Cebu Living: 2015 January-March

CEBU LIVING

VOLUME 2 ISSUE 3

MICHAEL CANCIO Lessons from a slice of pizza Napolitana Page 14

FRANZ IGNACIO

New rules of design from the man behind bamboo speakers Page 16

KRYZ UY

Shifting from trends to a brand of her own Page 15

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SOCIAL DIARIES SOCIAL DIARIES

By RENZ NOLLASE

CLASS ACT Teresin Mendezona celebrates her birthday in classic style

ANNIE ABOITIZ, TERESIN MENDEZONA, AND ANNA MARIE DIZON

Born on Christmas eve, Teresin Mendezona kept the excesses of the holidays’ red and green palette out of her Beverly Hills home, and instead, opted for a classic pairing of black and white for her birthday celebration.

Guests, close friends and family, were urged to dress within the monochrome theme and to don fascinators for the intimate occasion.

A delectable spread of tapas, cheeses, caviar with cream cheese, liver pâté, and more hors d’oeuvres personally chosen by Mendezona whet guests’ appetite before the buffet served the main course for the night. Marissa Fernan brought Teresin’s cake personally. Beneath a pergola adorned with cascading white garlands, tables kept within the black and white theme with a single white candle as centerpiece. Here, guests lingered long into the night with more food and drinks to wish Mendezona a happy birthday and good tidings.

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ALICE PLAZA, MARISSA FERNAN, AND ELVIRA LUYM

JILL URBINA, LITA URBINA, GRACE URBINA, AND JET URBINA

MAUR LEDESMA, MARGET VILLARICA, NONIE UY, AND ROSEBUD SALA

SONIA YUVALLOS, IRIS ARCENAS, AND MARGUERITE LHUILLIER

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PROFILE Makeup by JAY CASTILLO of MAC COSMETICS Hair by STEF TIRADO

IN FLUID MOTION Artist Jewelle Yeung finally decides to settle down, in turn rousing a set of abstractions to roaring life

By PRISTINE L. DE LEON Images by SAM LIM

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In her book A History of Sensuality, American essayist and naturalist Diane Ackerman states that “our senses define the edge of consciousness . . . [and so] we spend a lot of our lives pacing the windswept perimeter.”

That said, there are probably few sights in the city more seductive than artist Jewelle Yeung’s painted visual euphoria. They teeter on the highs and lows of feeling, as if some sort of calculated drunkenness were involved in their creation. What she really wanted to do, she says, “was to go nuts.”

Her hair tied in a messy high bun the afternoon she allows us into her studio, the bubbly, outspoken fashion designer-turnedartist tells us she’s basically been a hermit for the past weeks. “Oh my god, I’m the worst person to ask what’s going on in the city,” she says, laughing. “I don’t go out.”

JEWELLE YEUNG DESCRIBES HER WORK AS A CROSS BETWEEN SURREALISM AND ABSTRACT EXPRESSIONISM.

There’ve been, of course, several things that have kept her busy. Her clients in Manila comprise of Solaire and a few private collectors, while in Hong Kong, she collaborates with Above Second Gallery and an artisan purist tea company called Basao.

She just launched a show last Feb. 11 in Manila called “Biophilia,” curated by art and design company Collective 88. This March, she’s having an exhibit in Hong Kong along with other artists, the grouping brought about by Qube Gallery for the Asia

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PROFILE Contemporary Art show.

She plans to set up a restaurant with her brother this year, fill up the family’s Kandaya Resort in Daanbantayan with art, and also finish a diploma in nutritional therapy. “It’s something I’m personally obsessed with, something I find fascinating: how you can help the body and the environment at the same time,” she says. Apart from those, the 33-year-old artist declares, “I’m also getting married this year.”

You can say that like her works, Yeung simply can’t keep still. After studying fashion at the University of the Arts, she took a masters degree in fine art painting at City and Guilds of London Art School. “Right after, I got headhunted for a fashion company. But along the road, I got frustrated. The head designer told me in my third year that I’m more of an artist than a fashion designer so I quit my job. I moved back to Hong Kong and started painting.”

After shifting back and forth, she’s finally settling in Cebu to set all her projects in motion. Because her works are primarily

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associated with and evocative of nature, the rigid structures of design take a back seat in favor of the more fluid, visceral, and delicate strokes—as though you were being tossed wildly by waves and lured into a subliminal whirlpool just by looking at her canvas. “In reality, I’m a messy painter,” she quips.

Taking inspiration from surrealist Roberto Matta and futurist Umberto Boccioni, Yeung calls her artworks a set of emotional landscapes, mapping the feelings that nature stimulates.

“My original works were purely abstract. The reason I do this is, when you think about it, how can you really explain how you feel?”

Citing that her dream collaboration would be that with a musician (“It might be the ugliest piece of crap ever but it would be fun to do it!”), she’d like to hear someone play live music for the first time and map its emotional trajectory. “Nature and emotion go hand in hand because they’re both natural things,” she adds. But really, it takes a painter’s fluid strokes to render them infinitely more moving than they already are.

“Nature and emotion go hand in hand because they’re both natural things.”

CLOCKWISE FROM LEFT: YEUNG LIVES WITH HER CAT OBI WAN AND HER WHITE GERMAN SHEPHERD, TITAN; SHE INTENTIONALLY EMPLOYS SOFT STROKES ON AREAS THAT NORMALLY HAVE HARD EDGES; PHOTOS OF NATURAL LANDSCAPES POPULATE HER STUDIO. THE ARTIST MOVES AWAY FROM BUSY CITIES WHEN SHE PAINTS-HENCE THE TRANSFER FROM HONG KONG TO CEBU.

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ARTS & CULTURE

MORE THAN MATERIAL INTEREST

SISTERS VIKKI AND PAULA RODRIGUEZ HAVE DISTINCT PERSONALITIES THAT COMPLEMENT EACH OTHER. VIKKI HAS EDGIER DESIGNS, WHILE PAULA’S ARE MORE ROUNDED OUT, AND THE TWO TALK A LOT TO MAKE EACH OTHER’S DESIGNS BETTER.

The sisters behind Co-Creative Studio explore the intimacies of community and hard work

By LEX CELERA Images by SAM LIM

Picture this: a web of pipes, wires, and cogs twisting and turning to make the product of your choice. Conveyor belts circulate and levers go up and down, each part of the machine operating in a manner that can be described as meticulous, efficient, and wellcalculated. The machine never tires and makes the barest mistakes. Efficient, yes, but also cold and mechanical.

Contrast it with the image of soiled, sweaty hands gripping skeins that are plaited into ropes. The fingers move slowly but surely. A

candle flame is used to bind the ends of the ropes, and the sun, though harsh, provides the necessary light. The work produced may not be as precise as what a machine could, but the craftsmanship is honest, intimate, and warm.

Those hands belong to Mrs. Diosdada whose work of recycling rope from nearby docks span 40 years and have sustained her and her family.

Her efforts are now being appreciated, thanks to sisters Vikki and Paula Rodriguez of Co-Creative Studio. Rope skeins were

fashioned into pieces for Co-Creative Studio’s Navi Collection, which heavily takes inspiration from its raw materials: the sea, the waves, and everything in between.

Mrs. Diosdada belongs to one of the communities recognized and tapped by CoCreatives Studio, and the recognition extends beyond the use of the material they work with; there’s also a conscious effort on the studio’s part to highlight the honest work of craftsmen. One of the ideals of Co-Creative Studio is “Co-mmunity,” where communities

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ARTS & CULTURE

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work coming from] the United States.”

When asked what Co-Creatives Studio stands for in terms of branding, Paula explains that it involves more than just the design itself. “We really want to talk and share more about the craftsmen that we work with, the materials that we manipulated to create the designs. We’re definitely sharing those with our buyers. Anyone who wants to learn, especially students, we want them to see that our craftsmen are very important to our culture and our designs, not just to the look of an item. We work with designers who also feel the same way.”

“I do a lot of edgy things. If I were the edge, Paula’s the curve. That’s the easiest way I can describe it. She has a feminine style while mine is a tad more masculine. Paula focuses on marketing while I pay attention to product development,” Vikki declares. The two have their own ways of designing, but with CoCreative Studio, collaboration is the foremost value. For their next collection, they look to the trees for inspiration. Always at the back of their minds, though, are social awareness and care for the communities they work with.

Makeup by DIVINE TAYRUS of MAC COSMETICS Hair SUZAINE CHRISTI SMITH

CLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT: HONEST DESIGN EMBODIED IN THEIR GAIA COLLECTION MADE FROM RATTAN IN ITS NATURAL COLOR; A COLLABORATION WITH BELGIAN ARTIST SEP VERBOOM; THE SISTERS CONTINUE TO FIND INSPIRATION FROM NATURE SUCH AS THESE TREE STOMP-LIKE SIDE TABLES.

that thrive on genuine artistry and natural materials benefit; social responsibility is a frequent exercise. “It’s not just me and my sister,” Vikki says. “We want to build a portfolio [made by the] communities.”

The sisters were exposed to the world of design early on but experienced growth under the tutelage of the likes of Kenneth Cobonpue and Debbie Palao. “Our parents have been in this business for a very long time. We basically grew up with it as well. But it was within a workshop that we got challenged and listened to Kenneth, Debbie, and all the designers in Cebu,” Vikki explains. “We saw design as a process rather than just drawing and stuff,” Paula adds.

After that workshop, Paula and Vikki traveled to San Francisco to study. Both of them took up interior architecture, and learned what makes Filipino design values unique.

“The big difference would be the materials,” Vikki shares. “Others can work with wood and metal and stuff, but we have all the shells, the coconuts, the rattan. Rattan is a very Filipino material. It’s really through the material that I think we can differentiate what we do [from the

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ADVERTORIAL

VISUAL STRIKE

A local hotel breaks the mold and offers a venue where art is home

There is something admirable in the non-generic, in small things with loud features. In the hotel industry where good service is synonymous with the innocuous and inconspicuous conduct of business, a boutique hotel in Cebu makes a bold statement with quirky features and rooms that boast unique aesthetics.

The Henry Hotel has the typical requirements of a good stay: hospitable staff, a comfortable bed, and Rica’s good food with the added bonus of a spa. It is the décor, however, that has been sparking conversation among its clientele.

There are no beige, taupe, or marble accents here nor immaculate white and gold lamps ala palazzo. Adapting the guise of an artist’s gallery, the Henry Hotel has put on a coat of bold colors, refusing to be overlooked, and requiring a moment of thought from its willing onlookers.

THE HOTEL’S PIECES ARE OF LOCAL MATERIALS BUT ARE MADE IN A EUROPEAN STYLE TO FIT THE INDUSTRIAL AND VINTAGE VIBE.

The building’s exposed pipework and bare cement walls and floor betray its industrial influence, while its furnishings and artworks proclaim quirky and vintage. Where a typical hotel banks on safe design, the Henry Hotel embraces eccentric pieces as décor. Greeting guests is a red statue of “Henry,” what could be the hotel’s own mascot, a bowing man with a permanent smile–cheeky and interesting.

Each of the 38 rooms, meanwhile, features murals ranging from Monroe’s red pout to a view of waves from a Moroccan window.

When the art isn’t on the hotel room walls, they’re in the Qube Gallery located within the hotel building where local artists mount their work. The latest of which was the Water Proof exhibit.

For the restless crowd, hotels sometimes serve as nothing more than mere repositories of cumbersome luggage and keepers of hot water and shower heads.

For the destination traveler, however, the new norm of traveling is maximizing one’s experience by lodging in hotels that don’t just offer comfort, but also inspires one to stay, to marvel, and to start a conversation.

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COVER STORY

LEAGUE OF YOUNG CREATIVES

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COVER STORY

SLICE OF LIFE For Michael Cancio, the secrets to a thriving business are the same as a good pan of pizza’s: good quality and simplicity

By DENISE DANIELLE ALCANTARA Image by SAM LIM “I’m in love. I’m having a relationship with my pizza,” Julia Roberts exclaimed after taking her first bite of pizza Napolitana at Da Michele from the movie Eat, Pray, Love.

Pizza doesn’t have to be over the top (or overly topped) according to the Italians. The traditional Napolitan Marinara pizza basically has five ingredients: bread, tomatoes, oregano, garlic, and olive oil. Simple and no-fuss. And this world-renowned pizza is what Michael Cancio introduced not only to Cebuanos but to all Filipinos when he opened La Nostra Pizzeria Napolitan, the only certified Napolitan pizzeria in the Philippines.

An entrepreneur and pizzaiolo (pizza maker), Cancio shares all his learnings from a three-month internship under three of the best pizzerias in Naples. “Pizza is a religion in Italy, not just Napoli,” he quips.

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So far, how did the Cebuanos receive the Napolitan-style pizza?

Napolitan pizza is totally different from what we know. We grew up with Shakey’s and its thin crust and crispy pizzas. I’ve had people tell me our pizza is horrible.

Why? What’s the common complaint?

[That] it’s undercooked. But that’s only when I [had just] opened. I just had to take everything.

[When] somebody tells me that my food sucks, I don’t get hurt because that’s their opinion; we don’t have the same taste. [You could say that] my food sucks but then, I probably won’t like the food you eat, too.

Would you consider that to be your biggest struggle so far?

That would be one of the biggest struggles,

but actually, that was maybe for the first month or two [only]. Acceptance has been better than I had thought it would be.

Filipinos like a lot of toppings, so first, I had to adjust. I [had to] put more sauce, more toppings, more cheese, more everything. It was not really Napolitan. It broke my heart to do that, but I [had to] do it to survive and just to get acceptance. But after a few months, I took it out and put back the Napolitan-style pizza, and it worked.

Are you training people to cook the pizza?

For now, I do all the cooking. The pizza is all me. As long as the pizza’s cooking, I’m there.

Are you open seven days a week?

No, we’re not open on Mondays because I have to rest. [I only open on Mondays] when I don’t have to work. It’s my first time in this business. It’s not only for the money; I want to serve pizza that’s good. That’s why I’m there every day.

What’s the most important thing about starting a business that you learned along the way?

To not want instant gratification. You got to log in the miles to get results in anything in life. And if others think it will work, they should just do it.

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COVER STORY

HER OWN RULES Celebrity blogger Kryz Uy is wielding her online influence with a new set of codes

By PRISTINE L. DE LEON Images by SAM LIM Hailed as Influence Asia’s top beauty influencer last December, Kryz Uy has held sway over the sphere of blogging and social media since her wired generation discovered the power of posting online. “[I used to be] a workaholic. I was so anal, I wanted to control everything,” she confesses. But on her Instagram account, currently 352,000 followers strong, she recently posted a photo of herself caught in the middle of a rain of feathers, doing an improv ballet pose—and showing a bit of spontaneity.

“I practically live in flats now: sneakers, sandals, or Birks,” says Uy, who used to sport smokey eyes and high heels the moment she left the house. “I guess it’s also a sign of maturity.” As she adds a brand and a book to her name, the 26-year-old tells us she has no idea what the trends are now. You can hardly call this a rebirth, but Uy is making her brand evolve by simply re-establishing an image she can call entirely her own.

How will this year be different for you?

I’m actually launching a book by March, a “behind-the-blog.” My whole team is from Cebu. It’s really a proud moment for us. I’m launching quite a number of things, including a brand. They’re still in the works so I don’t want to jinx anything. It’ll be a busy year. I’m thinking of flying to the Caribbean in August, and maybe Europe in May or June.

Your style has shifted to more comfortable wear. What trends are you seeing nowadays?

I used to be the creative director for the fashion brand What a Girl Wants, and we subscribed to WJSN, a trend forecasting network. I’ve already tried every trend in the industry. You name it: stacked bangles, heelless shoes, asymmetric skirts. I feel like I’ve come into terms with my own personal style now. I guess it’s also a sign of maturity.

That’s why I also transitioned my blog into travel and lifestyle topics. Before, I really researched what’s trending for each season.

Now, my free time is spent experiencing

things rather than researching. I don’t even know what the trends are now.

Social media is a fast-shifting landscape.

How are you making your brand evolve?

I recently learned how to edit videos. I’m a one-woman team, and my videos are a work in progress. I also developed an app because people these days access the Internet through their mobile devices; they’re a more immediate way to read blogs. I’m [also] collaborating with creative people in the industry. I want to see what other creatives are capable of.

How do you sustain a beauty routine?

My beauty rule is to cleanse, tone, moisturize, then sleep. In the morning, I apply facial mist, moisturizer, sunblock, and then makeup. I love Marie France and Facial Care Center. I have been going there as a kid, and it’s where I got my laser light. My parents also go there, my sisters go there. It’s already part of our family.

[Last year I was part of their] advocacy against breast cancer.

In a post, you said we’re past the age of Maria Claras. What is the modern Filipina exactly?

My mom told my sister, “Guys don’t like it when women are too smart. You have to play [your intelligence] down.” It’s old-fashioned thinking. Before, it’s so Filipino to think that women [with] too much makeup, who are powerful, aren’t good to look at. I meet many people in different industries; the top-ranking positions [are held by] women. It’s inspiring.

In a more masa setting, the concept of the modern Filipina [is still unaccepted], so there’s a big responsibility on the part of us influencers; [here], the main source of information is television. During the recent Metro Manila Film Festival, cinemas were only showing films that made money. [We left out themes] that aim to educate. Teleseryes have exaggerated plots. It’s a formula that works for the Philippine market, but we can’t stick only to what works. We need to educate the market [for them] to change, to mature, to grow.

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COVER STORY

What’s in store for you after you’ve stepped down as chief of design for Loudbasstard?

I want to focus on a new brand [that deals with] high-end children’s furniture. It’s a niche market that isn’t here—it is, but it hasn’t been [given as much attention, unlike] in other countries. Everyone wants to pamper their babies. My sister recently had a son. He’s six months old right now, and the collection will [evolve] each year as he grows older. Next year, [our collection will revolve around children around] a year and a half old. As [my nephew] grows up, so will the company. Pascal—that’s [the name of the line, my nephew’s] name.

FOR THE RECORD After Loudbasstard, Franz Ignacio will be forging a legacy that’s well beyond the boom of bamboo speakers

By PRISTINE L. DE LEON Image by SAM LIM Franz Ignacio is recognized as one-half of the duo behind Loudbasstard (the other one being Koh Onozawa). Ignacio, however, has since stepped down from his position as chief of design at Loudbasstard and is now poised to conquer new frontiers by launching a new furniture line—something unrelated to the speaker brand that built his name.

These are little known facts about the 31-year-old: he got his start in art at an early

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age. He trained under the world’s chief players in design. His middle school portrait of a turtle’s head drawn with dots sits alongside international artwork at Christie’s New York.

“Before even moving here to Cebu,” he says, “I was designing furniture back in Miami and New York.” Now, by catering to a market that is still underserved, Ignacio continues to establish his name and forge a new path in the province of design.

How would you approach the brand’s design?

[Kenneth] Cobonpue was our mentor throughout Loudbasstard. Industry leaders mentor us along the way. We also have brand directors from Baron + Baron, one of the top advertising and branding agencies in the world.

How were you able to develop this concept?

I get my creativity and my energy from silence.

I get out of the city to be in nature. With that, everything just comes to me. I get up early to meditate: I sit, open my eyes, and let my mind loose. In the afternoon, I would take a 10- to 15-minute-break just to regain focus.

Isn’t it hard to thrive with the competition?

Cebu is a cultural melting pot. Industry leaders [are] open to share their ideas. Nobody’s selfish here. I’m working with my family right now and we have two major clients: resorts [from] all around the Philippines. My mentors have been amazing: from the director of Christie’s to Kenneth Cobonpue, Vito Selma, Carlo Vergara, and my family.

Shot on location HENRY HOTEL Styled by EDLENE CABRAL Makeup by SHONY RETIZA of MAC COSMETICS Hair and grooming by CHADY PANTALEON of MAC COSMETICS

Was designing always your aspiration?

No. I was in pre-med. Then I got into an accident: hit by a car, broke my neck, bedridden for about a year. I was just on my bed, creating designs on the wall. I [then] decided to move on to something I truly loved.

I wanted a different view of design and instead of taking industrial design like most product and furniture designers, I took architecture in New York. For the first table that I designed, the one [featured] in Art Basel 2010, it was one piece of metal formed to bend and curve in different ways without falling apart. My designs became [informed by] architectural practices.

But how would people identify a Franz Ignacio design?

It’s simple in the most elegant way possible.

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STYLE ON KRISTI: TOP, P1,995, DOROTHY PERKINS. SKIRT, P2,595, TOPSHOP, BOTH SM CITY CEBU. ON GIO:: SHIRT, P2,395 AND TROUSERS, P2,975, BOTH TOPMAN, AYALA CENTER CEBU.

Shot on location HENRY HOTEL Styled by EDLENE CABRAL Makeup by SHONY RETIZA of MAC COSMETICS

BEING BORN OLD It takes a stroke of retro-kitsch to lend some play to a plain attire Styled by EDLENE CABRAL Images by CENON NORIAL III

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STYLE

ON KRISTI: TOP, P4,950, AND SKIRT, P4,450, BOTH SINEQUANONE, RUSTAN’S, AYALA CENTER CEBU. ON GIO: BLAZER, P20,500, AND SHIRT, P3,450, BOTH PEDRO DEL HIERO, SM CITY CEBU.

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STYLE

Makeup by BULLET REYES Hair and grooming by WALLY SANTOS

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STYLE

TOP, P1,995, DOROTHY PERKINS. SKIRT, P2,595, TOPSHOP, BOTH SM CITY CEBU.

VEST, FOREVER 21, P1,545. HALTER TOP, P2,195, AND TROUSERS, P2,795, BOTH MISS SELFRIDGE. ALL AYALA CENTER CEBU.

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PLACES TO SEE at

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THE CUBE

ICE SKATING RINK

The Icon for Group Shots.

Take a photo of the gang in front of the 21 x 21 meter sculptural piece.

Glide on ice at Cebu’s world-class and only ice-skating rink, whether you want to score an ice hockey goal or execute a perfect triple axel.

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SPIRAL STAIRCASE

CINEMA

Take a selfie at each of the 4 whimsical color-coded staircases to prove you’ve circled the mall!

Choose from lounging in cushy recliners at the Director’s Club or ogling in the Large Screen Cinema that’s 30% bigger than other screens.

SM SEASIDE CITY CEBU • ABOVE ALL ELSE

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FOOD

HALL OF FOOD

District on 53rd introduces global flavors to the local palate

By DENISE DANIELLE ALCANTARA Images by SAM LIM

FROM TOP: LAMB TAGINE SERVED WITH COUSCOUS (NOT IN PHOTO); YOUR MORNING CUP OF COFFEE CAN BE SERVED FOR DINE-IN OR TO-GO,

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“I’m in a hurry, let me get some salad. I’m entertaining friends, let me get some cheese,’” co-owner Kate Anzani summarizes what District on 53rd aims to be.

Located at the Cebu IT Park where condominiums and call centers continue to grow in number, District on 53rd is a one-stop food place that caters to your every mood and craving.

If you are familiar with food halls or food courts, this may be counted as one, with the wide array of food housed in one place. The main difference between this and food courts, though? There are no concessionaires inside District 53rd.

Serving anything and everything from coffee and bread to wine and cheese, the dynamic Anzani husband-and-wife duo created 53 dishes inspired by their travels—and these do not include the daily specials and their selection of gourmet desserts. “When we travel, we always go to cities where there is a special restaurant or gourmet place, sometimes even market places.

[Whatever we learn in our travels], we keep in our memory and actually try to offer to the Cebu market,” shares chef Marco Anzani.

Stepping into the newest resto on the block may be a bit confusing at first glance. Their huge menu panels, hung behind the food counters, could overwhelm you at first glance, but they’re divided into different segments: Noodle and Soup Bar, Earth Stone Oven, World Cuisine, Nibbles and Cravings, Crispy Station Charcoal Grill, Fresh Station District, and Sandwich District—to help you out as you choose. Skim through the menu and you would read familiar and foreign words like adobo, porcini, falafel, etc. It’s not your usual mix, but diversity and innovation are key in District on 53rd, and new head chef Fadi Zaidan, who is of Lebanese descent, adds a different dimension to every dish with bold inclusions of a variety of spices.

Once you order, a huge platter of dips, breads, and chips will be served. (By the way, this place is semi-self service. You pay as you order but water and cutlery may be served to you.) The platter combines the familiar and foreign. It has what seems to be pan de sal but yellow, because the chefs add turmeric to the classic morning staple.

When asked how Cebuanos have received their attempt to diversify the choices of food, Marco answers, “They are more adventurous now; we [even] decided to create the lechon belly with foie gras. We know that people will be looking for pork or lechon, and they will try [our version] out of curiosity.”

Most of their dishes come in hefty servings.

Their version of porcini fondue is good for four to six people. The huge bowl of fondue is composed of seven different cheeses—Parmesan, Swiss, blue, and cream cheese, to name a few—and ham, served hot with crouton bread baked ‘til crispy and topped with olive oil and oregano. The customary Lebanese snack shakshuka served with freshly baked pita is still on the chef’s menu. This dish of eggs poached in a bed of tomatoes and chili peppers makes a casual appetizer that’s good for sharing as well.

This unassuming urban-industrial restaurant is slowly creating buzz as it feeds everyone, from the breakfast people with their freshly brewed cups of coffee and bread selection to the after hours crowd with their wine offerings from Wine Depot.

District on 53rd. Cyberzone Filinvest Salinas Drive, Lahug, Cebu City. 0936-8529899. www.districton53rd.com

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FOOD

CLOCKWISE FROM TOP: COMPLEMENTARY DIP PLATTER WITH TURMERIC PAN DE SAL AND CHIPS; AN ORDER OF SHAKSHUKA IS GOOD FOR THREE TO FOUR PEOPLE; YOU CAN ORDER WINE ANY TIME OF THE DAY.

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FOOD

TABLE FOR ONE

PIZZA AND HAPPENSTANCE

By JUDE BACALSO

With zero fanfare and no market research, a new Italian restaurant opens on, appropriately enough, pure bravura

When you order one of the main courses here, you’re ordering an afterthought.

“We originally thought it was going to be a casual place to get a bowl of pasta, pizza or a starter,” says a bemused Joel Binamira, also known in the online community as Marketman, his nom de blog. “But we’re surprised that people actually come in to have full meals, three courses at least. And wine, oh our wine consumption is just incredible!”

Pigafetta, his Italian restaurant, opened quietly in November of last year. No noise, and with as little planning, apparently. “Do you want to know the real story? Aboitiz just asked us if we could do something else after they gave us a space in Fork in The Road in Mactan for Zubuchon (his popular chain of restaurants that serve what Anthony Bourdain famously called “Best Pig. Ever.”). I said, what kind of something else? They said how about Italian?

Well, I can do Italian.”

With zero market research and with the derring-do of a fool (“murag boang,” Joel puts it), the new venture came about by—in his words—happenstance.

Even the menu is a work in progress, constantly evolving based on customer feedback.

“We added the risotto after we opened because people were asking for it. And the carbonara? My Italian chef laughed when I suggested we do it the traditional way…just eggs and parmesan. If people want cream, we tell the staff to suggest the Alfredo, which we have on the menu as well.”

In keeping with his popular blog, the attention to detail in Pigafetta sets it apart. “It’s the same concept as Zubuchon. Always the best ingredients. No shortcuts. And done the way an Italian mother would, really.” Caputo flour for the pizza dough is flown in from Naples from one of only two brands used to make proper Neapolitan crust. His carbonara uses pancetta, not bacon. And there’s the endless debates on

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EVOLVING SERVICE AT PIGAFETTA MEANS REMOVING THE WINE GLASSES FROM THE TABLE SETTINGS AT THEIR TINY MACTAN BRANCH. THE GLASSES, HOWEVER, REMAIN ON THE TABLES IN THE BIGGER BRANCH ALONG ESCARIO (ABOVE). POLPETTINI IS A POPULAR ANTIPASTO. THE TRADITIONAL MEATBALLS (POLPETTE) WITH TOMATO SAUCE SERVED IN A SKILLET.

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FOOD

FROM LEFT: CARBONARA DONE THE TRADITIONAL WAY: JUST EGGS AND PARMESAN. NO CREAM, THANK YOU. “AND WE USE PANCETTA, NOT BACON,” SAYS JOEL; MIXED SEAFOOD SALAD, AND THE EVOLVING TASTE OF THE CEBUANO. “NONE OF OUR WAITERS WILL EAT THE ARUGULA.” BUT IT’S AN ACQUIRED TASTE THAT’S SLOWLY BECOMING MAINSTREAM.

what to include on the menu. “My Italian chef suggested Hawaiian pizza because customers are bound to ask for that, even if it isn’t a traditional one. I conceded on one condition, that we use fresh pineapples sliced 1/8th of an inch and placed on top of the pizza so that it would caramelize beautifully on top.” Joel lost that round, kept the pizza variant on the menu anyway, but wouldn’t budge on how the rest of it is made. “We get some pizzas sent back because they think the edges have burned. But that’s the way we do it. Some people complain they are too flat, some complain they are too doughey (in the menu they refer to it as medium-thin thickness). You can’t please everyone, you just have to find the percentage of the population that is in agreement with you.”

When the Formaggi arrives, he reveals a little secret: “Most pizzas don’t use real cheese. One way to check? Allow it to cool. If it’s not real cheese, it will form a coagulated mess that you

can lift off whole!” Two hours into dinner, the last slice of Pizza al Pigafetta is as cold as a barren heart, but the cheese had sunk into the crust in between layers of his house sausages and balsamic onions. It’s real. “Ninety percent of the customers won’t know anyway. But I do. And the percentage of them that do care about these things are the ones I want to feed, anyway.” Thankfully, this tribe is increasing. “Cebuanos are changing.

From the spaces [they design], to the type of restaurants [they go to], to how much they are willing to pay for what they enjoy.”

“Most people think the name is a play on the word Pig,” he reveals, the obvious connection to his lechon chain a source of confusion for almost 85 percent of guests who, sadly, do not know their history.

“I thought it interesting that the voyage of Magellan was very well documented not by a Portuguese or Spaniard, but by a Venetian,” he continues, recalling the first circumnavigation of the world that, upon suffering a miscalculation, brought the Spanish fleet to the shores of Mactan. “You could very well say that [the chronicler] Pigafetta was, in fact, the very first Italian to set foot on Cebu.”

In fact, this little tidbit of history is printed on the front page of his modest, two page menu. So even if your grilled lamb chop was a little more than an aside, being right with the past is not.

Pigafetta. Axis Entertainment Avenue, N. Escario Street, Capitol Site, Cebu. 0905-3523885. www.facebook.com/pigafettaphilippines.

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RECIPE

GOLDEN HOUR An after-work concoction developed long before the Prohibition Era

Image by PATRICK SEGOVIA

CHRYSANTHEMUM COCKTAIL INGREDIENTS 3 dashes Absinthe 1 oz. Benedictine 2 oz. Dry vermouth Lemon peel, for garnish

PROCEDURE In a cocktail shaker filled with ice, pour in all ingredients. Shake vigorously and strain into a chilled cocktail glass.

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09/02/2016 5:56 PM

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