International chefs and food enthusiasts often praise Filipino food for its unique flavors, characterized by an explosion of sweet, salty, and sour notes. Despite its distinctiveness, Filipino cuisine remains underrepresented in the global market due to limited exposure.
However, Filipino chefs are working to change this narrative, using their platforms to showcase the country’s culinary heritage. Among these advocates are Chef Rolando "Chef Lau" Laudico and his wife, pastry chef and award-winning chocolatier Chef Jac Laudico.
Chef Lau, a prominent celebrity chef in the Philippines, is celebrated for his commitment to quality and passion for Filipino cuisine. A graduate of the Culinary Institute of America in New York, he has honed his craft in top kitchens around the world, including New York, France, Sydney, and Manila, since 1996.
Together with Chef Jac, the couple operates Guevarra’s by Chef Laudico and Chef Laudico OK Café, in addition to their longstanding catering business. Both are ardent supporters of Filipino cuisine on the global stage, with recent initiatives promoting Filipino flavors in Milan, Brussels, and Melbourne.
In a partnership with Nutribullet, the couple recently led the “Taste of the Philippines” event, featuring Melbourne, Australia-based Filipino chef Fhred Batalona. The event showcased how Filipino dishes can incorporate creative twists while staying true to their roots.
Chef Fhred, inspired by his mother, Alma, began his culinary journey at 15, studying Culinary Arts at Southville International School in the Philippines. He later moved to Melbourne to pursue Culinary Management at William Angliss Institute and has worked at acclaimed establishments like Sake and The Langham. His pop-up restaurant and catering venture, Barangay, reflects his mission to bring Filipino flavors to Melbourne.
During the event, the three chefs expressed their shared dream of elevating Filipino cuisine globally. The Laudico couple highlighted their efforts to promote Filipino dishes through international travel.
“We’ve been doing this for 20 years. The ones that have been helping us are from the government—the Department of Tourism, National Commission for Culture and the Arts, and Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA),” Chef Jac told Manila Bulletin Lifestyle. “Last year we were in Europe for 45 days. We cooked in European countries, we visited different embassies, they featured us, and we cooked for them.”
Despite their dedication, the couple emphasized the need for more support from both private institutions and the government. They urged the government to organize more cultural and heritage events abroad to showcase Filipino cuisine.
“We need more events like that. Also, the government should give more tax breaks to the restaurant business, especially for Filipino restaurants,” Chef Lau said. “Another thing is the government should focus more on developing our agricultural sector. We have a lot of local high-quality produce, but we lack support for our farmers. They keep on importing. Wala tayong export (we don’t have any exports).”
Chef Jac shared the challenges of sourcing local produce internationally, recounting instances where they had to bring ingredients like calamansi during their travels, leading to customs and immigration issues.
“Like calamansi, that’s something very different, a unique ingredient not widely available abroad. Very limited. Naranasan na naming ma-stuck sa customs, sa immigration na kailangan kaming kunin ng DFA (We have experienced being stuck at customs and immigration to the point where the DFA had to step in and get us),” she said. “But we learned from that. What we do now is we juice it and freeze it. That’s what we bring during our travels.”
Chef Lau noted the importance of promoting Filipino food in multicultural areas where people are more open to trying new cuisines.
“We like to promote Filipino cuisine in places na medyo multicultural like Melbourne. Filipino cuisine in itself is delicious. We don't need to do much about it kasi masarap talaga siya (We like to promote Filipino cuisine in places that are quite multicultural, like Melbourne. Filipino cuisine itself is already delicious. We don’t need to do much to it because it’s really tasty as it is),” he said. “We just need to make people aware that Filipino food exists and it’s delicious. When people taste it, they’ll say wow. We also need more chefs like Chef Fred who actually advocate for Filipino cuisine.”
Apart from local ingredients, the chefs also bring along their favorite Nutribullet products during culinary trips, showcasing how essential tools play a role in promoting Filipino cuisine abroad.