'My City, My sm, My Cuisine' goes to Bacolod

MANILA, Philippines - The City of Smiles had more to celebrate — and yes, to smile about — when “My City, My SM, My Cuisine” made a stop at SM City Bacolod to showcase its rich culinary tradition. During the event, mall goers had the rare opportunity to sample some of the finest delicacies in the region, as well as heirloom recipes from prominent families in a city known for its love for the good life and good food.

A joint project of SM and The Philippine Star with support from Homeworld, “My City, My SM, My Cuisine” celebrates the flavors of Philippine regional cuisine through a culinary contest featuring two signature recipes from 14 cities where SM malls are located.

Held just in time for the Masskara Festival, the event also showcased two of the province’s signature dishes using ingredients that celebrate Bacolod’s bountiful gifts from the seas and orchards in a cook fest — fresh lumpia for the entrée and piyaya for the dessert.

Corazon Cayao’s delightful fresh lumpia entrée and baker Reneboy Deanon’s melt-in-your-mouth piyaya crisps were judged the winners by the board of judges including Trattoria and Café Uma chef-owner Jomie Gaston, Museo Negrense de la Salle former curator Yaying Gaston, SM City Bacolod assistant mall manager Julia Javellana, and Metropolitan Museum of Manila vice chair Corazon Alvina.

They each received P5,000 worth of SM gift certificates and gift packs from Homeworld from SM vice president for marketing Millie Dizon and assistant mall manager Julia Javellana. The rest of the finalists received P1,000 worth of SM Gift Certificates and Gift Packs from Homeworld.

Guests — including members from socio-civic groups like Bacolod Cultural Foundation, the Negros Organic Producers and Retailers Association, the Negros Women for Tomorrow Foundation, the Negros Occidental Garden Club, and the Katuwang Resource Center, Inc. — had a glimpse of the province’s rich culinary tradition in a video showcasing its foodie destinations.

The video, hosted by Metropolitan Museum of Manila vice chair Corazon Alvina also featured members of some of the city’s prominent families demonstrating their heirloom recipes. The first stop was the ancestral home of the Remedios Sugon, who amazed the crowd by showing how her mother’s famous chicken binakol recipe was slowly cooked in bamboo tubes and buried with live coals for several hours.

The next stop was the Dizon-Ramos Museum, where Josefa Dizon Alunan Puentevella was happy to share bas-oy, a recipe that has been with her family for three generations. This traditional morning soup brings back happy memories of family breakfast gatherings.

Chef Juan Miguel “Jomie” Gaston, who is credited with having started a kind of culinary revolution by organizing Sabor Bisaya, a culinary competition and food expo, then shared his family’s prized cocido recipe in their ancestral home.

These heirloom recipes along with prized delicacies from Negros — Bacolod lechon, chicken inasal, pork dinuguan, empanada, royal bibingka, puto, suman, latik, mango buko mallow — were showcased in a Fiesta sa Nayon spread that guests couldn’t get enough of.

They also enjoyed having their photos taken beside a nostalgic backdrop of Mount Kanlaon and the La Carlota Sugarcane Train amid sugar cane fields; and watching the West Negros University’s Kaanyag Pilipinas Dance Company and Rondalla perform exquisite dances and play beautiful music.

“My City, My SM, My Cuisine in Davao” is the ninth stop of this exciting culinary event, which first took place in April in Santa Rosa where participants competed for the best puchero with lauya and puto maya with kilawing puso ng saging. It then proceeded to Lucena in May, where contestants whipped up the best hardinera and bucayo recipes; and then to Cavite in June for the tamales and sapin-sapin cookout.

More recently, great music and great food highlighted the event at SM City Batangas, where food lovers competed for the best kaldereta and coconut dessert recipes. “My City, My SM, My Cuisine” made a stop at SM City Cagayan de Oro in August for the best singulaw and pineapple dessert recipes; and the month after in Naga in time for the Our Lady of Penafrancia celebrations, where contestants competed for the best laing or pinangat and pili desserts. 

More recent “My City, My SM, My Cuisine” stops took place in SM City Marilao, which showcased Bulakeno specialties as well as the best Pancit Marilao and pastillas dessert recipes; and in SM City Davao where its rich culinary culture was highlighted along with winning tuna entrees and durian desserts.

The event goes next to Pampanga, where contestants will compete for the best bringhe and/or tibok-tibok dessert recipes.

“My City, My SM, My Cuisine” is a joint project of SM and Philippine STAR with support from SM Homeworld. Other sponsors include Bongbong’s Piyaya and Barquillos Pasalubong Center, Bacolod 18th Street Palapala Food Grill and Restaurant, Greenwich, Hero Sausage, Sabor Ilonggo, Punta Bulata White Beach Resort and Spa, Sun Cellular, Fiesta Gas, West Negros University, GMA 13 Bacolod, and Island Living Channel.

SM shoppers and Philippine STAR readers can submit their recipe of their city’s selected entrée and dessert along with their name, address, and occupation to sm_starculinary@yahoo.com. They can also mail these to the Publicity Department, Building C, SM Corporate Office, JW Diokno Boulevard, Pasay City, or the Lifestyle Section of the Philippine STAR at R. Oca Jr. and Railroad Streets, Port Area, Manila.

Ten finalists will be selected — five for entrees and five for dessert. Two winners — one for entrée and one for dessert — will be selected from each city during the culinary contest that will be held in time for the city’s festival. The two winners will each receive P5,000 worth of SM gift certificates, while finalists will receive packs from SM Homeworld.