An indispensable part of cultural identity, food connects families, friends, and even entire nations and generations. “What we consume, how we acquire it, who prepares it, who’s at the table, and who eats first is a form of communication,” wrote Mumbai professor Vatika Sibal. As we establish a better sense of self and nationality, we unlock progress and fulfillment as individuals, as a community, and as a country.

All things considered, Chef Rafael Jardeleza Jr., Tibong for short, has been relentless in expressing himself and his advocacy to bring Ilonggo and Western Visayas heritage cuisine to the fore through words, actions, and food.
After all these years, the culinary ambassador has not wavered in his burning desire to promote his region, teaming up with the Manila Hotel to mount “Flavors of Western Visayas” this month. The partnership allows Chef Tibong to impart to Manila diners the vibrant dishes of Region VI, replete with its history, geography, and influences.

The Ilonggo chef’s cooking, rooted in his passion for preserving Western Visayas’ culinary heritage, particularly Iloilo’s, and drawing inspiration from his family traditions, is available for lunch and dinner until the end of August at Café Ilang-Ilang.

Around 120 dishes are on offer on a weekly cycle, including Guimaras mango with ginamos sa tulapo, KBL (Kadios, Baboy, Langka), laswa, pancit molo, pancit efuven, hamon Serrano, Spanish cold cuts, beef morcon, chicken binakol, bitchuelas, sopa de ajo, fabada, kinilaw na tanguigue, paella negra with chiperones, canonigo, and La Paz batchoy. These plates, testaments to why Iloilo, as well as the rest of the closely-knit region, is dubbed the “Food Haven of the Philippines,” make use of fresh ingredients sourced from various parts of Region VI.

“We [Western Visayans] are blessed with the bounty of the sea, farmlands, and mountains,” says Chef Tibong in an interview with Manila Bulletin Lifestyle’s John Legaspi. “We are blessed with almost everything. We have one of the best coffees in Janiuay, tanigue, blue marlin, and tuna in Antique, crabs and bangus in Roxas City, and lobsters in Dumangas.”

The menu was officially launched on Aug. 4. The event was graced by the presence of culinary and travel stalwarts, including former Department of Tourism chief Berna Romulo Puyat, Philippine Airlines president Stanley Ng, Manila Bulletin president and director Emil Yap III, chefs Sandy Daza, Angelo Comsti, Kalel Chan, and Jeremy Favia, as well as food authors Felice Prudente Sta. Maria, Micky Fenix, Pepper Teehankee, Chinkee Koppe, and AA Patawaran, to name a few. 

Media practitioners and influencers were also in attendance.
Some of the notable items from the menu served at the launch were the puso sa buri tuba, lamb chops in tamarind sauce, duck a la manga, callos, Fort San Pedro chicken barbecue, potato praline, pineapple glazed ham, Guimaras mango lobster salad, grilled pulpo with tomatillo, green mango with ginamos, Spanish potato omelette, mango buttercream cake, iba tart, and dulce de gatas.
The star dishes, however, were the beer tenderized lechon, diwal (angel wing clams) flown in from Capiz, Roxas City, a hearty and umami-rich lengua estofado (ox tongue stew), Antique’s binabak (shrimp in coconut milk) wrapped in banana leaf, a guava cake similar to that of the famous Iloilo bakeshop Maridel’s, and the Madrid Fusion 2016 dessert presentation of Western Visayas, La Paz batchoy ice cream.
 

“Manila Hotel is a champion of the diverse food culture of the Philippines. Its advocacy aligns with mine, so it made sense that we collaborate,” explains Chef Tibong.
 

Earlier this month, some members of the Philippine Women’s National Football Team were able to try the menu during their stay at the heritage hotel.
Chef Tibong’s initiatives like the “Tabuan Western Visayas Ilonggo Heritage Cuisine Cooking Competition,” “Sabores de Visayas,” and “Ilonggo Street Food Hawkers Festival” have been instrumental in making traditional Visayan specialties known throughout the Philippines. He also created a cookbook on Ilonggo heritage cuisine titled Flavors of Iloilo. His endeavors have not gone unnoticed as he was recently conferred with the Manila Bulletin Uplift Award for going beyond his culinary career as a restaurateur and chef in Iloilo. 
“Flavors of Western Visayas” runs until the end of August. +632 8527 0011 | +632 5301 5500 | [email protected].