Homegrown

Torta Manga, Bicho Bicho, Turon con Leche

Ho megrown hits

sinigang sisig Locavore.

REVIEW BY RYAN FERNANDEZ

Mention pulutan, and images of ice-cold beer and the greasiest, saltiest fi nger foods begin to swim in my head: Pork sisig, crackly chicharon, and fried odds and ends. Locavore is an ode to sustainable food, where Filipino bar chow takes interesting turns. Flanked by warehouses on Brixton Street in Barangay Kapitolyo, the restaurant borrows the tactile, industrial feel of its neighbors. It is large and noisy, and there’s a working class charm in its use of long wooden tables, bamboo, steel girders, gravel, and concrete walls.

Manning the kitchen is Mikel Zaguirre, once head chef at La Regalade, who gussies up homegrown cuisine while staying keen on the play on contrasts familiar to Filipino palates. Start with lip-puckering green mango-and-singkamas skewers with bagoong and smoked rock salt, or sample a platter of classic street food. It’s fi sh balls, kikiam, and bright orange kwek-kwek matched with a trifecta of dips—sweet and sour, vinegar, and the truly authentic syrupy “Manong sauce.” Kilawin is a strong component of the menu, featuring fresh tanigue and oysters shipped in from Aklan. Speaking of oysters, Locavore serves a mean oyster sisig—savory, crisp clumps of fried goodness tossed with fl ecks of lechon. A selection of local beers makes for a magnifi cent pairing. The Boneless Lechon Belly is utterly soft; the crisp skin giving way in between bites that reform into a sticky, moist mess. Whole roasted onions, garlic cloves, and tomatoes give it French rusticity. Ultimately, Zaguirre’s playfulness shines through in the Sizzling Sinigang. The twist? Beef short ribs in a quirky gravy and tamarind stew. One moment it’s thick and savory, the next sour and fruity. The unexpected combination keeps you on the edge, and your palate tingling for the next spoonful. This one begs for rice to play down the assertive fl avors. For a sweet ending, Locavore features local modernized classics including sugar-dusted Bicho Bicho dunked in coco jam and melted tablea, and Torta Manga, a layered tart made with nuts and dulce de leche with a delicate meringue crust, enough to pose Dulcelin’s mango torte a reasonable challenge.

As the trend of foreign heavyweights arriving in the restaurant scene continues, Locavore appears to be a peculiar animal, one of the few ushering forward the farm-to-table movement. Turning inward for inspiration, the restaurant roots itself in what we Filipinos know and relish the most.

Sizzling Sinigang

in a nutshell

LOCAVORE 10 Brixton Street, Barangay Kapitolyo, Pasig City; tel. no.: 246-9069

MUST-TRIES

Street Food Platter (P200), Boneless Lechon Belly (P550), Lechon and Oyster Sisig (P400), Sizzling Sinigang (P530), Torta Manga (P240), Turon con Leche (P220), Bicho Bicho (P160)

THUMBS UP Take advantage of Locavore’s buy-onetake-one promo on their signature cocktails from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m.