We walked the noisy streets of Iloilo, eating cheap hamburgers, Banana-cues, and Mangos, knowing a plane was waiting to take us back. But had we not had those miles between us, had their lives not been so different and mysterious to me, had our paths not continue to diverge further and further over the years, had there been less pain in our parting, perhaps we would have enjoyed those humid months a lot less. It was in these moments of realization that I had the best mangos.
Not once did the team break rhythm for a performance, no tableside flambeéing, no waving of fancy Japanese knives, no boisterous kitchen ass-slapping. And yet, this economical and unassuming approach to service required an almost unnecessary amount of effort behind the scenes. // Perhaps in turning to the left side, Kaliwa garnered more than its fair share of criticism; the unexpected necessities of exploration facing unnecessary expectations.
“Oh I do a lot of things,” she said with a laugh, taking a sip the tea-infused cocktail in her hand. “I like telling people, when asked what I do, that I’m an Expediter”.
It was about a week before my 2016 birthday when I got an e-mail from a certain Ms. Jacqueline Chio-Lauri with the subject line: “2nd Try: An Invite to a Filipino Food Anthology”: That second e-mail – apparently I missed the first – listed Filipin@… Read More
We wanted to explore ways in which global cuisines and flavors can be brought to local tables without losing the original spirit, adversely affecting other communities, and still appealing to the consumer (this is the Fancy Food Show after all!). Here are five things I learned from the panel:
The Errant Diner 