the past 2 years, Asia’s 50 Best Restaurants awards ceremony was held in Bangkok, Thailand– specifically at the W Hotel. So it only made sense for me to check into the property during this period to a) avoid the crazy Bangkok traffic (seriously, I did […]

I wanted to cry when I first saw the Michelin video of Chef Chan Hong Men— in complete disbelief that his humble hawker stall, Liao Fan Hong Kong Soya Sauce Chicken Rice & Noodle— had received a Michelin star. “I’ve never heard of Michelin inspectors visiting a […]

Hello, hello! Yes, our first Cross Cultures event for 2017 is happening this March 21 and 22. For this collaboration, we are bringing together chefs Andrew Walsh of Cure in Singapore and Nicco Santos of Hey Handsome in the Philippines for a two-night event, held […]

“You were young and your heart was an open book… You used to say let live and let live…” Guns n’ Roses’ version of Sir Paul McCartney’s “Live and Let Die” played in the background as Gaggan was crowned– for the third year in a […]

What are the new restaurants in Manila? That’s a question I’m often asked. Loads, I’ll tell you. But what’s new *and GOOD* in Manila? Chef Josh Boutwood’s Test Kitchen on Kamagong Street in San Antonio Village, Makati. The 30-year-old British-Filipino chef (who studied culinary at Escuela de […]

My previous post on my food crawl through Poblacion, Makati was so well-received that I decided to do a part 2. Well, also because I am well aware that Poblacion has become the “Malate” of our times– during its heyday obviously. This has officially become the place […]

The first (and last) time I was in Barcelona was in 2005. I was taking an international business course at ESSCA in Angers, France, and on weekends, I would take the train or a budget airline and travel around the continent. Coincidentally, my brother Chris […]

As a World’s 50 Best Restaurants Official Tastemaker, I recently took over their Instagram account when I was in Madrid to share some of the my highlights from the 15th Madrid Fusion held at the Spanish capital last January 23 to 25, 2017. I flew to Madrid (via […]

Hola from Barcelona! It’s been 11 years since I was last here and of course my top mission was to visit 2017’s most anticipated restaurant opening— Albert Adria’s ENIGMA— which did just that just last January 3. When I met Albert in Istanbul last December  at Gastromasa, […]

It’s quite alarming how frequently Turkey has been on “breaking news” as of recent. It’s a country I hold very dear to my heart having spent four days just last month for Gastromasa, the country’s largest gastronomy event in Turkey organized by Gökmen Sözen, a […]