Championing Filipino cuisine, one ‘Simpol’ dish at a time
IF there is one name that presently stands out in passionately advocating Filipino cuisine, it has to be Myke “Chef Tatung” Sarthou.
With a career almost closing in on two decades and four successful restaurants under his apron’s belt – Azadore, Lore, Pandan, and Tindeli – Sarthou is also widely known for his projects on TV, print and digital under his multimedia brand, SimpolK But even more than all these, he is a beacon of Filipino culinary excellence and one of the few voices unwaveringly devoted to Filipino cuisineK
Sarthou started cooking at a young age as a hobby, eventually turning his favorite pastime into a businessK Back then, however, becoming a chef was not considered a viable career pathK
“I studied Management in college first and then transitioned into the food industryK To be a chef only became a respected profession in our country in the last decade or two,” Sarthou recalled in a one-on-one interview with The Sunday Times MagazineK
“I remember when I was in elementary, I made brownies and sold them at school and to my auntsK Eventually, I did cateringK But by being part of the culinary world, it became a career formally, maybe in the last 15 yearsK Because before, in my generation, there was no such thing as a career for a chef – you were just a cook,” he addedK
As mindsets and the food industry evolved over the years, though, Sarthou finally gained momentum as a bonafide chef and immediately challenged the Western-centric perception of culinary excellence and conceptualized his now famous “Simpol” approach to cookingK Simpol, by the way, is simplicity and deliciousness intertwined, and its goal is to showcase the beauty of Filipino cuisine in its purest form without unnecessary embellishmentsK
“When you start cooking, especially in the professional circle, you always start with European cuisine because that’s the foundationK You learn how to cook French cuisine or Italian, and that’s how you showcase your skillsK But when you go home, why do you long for Pochero or Adobo? That’s when I thought, ‘What’s the matter with our food?’ Why isn’t it extravagant? Why isn’t it perceived the way people regard European cuisine?” Sarthou posedK
“Interestingly, that was also the time when molecular gastronomy – the emergence of spherification, foam, dehydration – was emergingK Fusion was happening, but I went the other way with SimpleK It was ‘counter-culture,’ if you likeK If you wanted complicated, I wanted simple, but it’s still deliciousK So ‘Simpol’ actually started at a time when everyone was complicating stuff, but what we really wanted was simplerK And that has thankfully stuck and is still here,” he happily notedK
Delicious challenge
Sarthou avers that despite his Simpol concept, promoting Filipino cuisine requires a multifaceted approachK It goes beyond creating delicious recipes and involves strategic initiatives across various sectors, including agriculture, trade, and diplomacyK Neighboring countries such as Thailand and Vietnam also do it this wayK
“Filipino cuisine is already emerging, but it cannot achieve its full potential just by recipe-drivenK The effort really has to be multisectoralK Agriculture should be involved, even the Department of Trade and Industry – all sectors that are part of the food agenda,” he saidK
Breaking the idea further down, Sarthou continued,“If you think of how Thai cuisine became popular all over the world, it was really done through diplomacyK It’s about using cuisine to showcase your culture, so the Thais funded a lot of restaurants in the US and developed industries to be able to sell products to the global marketK
“It’s not just about making food better,” he emphatically underlinedK It has to be a creative revolution of how we tell this narrative of Filipino culture with food as a componentK And we need everyone’s helpK”
As Sarthou sees it, the Philippines is still of the mindset that the showcase of Filipino cuisine is only limited to restaurants and other specific places and not within the realm of tradeK
“It’s still not, ‘Oh, we’re serving you Filipino food because we want to promote Filipino fish sauce over Thai fish sauce in a global market,’ or, ‘We want to promote Filipino vinegar against balsamic vinegar in the global marketK’ We’re not yet at that level,” he declaredK
“And yet, on social media, when you see a foreigner eating Filipino fast food, it gets so many viewsK We always want to be praised, right? But for me, beyond the praise is the question of, ‘How many people worldwide are consuming Filipino products to benefit the Filipino family?’ In the same way, fish sauce is now an accepted ingredient in Western kitchensK How it’s now in mainstream groceries, not just Asian groceries,” he continuedK
Moreover, Sarthou sadly that while the ideal is to prioritize local and sustainable ingredients, the reality presents challenges, as local production often falls short of demandK
“For me, the concept of being local and sustainable is a lofty ideaK Of course, you want to prioritize using local ingredients, but in today’s world, it’s very challengingK One reason is that local production often can’t meet the demandK Let’s not pretend we do because even for something as basic as salt, 85 percent of the salt used in the Philippines is importedK The same applies to other essentials like sugar, rice, and vegetables as well,” he pointed outK
“So how do we achieve local sustainability? The economics must be viable, but we really need to scrutinize how to improve and make things more efficient. While advocating for it, we can’t just pretend to be heroesK We need to go back, review, and interveneK However, sometimes we prefer shortterm solutions over long-term ones,” he observedK On the other hand, Sarthou acknowledges that there is undoubtedly a growing sophistication in the Filipino palate and a rising awareness of the culinary issues he listedK So while challenges persist, the willingness to address them is present and signifies progress and a brighter future for Filipino cuisineK
“To be honest, there are so many talented individuals now, with skills and sophistication that have advanced over the last 10 yearsK So despite the existing problems, the positive aspect is this growing awareness and acknowledgement so that there are more individuals or sectors taking action and advocating solutions unlike before when we seemed oblivious to what was happeningK Now that’s truly a positive developmentK But moving forward, there needs to be more concrete actions taken, not just advocacy or empty statements,” he maintainedK
Favorite ingredients
In further exploring his advocacy for The Sunday Times Magazine, Sarthou went on to reveal his favorite ingredients in achieving his goalK Among them are discernment, innovation and the habit of questioning normsK
“When I was younger, I kept making things fancier, adding unnecessary elements to dishesK But now, I’m more thoughtful about what I’m doing, considering what makes sense and what doesn’tK While you still need a bit of flair, it’s more subtle now and not at all about making everything overly extravagant,” he explainedK
Business-wise, on the other hand, Sarthou admitted that the real challenge is trying to stay on top of his gameK
“So, right now, research and development is continuous, learning continuousK As long as you’re not complacent, I believe you’ll be okayK Secondly, if you’re honest about a situation and promptly address issues that need fixing, you’ll be OK too,” he added.
“You should also be brave enough to take risksK Sometimes, you get so comfortable with what you’ve been doing for yearsK It’s been working anywayK But suddenly, it doesn’t work anymore because the market and the generation always changeK That’s why you have to keep pushing the boundariesK
“Using myself as an example, even though I’ve been here for quite some time, I make every effort to maintain that youthful energyK My enthusiasm and drive are still there, and I really think these attract the market to you because they see you’re not complacentK”
Sarthou also strives to keep an open-mind at all times because doing so will teach you which way to goK
“Keeping an open mine leads you to question everything you doK Always do that because I believe that’s where true innovation liesK I mean, how do you keep creating? You always question the normK Even now, I feel like I’m still in the pursuit of discovering things I haven’t done beforeK That’s what excites meK If it doesn’t work, then it doesn’t work, and we’ll change itK Don’t be afraid of failureK”
In fact, whenever Sarthou assembles a team, he chooses to work younger talent and not chefs who are already experiencedK
“Nobody has a monopoly on ideasK And working with young people, it’s not just about getting new ideasK It’s about gaining insight because the creative process and values of these young ones are something elseK And I think it’s my ability to listen to the young and to the to the market in general that helps meK In turn, I’ve really gotten into mentoringK It drives me a lot because feel like I improve myself when I pass on what I’ve learnedK”
Keep it boiling
As of last count, Sarthou has published seven best-selling cookbooks and is considered one of the biggest-selling local authors, dropping over thousands of copies month after monthK His Simpol YouTube channel where he also shares his expertise now boasts almost 1 million subscribersK
The man certainly thrives on passing it on like he saidK
“The YouTube channel is really about tapping into the new marketK I was one of the earliest local chefs to adapt to social mediaK Before content creators were even called such, I saw already saw the potentialK I’ve been consistent, and we have a steady market,” he said with prideK
But to be clear, while he is grateful for his achievements, Sarthou’s focus still remains on building a sustainable legacy to benefit his team, the community and Filipino cuisine as a wholeK
He is firm that the potential of Filipino cuisine is immense, so long as the right ingredients and the needed cooks in this case work together on the brothK
“There are vast opportunities for Filipino cuisine, but again my steadfast belief is we have to promote it abroad for economic reasons and not just culturalK Why? Because if the world starts cooking adobo they won’t do it using balsamic vinegar and Japanese soy sauce would they? They will use our products and that will benefit the economy and the Filipino peopleK Our culture should benefit the people. That is what is right because with our talent and gifted resources, if we don’t do it, others will as they have already been doing with our chefs abroad and the use of our raw material by othersK”
Finally, asked for advice for young ones who would like to follow his lead, Sarthou replied, “You have to be brave enough to cook in the kitchenK That’s why I emphasize simplicityK In one of my books, I mention that as long as you can boil water, you can cookK Because eventually, you’ll be able to make dishes like nilaga or sinigang without feeling overwhelmedK That’s why people appreciate Simpol – we cut straight to the chaseK”
And from there, like the famous Chef Tatung, you will go placesK