Regina Troy Barrios

ArteFino x Offbeat Bistro Just Rewrote Filipino Food As You Know It

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<p>Last July 29 at the <strong>ArteFino Lounge</strong>, the<strong> </strong><a href="https://www.instagram.com/lopez_muse/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><strong>Lopez Museum and Library</strong></a>, in partnership with <a href="https://www.instagram.com/offbeatbistroph/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><strong>OffBeat Bistro</strong></a> and <a href="https://www.instagram.com/artefinoph/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><strong>ArteFino</strong></a>, held a talk titled <em>Discovering and Documenting Philippine Culinary Traditions<u></u></em>. The event featured <strong>Chefs Angelo Comsti and Don Baldosano</strong>, who shared their journey across the country to uncover the richness and diversity of our regional cuisines. </p><p>What inspired this pursuit? Chef Angelo candidly shared, “Both of my parents are from Rizal, so I didn’t have any province. That’s one of my frustrations.” This longing led him to travel to different parts of the Philippines, where he knocked on doors, chatted with the ates in carinderias, and even struck up conversations with taxi drivers to learn about the dishes that define their communities.</p><p>“So, I did my research around the country to discover regional cuisines because I believe they are just as Filipino as sinigang,” he explained. This exploration became the foundation for his fifth cookbook,<a href="https://www.amazon.com/Also-Filipino-Regional-Dishes-Growing/dp/6219583388" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em> Also Filipino: 75 Regional Dishes I Never Had Growing Up</em></a>.</p><div><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/17541448930461.jpg" style="width:300px" class="fr-fic fr-dib"/><br/></div><h2><strong>The dishes we forgot</strong></h2><p>Chef Angelo then walked us through some of the dishes he encountered. Take pancit, for example. It&#x27;s more than just canton or bihon. There&#x27;s pancit puso, pancit cabagan, and pancit bato. Each version reflects local ingredients and culinary ingenuity. In a public market in Cavite, for instance, pancit puso is made with banana hearts instead of calamansi to give it that signature sour note.</p><p>Other stories were equally compelling. In rural areas, practicality often gives birth to tradition. Chef Angelo described palosan, a dish born out of necessity for farmers. “They would just throw all the ingredients—garlic, onion, ginger, pork belly, and coconut milk—into a large pot. Start the fire and by the time they were done with their fieldwork, they’d have something to eat.”</p><p>Even the basketball court, a staple of Filipino communities, played an unexpected role in his culinary discoveries. While in Ilocos, Chef Angelo came across inartem being sold by two elderly men by the court. It was a medley of fruits soaked in vinegar, eaten as a snack or palate cleanser during merienda. Sadly, he noted that inartem is becoming harder to find, as fewer people are making or buying it.</p><p>Desserts, too, tell stories. “Our cuisine holds such a wealth of kakanin (rice cakes),” Chef Angelo noted. While driving through Albay, he came across stalls selling biribid, also known as pilipit in other parts of Bicol. It&#x27;s a sweet treat made of coconut milk and rice flour, deep-fried and glazed with sugar. In Isabela, he found three distinct types of suman. These discoveries only scratch the surface.</p><iframe class="instagram-media instagram-media-rendered" id="instagram-embed-0" src="https://www.instagram.com/p/DMzAO_STWvZ/embed/captioned/?cr=1&amp;v=14&amp;wp=1080&amp;rd=https%3A%2F%2Fod2-workbench-web.abs-cbn.com&amp;rp=%2F#%7B%22ci%22%3A0%2C%22os%22%3A49240%2C%22ls%22%3A48463%2C%22le%22%3A49235%7D" allowtransparency="true" allowfullscreen="" frameBorder="0" height="1179" data-instgrm-payload-id="instagram-media-payload-0" scrolling="no" style="background:white;max-width:540px;width:calc(100% - 2px);border-radius:3px;border:1px solid rgb(219, 219, 219);box-shadow:none;display:block;margin:0px 0px 12px;min-width:326px;padding:0px"></iframe><br/><script async="" src="//www.instagram.com/embed.js"></script><div><br/></div><h2><strong>Sugar and storytelling</strong></h2><p>He concluded with a question that lingers: “What now is Filipino cuisine?” The answer, he suggested, varies depending on one’s exposure and understanding. “To get to an authentic definition, the answer is out there across 81 provinces and 17 regions.”</p><p>“There’s so much information and food to discover, to appreciate, and to acknowledge,” he said. Then added with a smile, “For me, I have this mantra, ‘The more I eat, the less I know.’ It’s a good thing I’m always hungry.”</p><p>Following the insightful talk, we were treated to a dinner that echoed these stories, beginning with Laswa and Biko, paired with a refreshing Sour Kamias cocktail, made with vodka and tart kamias.</p><div><br/></div><h2><strong>Memory on a plate</strong> </h2><p>Chef Don Baldosano, who prepared the dishes, introduced Laswa with a sense of nostalgia: “I grew up with this. It was a staple for us every day. Whatever vegetables we had, we’d turn into a broth seasoned with ginger.” For this dinner, he elevated the dish with confit squash, a touch of daing on top, and a traditional laswa broth. “I wanted to give the experience of Laswa as I had it when I was a kid.”</p><p>Then came the Biko, reimagined. “The idea was to play around with it,” said Chef Don. “Underneath is biko treated like risotto, but with all the familiar flavors. It’s topped with cogon cream. Cogon is the grass used for bahay kubo roofs. We forage it, dry it, and infuse it into milk. There’s also pandan oil, a crumble, and it’s finished with a little bougainvillea and coconut.”</p><p>The creativity was striking. Who would’ve thought cogon grass could flavor a dessert?</p><p>For Chef Angelo, it always circles back to one thing: “Food is more sumptuous if you get to know the story behind it.” And that’s exactly what he did. By seeking out those stories, meeting the people who keep these traditions alive, and bringing those flavors to the forefront, he reminds us that Filipino cuisine isn’t just one thing. It is a vibrant, evolving narrative told across thousands of islands, one dish at a time.</p>

<p>Metro joins chefs Angelo Comsti and Don Baldosano for a soulful dinner where heritage meets bold reinvention.</p>

Metro joins chefs Angelo Comsti and Don Baldosano for a soulful dinner where heritage meets bold reinvention.

ArteFino x Offbeat Bistro Just Rewrote Filipino Food As You Know It

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ArteFino x Offbeat Bistro Just Rewrote Filipino Food As You Know It

Bambi Torres Camus

Published Aug 02, 2025 03:35 PM PHT

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Updated Aug 02, 2025 10:35 PM PHT

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artefino 2025

artefino lounge

balmori chef's table

offbeat bistro

lopez museum

angelo comsti

don baldosano

modern filipino food

heritage filipino recipes

filipino food culture

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