Let's Eat August Issue

LET'S EAT — August 2017

S H E ’ S T H E LY A N N A MORMONT OF THE RESTAURANT SCENE. DON’T LET HER PETITE FRAME AND PRETTY FACE FOOL YOU. WHEN THIS YOUNG LADY SPEAKS, THE PEOPLE AROUND HER LISTEN.

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1 Fried Chicken Wing and Ma Ling Nasi Lemak 2 Beef Rendang Nasi Lemak 3 Roti 4 Caramel Roti Prata 4 AnyAny at Hole in the Wall 4 Chef Quenee Vilar

but working as one, they complement each other perfectly. Nicco, the brains, and Quenee, the loquacious ever-smiling blur of activity who executes their every shared idea efficiently, and translates each eloquently into their dishes. Theirs is truly an enviable meeting of the minds. From Your Local to Hey Handsome and now, to their newest partnership, Any Any, they’ve built a formidable team together, an army if you will, of some of the most talented young cooks in the country. It wasn’t too long ago when Quenee herself was starting out in the kitchen. She’s only 24 years old, after all. She was a

Any Any is located at 4/F, Hole in the Wall, Century City Mall, Kalayaan Avenue, Makati

graduating student at the Colegio de San Agustin when she decided to take a basic culinary course as her senior high school elective. She soon found out that she was hooked, and that she’d discovered her true calling. College was at St. Benilde, where she excelled in culinary competitions. She received an internship at a resort in Florida, where she was so highly valued that her contract was extended, and thus, missed her graduation in Manila. She did come home eventually, and soon after, she and Nicco found themselves in each other’s orbits. I imagine there must be quite a bit of pressure on Quenee, and other very youthful chefs of her caliber. To have accomplished so much professionally, at such a young age? What should the next move be, when the eyes of so many are on you? The thing is, I have absolutely no doubt that she’ll continue to surprise, and continue to succeed. You see, Quenee, like Lyanna Mormont, is a fierce competitor. And when these young ladies decide to fight, they have only one intention, a singular mission: to win.

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Let's Eat August Issue

Published on Jul 20, 2017

Tammy Mendoza

Children of successful parents usually take one of these twopaths: the easy one, simply enjoy the fruits of the laborsof one’s parents, or the riskier one: carve out a whole newniche for one’s self. Nothing wrong with the first option, really. If you’re born with a silver spoon, sometimes all youhave to do is mouth the words. Very lucrative careers in theage of Reality TV have been built around much less. But really, where’s the fun in that? Contrived situationswith no real downside quickly get boring. I’d much ratherwatch the progress of kids who strike out on their own, roll the dice, and passionately pursue their dreams. They mayfalter, but ultimately, through a combination of optimism, assertiveness, luck, timing, chutzpah, lots of hard work, and yes, innate blessings thanks to their parents’ genes, many of them succeed, and brilliantly. In this issue, we share the stories of three talented young chefs who are just now setting off on their great adventures.