Tom Bascon
M Dining
What would your last three-course meal on earth be?
I wouldn’t do a three-course meal. I’d do my three guilty pleasures: coffee ice-cream; a nice, juicy bacon cheese burger; and I have got to represent my chicken inasal with garlic rice from Aida’s in Bacolod.
Describe your culinary style.
If people remember Tom Bascon, it will be because Tom Bascon always cooked good, honest food. In terms of style and technique, it’s very French because I went through the French Culinary Institute. My exposure to Japanese cuisine, having worked at Nobu NY for five years, was also an eye-opener for me. The aesthetics of plating and so forth I learnt there.
Where do you gain inspiration?
It never fails, every time I come back from travels with my wife, I feel inspired. We usually travel for food and we always mix it up between the Michelin-starred experience and where, say, the locals would eat. Let’s call it “research.” I’m mentally and literally taking notes. I take photos and notes with my phone; what I particularly liked about a dish or a restaurant. Then I try it all when I get home.
Who would you most want to cook for?
To give you a bit of a background, I’m a big LA Lakers fan and grew up a big Magic Johnson fan. I actually got to fulfil this dream of mine in 2007 when I was working for Nobu. The front of house sat him right in front of the kitchen and I did cook most of the food he ordered. I just died and went to culinary heaven. It was magic. Then the other guy…you know the tough food critic [Anton Ego] in the animated movie, Ratatouille? I would love to cook for that guy! When kids ask me, “What do you do?” I ask them them back, “Have you watched Ratatouille? Well, I’m him!” Their eyes just light up. I love that!
What is your definition of risk?
I’m not much of a risk-taker but I take calculated risk. A perfect example was when I chose to leave the comforts of my Nobu home to work with my classmate from culinary school to open a Mexican restaurant. It turned out to be one of my better culinary decisions. Now, given the chance, I would open a Mexican restaurant in Manila in a heartbeat. Mexican food is a passion of mine and I’ve talked about this with Bruce [Ricketts].