Tatler Dining Philippines

The year that was proved to be nothing short of delicious, thanks to the F&B industry’s rebounding, snapping back to its glorious fighting form. Restaurateurs and chefs tickled our fancies with bold menus, dynamic collaborations, and impressive new concepts making their mark on the scene. From pop-ups to four-hands events, bar crawls, and drinks pairings, the dining industry was bubbling with activity and shows no signs of slowing down. The continued development and progression of new Filipino cuisine coupled with the re-defining of the fine dining experience has birthed quite a few noteworthy establishments and kept several key names on our lips. It is evident to us that the F&B community has been, and remains, hard at work cooking up a number of concepts for us to feast on. From formal…

I an Anderson is an artist known for his strokes of whimsy, evident across each and every one of his creations. Known for his intricate micro drawings done on large scale canvasses, his attention to detail is impressive. From collaborations with Cartoon Network to international exhibitions and solo shows in the Philippines, his unique cartoonesque drawings have turned heads around the globe. His experience as an animation and video game design teacher has influenced his current aesthetic as he interprets a range of topics into facinating characters. Read on to learn about this foodie and the inspiration behind his design for the cover of this year’s Tatler Dining Guide: What inspired your design for the cover of the Tatler Dining Guide? Tell us about your foodie memory linked to the artwork. A…

With the well-lived life you have today, and all the lessons learned, what would you tell your younger self? Would you change any of the decisions you have made? Would you have made other choices and found yourself navigating the path untaken? While there may be opportunities for second chances, or avoided mistakes, a great many would not change a thing, although, some tips from a more seasoned version of you could most definitely flatten out some of life’s humps and bumps. Heed some powerful words of wisdom and learn important insights from these F&B pillars: Bettina Arguelles, Josh Boutwood, Miko Calo, Eric Thomas Dee, Tony Boy Escalante, Margarita Forés, Ana De Ocampo, Happy Ongpauco-Tiu, and Nicco Santos. Josh Boutwood Chef/owner of Helm, The Test Kitchen, Savage, and Ember Strangely enough, this is…

The word “fusion” is defined in the dictionary as “the process Tor result of joining two or more things together to form a single entity.” It is a general term used in science pertaining to a chemical process, or it can also be a word used to describe the blending of more intangible things such as ideologies. However, in the culinary world, when one uses the word “fusion” to describe a cuisine, the reaction is often nothing short of squeamish, sometimes even violent. Chef Josh Boutwood of Helm, Ember, The Test Kitchen, and Savage admits that his food is often categorised under fusion, pointing out that his cooking style is not representative of a single culture (“For instance, I don’t have an Italian restaurant”), and yet he says the word “fusion”…

Umami is a complex yet familiar sensation we often encounter in food—an essential character often referred to as “the fifth taste”. However, this savoury profile tends to take a back seat when it comes to beverages, long limited to polarising drinks such as the Bloody Mary or Dirty Martini. Fascinatingly, bartenders across the globe have increasingly embraced this flavour profile, resulting in cocktails such as the Cold Pizza from the famed Double Chicken Please (New York) and the Thai Beef Salad from The Savoury Project (Hong Kong), the recently-opened bar by the team behind Coa. Here, four top bartending talents in the Philippines share their take on the umami craze. Mushroom by Niko Tiutan, beverage director of ITO “This is a riff on a cocktail we made before for our bottled cocktail brand…

Bruce Ricketts Chef/owner, Sensei, La Chinesca When ambiance, service, and food are all reflective of each other, then it’s guaranteed that the dining experience will be amazing. I feel what makes it best is when you have an experience that’s unique only to that very restaurant and nowhere else. The entire dining experience is quite subjective as each and every guest has their own unique set of personal preferences– quirky or not. What may constitute the best for one person may not rank at all for the next. Does food matter the most to you, or do service and ambience carry heavier weights on the score sheet? Close your eyes and think back to your most cherished meals and fondest memories from a restaurant experience–what is it that you recall exactly? What one…