Cozy cuisine
This small restaurant at White Plains serves up some big-flavored dishes
This small restaurant at White Plains serves up some big-flavored dishes
For chefs, a small restaurant is the most ideal work place. Few seats in a small space mean more manageable operations. Also, having a lean menu is favorable for both the restaurant and customers. The kitchen staff can focus on a handful of dishes maintaining quality and diners are not overwhelmed or confused by an extensive menu. The less is more rule also applies to the restaurant industry.
“Before, I had a restaurant, that’s a 100-seater and it’s a bit chaotic especially when full, so there’s more margin for error. Something small like this, it’s more controlled, you can see the guests, you can talk to them, and you have time to interact,” says chef Isaiah “Seya” Ortega.
Chef Seya recently opened Seya’s Kitchen along Katipunan Ave. at White Plains in Quezon City. It replaced Fat Buddha, a Chinese-Vietnamese restaurant that previously occupied the space. The location is known for its landscape supply shops and a few restaurants.
The space is simple and can only accommodate up to 22 guests at a time. The restaurant uses iron garden furniture both in the indoor and much smaller outdoor dining space.
The opening of the restaurant was a sudden leap for chef Seya, who only had roughly two months to prepare. Setting up this restaurant also overlapped with another eatery he opened in Caloocan targeted at the masses serving tapsilog and inihaw (barbecue).
“I planned to open a restaurant next year but then this space opened up. This space was occupied by a Chinese-Vietnamese concept owned by my aunt. I got the place and started with the planning,” he admits.
Seya’s Kitchen was not his original concept. He was planning to open a farmer’s kitchen, a specialized restaurant that focuses on various farm produce. Chef Seya changed it to a concept that can connect more to Filipino diners.
“I thought of something that caters to a wider audience, just to make it simple,” he says.
COMFORT FOOD
Aside from its small space, the Seya’s Kitchen’s menu is quite lean as well. Since the restaurant is in its soft opening stage, C hef Seya decided to focus on a few dishes and the cuisine is a mix of Filipino and international.
“My reason I don’t want to go into a specialized cuisine is I’d rather go cook what I learned to love and cook. Others really fall in love with a certain cuisine, I, on the other hand, like it more diverse. And also the logistics for imported ingredients are easier to get so might as well put some Spanish, Japanese, etc. influence. Filipino is still there because that’s my base cuisine, the first cuisine I learned to cook,” he explains.
The menu has pasta, some Filipino favorites, and other international dishes. One of his Japanese-influenced dishes is the grilled bacon skewers with blue ginger teriyaki sauce. Strips of bacon are skewered and cooked over a grill then served takoyaki style. It’s drenched with a sweet and savory blue ginger teriyaki sauce, topped with Japanese mayonnaise and bonito flakes.
Another Asian inspired dish is the torched salmon fillet in Thai basil and lemongrass broth. Sushi grade salmon is torched aburi style then served in a flavorful Thai-inspired broth.
Seya’s Kitchen also serves Filpino comfort food like the extremely sinful
bagnet. The restaurant’s bagnet is meticulously prepared like the traditional Ilocano favorite. The pork is boiled with spices until tender then air dried, then fried twice to achieve that crackling skin. This dish is simply served with a vinegar dip and a liver sauce.
There’s also the coconut garlic adobo squid, a version of adobong pusit with coconut milk. It uses baby squid, cooked in a creamy ink sauce then topped with garlic chips and bonito flakes.
For dessert, chef Seya partnered with Pastry Amore to create his dessert recipe and other sweets. The classic
canonigo with dulce de leche sauce and special crème caramel (leche flan) are must-tries. The calamansi cheesecake is also a sweet treat that diners must not miss.
“I don’t want to use the term fusion but that’s the technique I apply. Because you learn new techniques every time and you just apply it until your dish improves. I also don’t want to go on the fine dining route and I want to put it into a more casual, free from the pressures of fine dining. As much as possible, the dishes you can eat at an every day basis. That’s the cuisine I want to establish,” chef Seya says.
URBAN FARMING
Chef Seya started in the restaurant business in 2012 after graduating from De La Salle-College of Saint Benilde. Prior to studying at Benilde he took up a two-year vocational course at CCA Manila. Before Seya’s Kitchen, he had a restaurant in Parañaque that closed down in 2016. It was in this year that he was able to focus on his farm in Batangas, where he grew hard-to-find vegetables and herbs.
The ultimate plan for his new restaurant is to also make it a venue of urban farming. He plans to grow his own herbs and vegetables around the restaurant which can be used in the kitchen or sold to the customers.
Right now he has partner farms that supply his vegetables, fruits, and herbs. He has also converted his farm in Batangas as a fruit orchard, planting trees that need less maintenance. These trees would also supply his fruit needs in the future.
“I’m trying to convert this to an urban garden or farm. The plan is to promote urban farming, it would also be an attraction. I would also going to incorporate the produce on the menu, as well as sell the them like tomatoes, white ampalaya (bitter melon), giant eggplants, etc. For me, I’d love to see this become a basic knowledge for everyone, at least minimal gardening. It’s fun to something grow. Seeing something you worked hard for and you harvest it,” he says.
Seya’s Kitchen, 42 Katipunan Ave. White Plains, Quezon City / +632 911 4734 / Facebook @seyaskitchen
The ultimate plan for his new restaurant is to also make it a venue of urban farming. He plans to grow his own herbs and vegetables around the restaurant which can be used in the kitchen or sold to the customers.