maysie Lecciones.
"We resonate with the whole notion of being called The Entree.Pinays. Entrée being the first course of a Western meal and, Pinays being the Tagalog word for Filipino women," saad ni Grace.
Meet The Entree.Pinays Source: The Entree.Pinays
Dahil sa kanilang pagmamahal sa pagkaing Pilipino, nahanap ni Grace at Fides and bawat isa sa Instagram.
Saad ni Grace na pinadalahan siya ng mensahe ni Fides na nagtatanong kung gusto niyang mag-usap tungkol sa mga ideya kung papaano maipapakilala ang pagkaing Pilipino sa iba.
Ayon kay Grace, "I couldn’t say no to [Fides'] offer of Lets talk about Filipino food."
Nabuo ang grupo ng magkakilala sina Felis at Grace dahil sa kanilang mga kapatid, ng makilala ni Felis si Kristina dahil sa kanyang food stall sa South Melbourne Market, ng makilala nila si Sandra sa Instagram, at ng yayain nila si Maysie na sumali sa grupo pagkatapos niyang kumuha ng mga litrato para sa kanila.
"When we speak to our fellow foodies, we’re always asked where they can eat good Filipino food. And the answer is always Well, do you know a Filipino family? There's nowhere we can confidently say yes, go here, go there. So we thought - is there an opportunity for us to do this?" saad ni Fides.
Melbourne Food and Wine Festival: Barrio
Kinuha ng grupo ang oportunidad na mapakilala ang pagkaing Pilipino sa Melbourne Food and Wine Festival.
Ito ang unang pagkakataon na magiging bahagi ang pagkaing Pilipino sa festival.
Ito rin ang pinaka-unaunahang food event series ng grupo. Pinangalanan nila ang serye na ito na 'Barrio'.
"Barrio means 'neighborhood', for those who may not know. We wanted to create a series of events that celebrate that and, communicate that to an audience outside of our community," saad ni Sandra.
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'Kasali sa Barrio' ang apat ng kilalang pangalan sa culinary world - sina Jordy Navarra ng Toyo Eatery sa Manila; Nicole Ponseca ng Jeepney at Maharlika sa New York; Yasmin Newman, and manunulat ng 7000 Islands: Cherished Recipes and Stories from the Philippine; at si Melburnian Ross Magnaye ng Rice Paper Sister.
"[Our chef's backgrounds] really speaks to the diaspora that is the Filipino community. We are creating an opportunity for all of these people to converge, put their own spin on Filipino food and, show that each person has their own story to tell within a cuisine that is [also] so diverse within itself," saad ni Sandra.
Ubos na ang tiket para sa dining series ng Barrio sa Marso 12 at 13, at para sa talk na ibibigay nina Nicole Ponseca, Yasmin Newman at ng Entree.Pinays sa Marso 11.
Para sa mga interesado, magbibigay ng Masterclass si Nicole Ponseca sa Marso 10 sa House of Food and Wine sa Malthouse Theatre.
Ang adhikain
Habang ang Barrio ang pinakamalakin proyekto ng grupo sa ngayon, tinitingnan nila ito bilang unang yugto lamang patungo ng kanilang pagnanais na pasikatin ang pagkaing Pilipino.
"I think people have been curious for a long time [about Filipino food]. We just haven’t shifted the narrative to this scale before. It starts as an education piece. What comes after that is an appreciation and then hopefully a demand to experience [the cuisine] even more," saad ni Fides.
Ayon kay Sandra, naka-pokus ang grupo nila sa "keeping the traditions but also showing what people are doing now."
Traditional pancit and, re-imagined chicken inasal and barbecue sio-bao: "It's about keeping the traditions but also showing what people are doing now." Source: The Entree.Pinays
Ayon din sa kanya, kahit may "cultural cringe" pagdating sa ibang sangkap na ginagamit sa pagkaing Pilipino, gusto nilang gawing palatable ito "to a crowd that isn’t as educated about Filipino food. Food like dinuguan [blood stew] - it’s almost like Spanish morcilla [blood sausage]. Why can’t we also embrace dinuguan in the same light?"
Sumasang-ayon si Grace dito at dagdag niya na nag-iiba ang ating kultura at pagkain dahil sa ating pagnanais na masanay sa "wherever land we find as our second home," Ayon sa kanya, noon daw ay "[she] never really wanted to bring sinigang [sour and savoury soup] or anything like that [for lunch] in primary school;" ngunit, ngayon ang mga nakakabatang Filipino-Australians gaya ng anak niya ay ayaw na ng "sandwich for lunch, but sinigang in a thermoflask".
Saad ni Grace, "Now, us being parents and older generations of Australian Filipinos, we’re wanting to talk about it a lot more. We’re not hiding behind the fact that it’s not as good as Thai cuisine or not as good as your Vietnamese, Once we actually take pride in our own cuisine and our own culture, then other people will follow and take notice."
"Once we actually take pride in our own cuisine and our own culture, then other people will follow and take notice." Source: The Entree.Pinays
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