Chef Bruce Lim is a familiar face on television, the Filipino-Chinese chef first appearing on 'Magandang Umaga Pilipinas' and has become a regular face on the Asian Food Channel (AFC) starring in the shows 'Tablescapes' and 'The Boss.' Born and raised in the US, Chef Bruce took up Superior Level of Cuisine and Pastry at Le Cordon Bleu in London, and also penned his first cookbook 'Inside a Chef's Life,' where he shares recipes that shows his transition from being a foodie to a culinary icon. Aside from cooking and working in front of the camera, the chef shines the brightest when he's inside the kitchen, inspired to cook something new and to feed everyone something a little familiar, yet quite different. This is what Bruce showcases in Rustique Kitchen, which opened last year in Arnaiz Avenue, Makati.
As Chef Bruce has been championing and reconstructing Filipino cuisine in his restaurants through the years, as well as traveling all around the Philippines to explore and experiment with our local flavors through his TV show, it was fitting that he has been chosen for this year's 'Luzviminda 3: Pistang Pinoy' buffet at F1 Hotel Manila. LuzViMinda stands for Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao — the three major island groups of the Philippines. The special buffet promotion that runs until June 25th brings these three islands into their buffet restaurant, making it an awesome way to spoil and educate one's tastebuds with local flavors by our talented local chefs.
Already on its third year, Luzviminda 3 tapped on Chef Bruce Lim to represent Luzon, the largest among the three major island groups of the country. The guest chef from Visayas, is Chef Myke Tatung Sarthou of new Filipino restaurant Alab Chef Tatung; from Tagum, Davao del Norte is Big 8 Corporate Hotel's executive chef Isidro 'Sider' Tadtad, representing Mindanao. "I really enjoyed the food," Chef Bruce shared about the previous year's Luzviminda offering, "so I had to step up my game a bit."
Asian Food Channel's 'The Boss' host and Rustique Kitchen's celebrity chef talks all about food, shares food stories, and discusses about his Luzon dishes at F1 Hotel Manila.
Question: What was your approach to conceptualizing your entire spread of Luzon dishes for the buffet?
Chef Bruce Lim: "For me it was more like having fun with different techniques. I knew that Chef Tatung is more of the classic guy, he does a lot of the classic things and flavors–big, bold flavors. And they got ethnic cooking — what Chef Sider is. So I can't go that route, and I decided to offer something more new, and that's the way I went. I try to keep it more innovative."
When we speak of Philippine cuisine and Filipino food, what to you is the most comforting dish?
When I think of comfort food, that is really sinigang. I can probably eat sinigang at least four times a week–I love sinigang!
Any specific kind of sinigang?
Oxtail sinigang. And the way I do it, normally I eat it with mustasa and gabi. You have to try it with oxtail, because oxtail is so fatty and rich, and the bitterness of the mustasa kind of cuts it, and makes it realy really nice. So I enjoy it, totally.
How about conceptualizing the desserts for Luzviminda? Can you tell us more about that?
I also had fun with it. I wanted a play on things; we have the Champorado Rice Pudding. I try to keep what my grandmother used to do, and have fun with it. The Taho Panna Cotta, it was out of just really, an accident. We ran out of panna cotta in the restaurant, and we had to make it on the fly. So you know, just put it on an ice bath and whip it until it would get just set, and we start putting it into molds and setting them. And of course, we got a few right, and then after a while it set too much and we were like, 'Parang taho! Okay, go!' [laughs] And then we did it that way.
Through the years you've been showcasing Filipino food, and now, this year, our cuisine is finally included in the top food trends to watch out for. Why do you think it's only being picked up now, what took so long?
That's a really good question–there's a huge Filipino food movement in the US. And what we're doing is we are trying to showcase what we've got. They like big, bold flavors right now, and it's about time we all step up our game. And that's what a lot of the Fil-Ams are doing, they're representing for us, so that when people do come here in the country, they are more adventurous to try it. And when you have food like here in Luzviminda, you can appreciate a whole lot more.
And for these people offering Filipino food elsewhere in the world, how do they usually showcase it? What kind of presentation of our food do you think will fly with the international palate?
"That's a tough question. I think it's really all about the perception. Growing up in the States and coming back, I saw how it evolved. Like from before, everything was just in a palayok, all in one and you kind of get confused and look at it and say, 'Okay, what is that?' You know? You're kind of scared to try it. But now it's done differently, people are trying to break it down, and deconstruct it. Then you can appreciate each flavor for what it is. Once they try it, they will get used to that flavor. So now it's 'Okay, cool. Now let's try that thing now.' So that's when you go ahead and try the 'palayok' stuff."
What's the best Filipino dish, then, to introduce or test the foreign palate?
Well, we are classically savory and sour, so definitely Sinigang is something that they have to give a whack at. They love Thai food–they love tom yum goong. So if they can have tom yum soup, they can have our sinigang. It won't be as spicy or lemongrassy, but it should be okay. And also, if I really want to push the palate, it would be pinakbet. Why? Because it has all the vegetables you'd want, it has pork, it has shrimp, it's also a bit fermented and fishy, and it's also gonna be bitter from the ampalaya. So if they can handle that, they're on the road for true Filipino dishes.
When you are creating new dishes, what makes you feel inspired?
It's really about traveling. Traveling really helps me get most of my inspiration. Because if I want to know what's the new trend, what's happening–without traveling, you cannot really see it. Also it's about having fun with my boys. I love playing with my kids, they take me to places that are not really about work, so I can actually think freely.
Can you share you earliest food memory, eating something really delicious growing up?
It would probably be menu. My grandmother would always cook menudo. I remember it because I was sitting in the counter, and I could smell the flavor flowing and I remember she let me taste it. I can still remember the tomato flavor, the richness, the liver, the pork. That would probably be my earliest food memory. I was probably around five.
A favorite ingredient to use when cooking?
Garlic! Garlic would be it.
How about your favorite cuisine when you're cooking and when you're eating out? Is it the same or different?
Cooking, no. Normally I do a lot of western food or if I have time, it's a lot of stews like kare-kare, caldereta –stuff to let sit. But if I go out and eat, it's things that I don't really know how to make, so I eat a lot of Japanese, Korean, Chinese.
Is there something you cannot give up eating?
Well, rice would be the hardest thing for me to give up. [laughs] Yeah. I mean… it's so difficult! Like right now I'm trying to watch my weight, first thing they say is to cut the rice out. So I was like–I can't. I gave up soda, I'd give up everything else, but I can't give up the rice.
If you can cook dinner for anyone famous, dead or alive, who would that person be?
Julia Child would be my first choice. Why? What she did for TV chefs was awesome. She brought it to the table, she opened the door to a lot of guys. Before, with cooking, no one really knew what was going on. It was kind of taboo. And Julia Child, she messed up–she had chickens on the floor, but she still kept on going. As far as production value, it was pretty damn bad [laughs] but you know, she brought cooking to TV and without her, I probably won't have a job.
And if you can choose your final supper, your last meal on earth, what would you be having?
Oh, man… It would probably be–prime rib, definitely. Prime rib from House of Prime Rib.
Very specific!
Very specific. Then I would have maybe one whole garlic crab from Thanh Long, a whole big plate of garlic noodles, an… ice cold Coke from Mexico!
Mexico? Why?
Mexico still uses sugar, not high fructose corn syrup. It's totally different. So–prime rib, Coke, garlic noodles from Thanh Long, and garlic crab. Yeah, that's it! Then I die. [laughs] A happy man.
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'LUZVIMINDA 3: Pistang Pinoy' has three guest chefs recreate some of the country’s most popular dishes from Luzon (Chef Bruce Lim), Visayas (Chef Tatung Sarthou), and Mindanao (Chef Sider Tadtad). The special Filipino lunch and dinner buffet promotion runs until June 25, 2015 at F All Day Dining Restaurant in F1 Hotel. Lunch and Dinner buffet is P1,399 nett/person (add P100 for unlimited fill of Filipino drinks).
Chef Bruce Lim's Rustique Kitchen is located at Leelin Building II, 820 Arnaiz Ave. (Formerly Pasay Road), Makati City. Open Mondays-Fridays for lunch (12pm – 3pm) and dinner (6pm – 11pm), and Saturdays for dinner (6pm – 11pm); closed on Sundays. Call (02) 750 2104 for reservations. Like them on Facebook (/rustiquekitchenmanila), follow on Twitter and Instagram (@rustiquekitchen).
