A unique feature of Filipino food is its penchant towards gathering, fellowship, and interactions. Salu-salo or getting together for food is a conspicuous element we share with our Asian neighbors which may be rooted from traditional mores on filial piety. Indeed, food is best served and enjoyed with the people you mostly treasure. Confabbing about life and experiences while satisfying one's appetites are surely amicable ways of how Filipino food does not just fill one’s stomach but also one’s heart. Last Wednesday, I was able to have sneak peak of the menu of The Fat Chef Restaurant before its soft opening on December 15. It is a concept restaurant that provides comfort meals that are apt to one’s budget and palate.
The concept of the restaurant is imbued from the owners’ family tradition of Sunday ingatherings over food. Thus, the menu reprises a flair of home-away-from-home nostalgia. Most of the dishes they came up with are personal recipes they usually serve in the said get-togethers. Hence, aside from the sumptuous Filipino food choices, an emphasis on wallowing in lofty dining experiences with chums and kin is promoted. It intends to satisfy its customers with cuisines that are right in one’s budget, yet, still lavish in taste.
What I Got for Dinner?
Bulad Bruschetta. The classic Italian antipasto of grilled bread, topped with sautéed tomatoes in olive oil, delivered with a local twist through incorporating flakes of bulad or dried fish.
Talong Kinilaw sa Gata. Refreshing salad comprising of grilled eggplant, onions, and tomatoes filled in creamy and rich coconut milk.
Steak Rice and Egg Rice. Stir-fried rice bowls seasoned with garlic and spring onions. The steak rice is mixed with finely chopped beef steaks while the egg rice is topped with either sunny side-up, over easy, soft scrambled, scrambled, or boiled of your own choice.
Bulalo with Beef Tendon Soup. Perfectly tender beef shank and tendon, while being heartily simmered in a flavorful broth with sweet corn and Chinese cabbage.
Truffle Pasta. Spaghetti noodles cooked al dente and served in white sauce with an earthy and smoky aroma infused from shiitake and truffle oils.
Sizzling Sinigang. A modern twist of the household favorite beef dish served in a sizzling pan. The tender beef is smothered in a tart sinigang gravy sided with string beans, tomatoes, and onions.
Chicken Inasal sa Gata. The succulent grilled two-piece half-chicken bathed in a plush coconut cream and annatto oil. The creaminess of coconut complemented well with the smokiness of the chicken.
Pinakbet sa Gata. The Ilocano cuisine made up of steamed string beans, okra, eggplant, tomato, and onions, and shrimps on a sauce made of rich coconut cream and savory puréed calabaza squash, in lieu of a bagoong or alamang.
Mango Suman Float. A palatable deconstructed offshoot of two Filipino staples, mango float and suman or rice cakes. The glutinous rice is laden with a all-purpose cream and condensed milk filling and garnished with cubed mangoes and grahams crackers.
Pour-over Coffee. Ethiopian or Colombian beans prepared through a V60 manual brewing method, wherein the beans are subject to three phases of wetting, dissolution, and diffusion. The manner of pouring and water temperature are also considered to extract the finest flavors.
Family and barkada gatherings are never complete without victuals to chow down. And, if you are for a relaxing and cozy place while satisfying your appetite with cuisines hat are right in one’s budget, yet, still lavish in taste, then the Fat Chef Restaurant got it all covered for you. They will have their soft opening on December 15, at 5 pm. They are situated at Antonio Luna Street, Cagayan de Oro.
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