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Chef Robby Goco won’t be held down with the growth of Green Pastures as he deals with a couple more projects in the pipeline. There’s Odds, which champions a concept I’m personally very excited about. It will put unpopular cuts of meat in the spotlight, and cook nose, tail and everything in between. He will also be juggling work on an organic Greek rotisserie focusing on wraps and salads, as well as a joint venture zeroing in on Filipino-style chicken. There’s certainly much to look forward to from chef Robby, whose concepts and ideas never fail to stir interest.
General P’s Chicken (Photo: thefatkidinside.com)
Stephen Ku and Erwan Heusaff of the Mothership group, the company responsible for Crisp on 28th, are gearing up for their food district at the Signa Designer Residences in Salcedo, Makati. “We got three spaces right beside each other,” says Stephen. “One is called Bait’s, which is going to be chef Joseph Margate’s main thing. The second is Sabaw, which is going to be the first Filipino soup bar. The focus for that is the different broths and concoctions prepared by chef Cheska Cariño. Then the last one is called Sprout. It has all healthy and organic stuff for takeout. We are planning to open about five branches of that all over Manila. It’s all going to open on the second week of January.” In addition to that, there’s The Red Light along Felipe Street in Poblacion, Makati, which is bound to be an incubator for new talents and a culinary playground for chefs, and the expansion of Pink Panda to the Fort and Ortigas areas.
There’s also quite a lot of action in the hotel scene. Margarita Forès of Lusso and Grace Park will formally open Alta in the Ascott Hotel in Bonifacio Global City later this month. There, she will be dishing up a more global cuisine to cater to the hotel guests, so you can expect modern Italian dishes along with a tight Asian repertoire in the menu.
Oysters from Flame Restaurant
Discovery Primea along Ayala Avenue Makati has six F&B outlets to add to our growing list: Tapenade, an all-day Mediterranean restaurant; 1824, a scotch and cigar bar named after the year when the first license for single malt distilleries was granted; Flame, a fine-dining restaurant offering contemporary continental cuisine; Edge, a garden bar serving modern mixology and a view of the Makati Skyline; The Gilarmi Lounge, the hotel’s lobby bar that will offer Filipino-inspired bar fare and draught beers from around the world; and The Commons, an exclusive lounge for the Premier Suite guests.
Salt and Pepper Tofu from Red Ginger
The City of Dreams capped off 2014 with the opening of Chinese restaurant Crystal Dragon and Michelin star-awarded The Tasting Room at the Crown Towers, Nobu and the Nobu Tea Lounge, and 24-hour restaurants Noodle8 for upgraded noodle selections and Red Ginger serving Southeast Asian cuisine. Then at the Shops at the Boulevard, there’s Prego Ristorante and Bar by the L’Opera group and Erwin’s Gastrobar from Singapore. Soon to open is a mix of foreign franchise and new concept restaurants, including Apu, Ruby and Jack’s, Ding Xian, O Kitchen, Hide Yamamoto and dessert place Godiva Café.
Phew! And I’m quite sure, there will be more to open as the weeks come. Well, it seems like our palates will be enduring quite a heavy workout this year. Are you ready?
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