The Tatler Dining Guide Philippines
On Nature's Table
Philippine Tatler Best Restaurants' Guide visits some of Manila's freshest dining places where the finest organic dishes can be enjoyed
Eating cuisine of fresh organic ingredients in a top-quality restaurant with relaxing ambience is no longer a fad of healthconscious foodies. Through these dining places, there has been a shift in the way both local farmers and consumers perceive organic farming and a healthy eating lifestyle. Their enticing menus have educated consumers about the benefits of organic cuisine and gradually helped in changing farming methods in the country.
Philippine Tatler Best Restaurants Guide gathers restaurants around the city that provide scrumptious organic dishes, helps farmers, and contributes to the well-being of Mother Nature.
EARTH KITCHEN
A supporter of local farmers, Got Heart Foundation’s Earth Kitchen on Katipunan Avenue, develops grassroots enterprises and presents local organic produce from over 100 partner farms in Luzon and Mindanao. This kitchen of the chefs' JR Trani and David Hizon of Hizon’s Catering works alongside boutique retail shop Got Heart.
“By increasing the demand for organic and natural produce, we hope to sustain the livelihood of marginalised communities and encourage more farmers to produce good, clean, healthy food,” says owner Melissa Yeung.
Have a bite of the mushroom spring rolls with shiitake mushrooms, herbs, and greens, complemented by a lime hoisin sauce. Another must-try dish from Earth Kitchen is the pumpkin and goat’s cheese paccheri , with roasted pumpkin and pili nuts.
Earth Kitchen's interior design is also what makes it a favourite destination. Its hanging
gardens, old trellises, and walls that are part of the original establishment that once stood on its location, make up the refreshing garden atmosphere.
MARRIOTT HOTEL MANILA
Another supporter of local farmers is the Marriott Hotel Manila, which has been tirelessly uplifting the morale of local farmers together with Bautista organica farm, helping them realise that organic products generate more income than what they used to harvest and are more in demand as fine dining restaurants need fresh chemical-free ingredients. since 2009, Marriott Café and Cru steakhouse have been offering exquisite dishes with fresh organic ingredients. The culinary team of the chef Meik Brammer of Marriott Hotel Manila has been collaborating with Bautista organica farm, which produces premium quality products focused on the taste and nutrition value rather than the size. Cherry tomatoes, baby arugula, potatoes, carrots, and microgreens are just some of Bautista organica’s products found in the restaurants' succulent dishes. Take for example the rosemary-crushed potatoes, grilled organic vegetables, and pink peppercorn sauce that go well with the
grilled us certified Angus prime rib.
According to Craig Clayton of Bautista organica, having a healthy relationship between organic farms and restaurants or hotels is necessary in promoting the benefits of eating organic and natural produce. If organic restaurants are nonexistent, consumers would not be educated and farmers would resort to chemical fertilisers. “They have the need, they talk to us, we supply. They push and we respond,” says Clayton.
GREEN PASTURES
Although located inside a commercial mall, Green Pastures by the chef Robby Goco does not fail to convert Manila diners to the cause with its farmhouse-themed interiors and an eye-catching vegetable garden in the middle. The chef Robby Goco says that the secret in organic cuisine is that when raw products are in such flawless quality, they should not be covered with sauces with forceful flavours.
“We juice the vegetables and reduce them for the flavour to come out strong. It is really slow food at its finest and going the extra mile to be able to provide good food. The secret is that we get better and fresher organic ingredients,” says Goco.
Green Pastures’ beverages and meat products are also purely organic. The team uses grass-fed pasture reared beef, organic vegetarian pork, and organic duck eggs. “our main philosophy is that we serve food that is straightforward, thoughtfully composed, locally sourced, organically focused, and most importantly, globally artistic.”
GRACE PARK
Dining on delightful dishes of fresh ingredients served on mismatched plates and cutlery in a distressed-styled restaurant is an experience one can exclusively have at the chef Margarita Fores’ Grace Park. Named after her paternal grandmother's residence, the restaurant lives up to its farmhouse-cooking concept using natural and organic produce under a relaxed and rustic ambience.
Diners return to Grace Park for its scrumptious dishes and luscious desserts.
The sardine mousse with organic egg home-made mayo, grilled Caesar salad, and organic duck with fresh lychee are just some of its popular dishes. Meanwhile, the Eton Mess is what makes it a favourite destination of gourmands.
“In the end, what determines the success of any effort to create good and nourishing food is the passion and warm soul of the cook, the integrity and adherence to slow ways in the way the food is prepared, and most importantly, the source and quality of all the ingredients used,” says Fores. “using organic and natural produce, as well as artisanal ones, is the key. Know and love your farmer and purveyor.”
CAFÉ VERANDA
“Serving food using the freshest ingredients has always been my practice in the kitchen,” says the chef Edwin santos of Café veranda in Taal vista Hotel.
"What determines the success of any effort to create good and nourishing food is the passion and warm soul of the cook... and the source and quality of all the ingredients used"
Restaurants in Tagaytay offer a farm-totable experience one can enjoy in less than a two-hour drive from the metro. “As much as possible, I use herbs and vegetables that are all organically grown in the hotel’s garden. I want to entice more guests to patronise the farm-to-table approach."
Dining at Café veranda comes with two bonuses: the panoramic view of Taal volcano and the fine dishes made up of ingredients straight from the hotel’s vegetable garden. Diners can enjoy the deep-fried, lightly breaded Taal Lake tawilis served with vinegar, freshly minced garlic, crushed peppercorn, chilli, and crispy kangkong. vegans can have the Taal vista organic mixed salad composed of mixed greens and either French, Ranch, Italian, or homemade Taal pineapple vinaigrette.
Organic cuisine is not just something to be tasted. It is an advocacy worth promoting. Corazon Bautista of the Bautista organica farm says, “You have to be passionate about farming. You have to put more attention—it’s like taking care of a baby.” The chef Robby Goco of Green Pastures believes the kitchen should give produce the same care and attention given by the suppliers.
Though at times Clayton, Yeung, and the chefs who promote and create organic cuisine find it tough to reform the farming culture, Bautista says, “You can’t stop. You just have to keep going, keep evangelising.”