A nostalgic ode to the arts
There is something about old recipes. Food of the present is, after all, an innovation or re-imagination of food from the past. The new Offbeat Bistro in Makati tips its hat to the arts of the yesteryears.
This concept actually started in the backyard of Chef Don Baldosano’s house where Don, with chef and author Angelo Comsti, would invite close friends for a get together over food and drinks every Sunday. They eventually decided to make it a profitable habit by having it in a space where they could welcome many more people to join their weekend pleasure.
Offbeat Bistro prides itself in being modern retro. The striking color of the space is inspired by the art of paper maché made popular in Laguna. Some of the town’s “toys” can be found on the shelves by the bar, but its influences can be seen plastered all over the 90-square meter space including the iconic wooden utensils found in many Filipino households. Even the choice of music relies on modern disco to provide smooth and solid tunes to amuse the diners. Manila-based DJ Alexa Dignos created a playlist that puts a contemporary spin to classics from Barry White to our very own Filipino talents Celeste Legaspi. Even the aroma in the restaurant honors the country’s national flower – sampaguita – and is obvious with the scented room spray and hand soap they use.
Both Don and Angelo are friends and I have seen their food evolve. Each dish they prepare actually tells a story and this is not your ordinary Filipino dish. These dishes are carefully crafted using fresh and seasonal ingredients. Some of these timeless dishes are not even served in regular Filipino restaurants.
The food is an interesting mix of generations-old dishes as well as regional ones, all of which have been given a modern touch. There’s the specialty of Rizal called Monghe, twice-cooked meat morsels capped with homemade saba banana ketchup and served on a bed of toyomansi (soy sauce and calamansi) cream. It’s a dish I have often heard of yet tasted for the first time. I loved it. I also adored their kulawo or char-grilled eggplant in burnt coconut milk that comes from Quezon Province. Here, it takes the form of a delicious fried lumpia(spring roll). My childhood party favorite Isda con Mayonesa (which I remember as a flaked fish with pickles, carrots, and mayonnaise) comes as torched slivered slices of bacoco (sea bream) fish with patis (fish sauce) mayonnaise and an assortment of colorful toppings. The beloved Bacolod Chicken Inasal here is breaded and fried to give a different texture yet retaining that classic flavor. Extremely tender pork belly takes the place of fish in ginger infused Filipino-Chinese dish Pesang Isda, where a Mexican herb called hoja santa, grown in Negros, is used to wrap pompano from Palawan for the restaurant’s version of pinangat. For dessert, kapeng barako jelly is used for guinumis and Filipino bread staple mamon is prepared as tres leches (three types of milk).
All the dishes made at Offbeat are all made with local ingredients in mind. The restaurant’s inventory includes buffalo’s milk and kesong puti (white cheese) from Norzagaray in Bulacan, marang fruit and cinnamon from Bacolod, sea bream from Palawan, duldul (also known as tultul or dokdok) salt from Guimaras (this salt had coconut milk), and kalim-aw sweet potato from Mindanao.
Even the cocktails give a nod to Filipino culture, with the likes of iced gem biscuits, frozen treat orange creamsicle, and diner-favorite root beer (made fresh with hoja santa ).
Since the place conveniently lends itself to events, especially with the expansive al fresco area, the owners plan to host chef collaborations and outdoor parties here soon. This will achieve Don and Angelo’s dream to involve a lot more people in their once-exclusive afternoon eating and drinking gatherings.
Congratulations to Don and Angelo! We look forward to tasting more Filipino dishes we never had!
(Offbeat Bistro is located on the second floor of The Shops Ayala Triangle Gardens in Makati City and is open from Monday to Saturday at 1130am to 3pm and 5pm to 10pm. Message or call (0995) 6393672 for reservations or inquiries.)
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