MAN-SIZED HEALTHY GRUB

That’s an interesting mix. What culture would you say reflects your personality most?

Well, I was born and raised here in the Philippines, so I would say Pinay na Pinay talaga ako. But I do look like a foreigner kaya akala nila minsan di ako nagta-Tagalog, ha ha!

Do you think you intimidate people because of how you look?

Yeah, which is so unfair. Like, dude, yeah I look like a snob but when we start talking you’ll realize that I’m the nicest person you’ll ever meet!

So, what kind of guys approach you?

Foreigner din usually, ha ha!

But what do you prefer: Foreign men or Pinoys?

Pinoys, of course! Filipino men are sweet, funny, and caring.

And as a half-and-half, how would you describe Filipino women?

Well, most of my friends are Pinays and I can say that my Pinay friends are nicer than my Aussie or foreign friends because Pinays are very caring, sweet, and they always take care of me whenever I get drunk!

You get drunk often?

Yup! Syempre, kapag gumimik kailangan malasing, ha ha!

How often do you go out?

Once a week usually but it really depends with my friends. If they want to go out then I’ll join them!

Do you like meeting guys during your nights out?

Not really. I mean, I’m open to make guy friends, but most of the guys I have met in clubs, they usually just want talk you into going home with them or just make out with you, ‘di ba? Like, I know how you guys think! Ha ha!

Are you friendlier when drunk?

Sadly no, mas snob ako kapag lasing!

Do you think that clubs are still an ideal place to go and meet women?

Masyado na yatang obvious yung gusto nilang mangyari kung sa club dahil even yung ibang girls, gusto lang maka-meet ng good looking guys, ha ha!

Where would you recommend, then?

Through common friends?

Is that how you met your boyfriend?

Nope, we met at a club! Sorry, ha ha! But hey, we lasted three years! FHM

Kelly’s life this month

Lentils Provençal,

WIN AT LIFE

FIT AND HEAVY EATS

Eating healthy doesn’t mean feeding off raw pechay. These ‘wholesome food restaurants’ care as much about your taste buds as they do your nutrition—even sisig is on the menu!

PHOTOGRAPHY:

JONATHAN BALDONADO

WORDS:

KHYNE PALUMAR

1 SUSI

Forbestown Road, Burgos Circle, BGC, Taguig

Advocates sustainable, cruelty-free, non-heart-attack-inducing ways of getting food on your plate. The key, they say, lies in fist-sized burgers, shepherd’s pies, chimichurris, and decadent dark chocolate cakes—all vegan and gluten-free, of course. Susi’s owner, Bianca Mabanta, has celiac, an autoimmune disease that prevents her from eating anything that has wheat. But being vegan is her advocacy. Says head chef Kyra De Vera: “Everything, from the ingredients to the condiments, is plant-based. And then we make our own gluten-free bread, which is a mixture of potato starch and cassava starch.” Burger cheers!

Part of the Pino Group of restaurants (Pino serves Pinoy fusion dishes; Pi dishes pies), Pipino is the vegan joint that rounds off the cleverly named trio. Owner Alessa Lanot says: “We followed suit on what Pino is, which is creative Filipino. And because Pipino is plant-based— no dairy, no animal products or byproducts, not even honey—we have to be more creative with the ingredients.” This creativity is seen in noodles made of kalabasa, pesto made of kale and malunggay, cheese made of tofu, and a dessert list you wouldn’t think had eggs or dairy in them. The easiest ways to gorge on gulay.

SUPERFOODS AND NUTRITIOUS CONDIMENTS ACCORDING TO SUSI HEAD CHEF KYRA DE VERA

VEGETABLE-EATING RULES OF THUMB ACCORDING TO PIPINO OWNER ALESSA LANOT

“Kale is one of the most nutritious vegetables. It’s rich in flavonoids. It looks a bit like lettuce, but with darker and more curled leaves. There are now kale growers in Tagaytay and Batangas—that’s where our kale comes from.”

“Beets are rich in phytonutrients, but they have an earthy flavor, so we cook it with a bit of sugar when we put it in our salad. We use candied beets; it goes well with the mushroom ‘bacon’ and lentils.”

“Most chocolate now is just cow’s milk, which is high in fat— mixed with very little cacao. Our cacao beans are locally grown. We get our handpicked beans from a cacao farm in Davao. It doesn’t go through a machine.”

“Nutritional yeast is a replacement for a lot of nonvegan seasonings. We can’t use fish oil, for one. It’s deactivated yeast that has a sharp cheesy taste. It has riboflavin, niacin, and B12, among others.”

Dark chocolate!

Lentils Provençal, P375 Mr. Phoenix, P445 Eat Your Feelings, P245 Oscar the Grouch, P195

2 PIPINO

39 Malingap St., Teacher’s Village, QC

“Filipino food is mostly brown, so to balance it off we have to eat greens, yellows, purples—because each color is rich in its own set of nutrients. We play nutrition by color.”

“We still have a lot fried stuff, because a lot of Filipino comfort food is fried. Ours is the healthier alternative because we don’t have the animal-based cholesterol and fats. They are good fats from seeds, nuts, avocados, and healthy oils.”

“If you’re looking for the chewiness of meat, mushrooms will give that. But I wouldn’t suggest mock meat. Mock meat is gluten, so it’s really a cop out. It doesn’t taste very good as well.”

Black bean burger, P225 Potato chilaquiles, P285 Kalabasa Arrabiata, P165 Spring roll trio, P275