Filipino street food inspires delectable menu
Childhood favourites inspire menu at new Filipino restaurant and bakery in Sunridge
The word “Amihan” refers to a cool wind that blows through the Philippines during the winter months (think of it as the opposite of a Chinook). Many Filipinos associate the cooler weather of Amihan with the nostalgia and comfort of Christmas, which is what a new group of local restaurateurs had in mind when they chose the name of their new restaurant.
Calgary already has a nice selection of Filipino restaurants, but Richard Quiambao and his partners Ryan Tiqui, Allan Ulgasan, Desiree Bansil and Sherrel Bansil all felt as if Calgary was lacking the kind of street food they remembered from growing up in the Philippines. Seeing how the opening of Calgary's Jollibee locations proved that the city's vibrant Filipino population was hungry for a taste of casual Filipino eats, the group came up with the idea for a restaurant that would specialize in their childhood favourites.
They didn't want to do anything too fancy, just solid tasty food that would hit the spot for customers of all backgrounds.
Amihan opened in October, just before the winter dine-in shutdown. Located in a fairly large strip mall in Sunridge, it's a clean and modern room with comfortable tables for dining-in. The nature of the menu also makes it a good bet for takeout, both during and eventually after pandemic times.
“There was no Filipino restaurant that was focused on street food,” Quiambao says. “When all of us were kids, street food was really a part of our lives. You have those roadside vendors selling fish balls or deep-fried dumplings or skewers. It's almost like a convenience store on the side of the road. It's a big part of the Filipino culture because the weather allows for it to happen year-round.”
Because the Philippines represents such a confluence of different Asian and European influences, Amihan's menu is vast and eclectic. Barbecue fans can order up plates of pork ribs ($22.99) or liempo pork belly ($15.99) or pork, chicken, or tofu skewers
When all of us were kids, street food was really a part of our lives. You have those roadside vendors selling fish balls or deep-fried dumplings or skewers. It's almost like a convenience store on the side of the road. It's a big part of the Filipino culture because the weather allows for it to happen year-round. Richard Quiambao
($13.99). The bowls section of the menu is full of specialties like chicken lugaw, which is a rice porridge served with a poached egg ($12.99) and a coconutty beef caldereta stew with tomatoes and red peppers ($13.99), while the appetizer selection offers up bites like crispy siomai pork and shrimp dumplings ($6.99) and lumpia pork spring rolls ($5.99). On the flip side, Western-style fast food is also wildly popular in the Philippines and Amihan satisfies those cravings with hotdogs on a stick ($7.99) and pineapple-topped burgers ($11.99). It makes for a lot of choices and also a lot of opportunities to satisfy a wide range of customers.
The owners' group also found themselves hankering for traditional Filipino-style bread and desserts, so Amihan also functions as a bakery. Filipino bread tends to be a little bit sweeter than Western bread (and is sometimes filled with a sweet buttery paste), whereas the cake slices, which come in flavours like chocolate, red velvet, and ube-macapuno (a.k.a. purple yam) tend to be a little less sweet. The bakery also makes various mini-cakes and egg pies.
“One of our goals is to introduce this food to people who aren't Filipino,” Quiambao says. “Calgary has such a large Filipino community, but a lot of people here still don't really know what Filipino food is like.”
Amihan Grill and Bakeshop is located at #208 - 3132 26th
St. N.E. and can be reached at 403-455-6050 or amihan.ca. The restaurant is open daily from noon until 8 p.m.
This month marks the 20th anniversary of one of Calgary's most deservedly celebrated restaurants. Rouge first set up shop as the Cross House Restaurant in 2001 (named after the historic home it lives in) and despite more than a few challenges (including the current COVID-19 pandemic), it still stands as one of the city's premier fine dining restaurants. Partners Olivier Reynauld and Paul Rogalski have never wavered on their dedication to serving beautifully crafted French-inspired food made with local ingredients — sometimes so local that the food is coming directly from the restaurant's expansive backyard gardens.
It's still the only restaurant in Alberta to have ever appeared on San Pellegrino's ultra-prestigious World's Best Restaurants list.
In recent years, Rogalski has developed a growing passion for foraged food, as exhibited by his co-hosting gig on the PBS show Les Stroud's Wild Harvest and Rouge's Wild to Table chef's tasting menu.
That menu is on hold for April, as Rogalski and current chef de cuisine Dean Fast present a greatest hits menu of sorts, with selections like black candied breast of duck (from the original 2001 menu) and the foie gras mulligatawny soup that won Rogalski a spot in the Canadian Culinary Championships.
The menu is available until the end of the month and is going for $110 per person (with the option of wine pairings for an additional cost).
Reservations can be made at rougecalgary.com. Rogue is located at 1240 8th Ave. S.E.
Calgary has such a large Filipino community, but a lot of people here still don't really know what Filipino food is like.