A spirited passion for healthy food

Food lover Justinne Lou Go casts a delectable spell

HEN it comes to anything and everything about food, Justinne Lou Go is the perfect person to follow. She takes being a foodie to the next level as a food blogger, a chef and a nutritionist. For Justinne, food is what makes her world go round.

Born and raised in Cebu City, Justinne vividly remembers the start of her foodie instincts when she was just a little girl. “When I was around 3-4 years old, I couldn’t wait for my yaya to put the pancit canton on the table for me to eat. I went to the kitchen and tried to reach for the pancit in the pan, which was much taller than me at the time, and so my wrist landed on the pan’s rim,” she fondly recalled.

Her dad was a big influence for her love for food. Her dad, a Chinese businessman, is not a cook, but he would expose Justinne to uncommon food pairings like sweet mango and rice. He is also responsible for her love for veggies and made sure to develop the value of proper nutrition in her. That’s why until now, Justinne tries her best to incorporate healthy eats and maintain a balanced diet into her daily food grind.

During high school, Justinne was already set on a goal: to be a chef and a nutritionist. She first took up culinary arts at the International Culinary Arts Academy Cebu (ICAAC) and then proceeded to take up nutrition and dietetics at the University of San Carlos.

“I wanted to be a chef because I grew up watching Wolfgang Puck on TV and I was so fascinated with his Hollywood catering, with the long production lines and glamorous food. It opened my eyes to see food in a different way — that it can actually make people happy. As I was already dreaming of becoming a chef, I came across an article in the newspaper when I was in high school, saying that Shangri-la Mactan had hired a nutritionist. That was the first time I encountered that profession and I thought it would marry well with the being a chef,” she shared.

For Justinne, she feels that it’s natural for people who love to eat to delve into cooking. “For me, I wanted to cook because I wanted to recreate my favourite dishes to have more of them all to myself,” she said. “For me, eating is not just a necessity. It’s something we should enjoy. Eating is actually more sensual than it is essential, as I would say. I love how food brings people together like a common language and it really is a major part of our lives, being in every special occasion and emotional condition.”

Justinne’s love for food was then translated