Reinventing the Filipino Palate With Chef Tatung
For the
longest time, I’ve always approached Filipino cuisine with caution. It
was never really in my family’s culture to dine at restaurants that
specialize in Filipino food because we already had it so good at home
thanks to our home cook’s excellent skills. However, I felt a little
more excited about this little adventure upon seeing some photos of Chef
Tatung’s work because everything looked so delicious and different from
what I was used to at home.
Getting to the restaurant is already an adventure in itself. I went further South than I usually do and even made a few wrong turns along the way. As soon as you see Acacia Estates, count six humps and turn right on the last one—that’s where Chef Tatung is.
“It was never purely Filipino cuisine before,” Sarthou shares. “I only used to have it as a set menu during Fridays, but people kept asking for it on other days, so I ended up going in that direction.”
Our vegetable dish was the delicious Pokipoki Gratin (P340).
This dish is a more city-savvy version of the local Ilocos
dish—eggplant mixed with Vigan longganisa, egg, tomatoes and slathered
with carabao mozzarella. It’s very friendly for diners who aren’t really
into vegetables because you’ll feel like you’re eating a longganisa
torte more than an eggplant one. I love how the various ingredients
blended so well together to create a flavor that would remind some
people of home.
We were then served the Palabok Negra (P330), a
modern take on the traditional palabok dish. Rice noodles are tossed in
squid ink sauce and topped with fish flakes, tofu, squid rings and
shrimp and garnished with spring onions and quail eggs. I’ve never been a
big fan of palabok (it has always tasted rather odd to me), but I
thought this one alright—probably because it is seafood-based and quite
the conversation piece. Chef Tatung referred to this as the “date dish”;
I call it “the test of true friendship”. If you order this dish, be
careful when you decide to smile!
In my opinion, however, nothing was more mouth-watering than the spectacular Lengua Adobo (P410).
It is ox tongue cooked in the Filipino way with vinegar, soy sauce and
roasted garlic. I cannot get over how perfect this dish is—the beef is
perfectly soft and flavourful without being too overwhelming. Chef
Tatung offers three other adobo dishes, which can be enjoyed
platter-style alongside the delicious lengua for P1,200.
What makes Chef Tatung stand out from other Filipino restaurants is
that they are also pushing their desserts as part of their must-eat food
items. As soon as you taste their Pichi-Pichi with Quezo de Bola (P100),
you’ll want to kiss other variants goodbye because this pichi-pichi has
a unique texture that is just so appealing to one’s sense of taste.
You’ll really have to drop by to try it because I cannot even begin to
explain why I find it so fantastic. Their Warm Tsoknut Chocolate Cake (P100)
is equally delightful. Fans of chocolate cake will easily fall in love
with this dish because it is soft, moist and not that sweet. Finally, we
had the Banana-Buko Sundae, Chef Tatung’s legitimate Filipino sundae served with coconut milk ice cream, bananas, leche flan and otap flakes.
Getting to the restaurant is already an adventure in itself. I went further South than I usually do and even made a few wrong turns along the way. As soon as you see Acacia Estates, count six humps and turn right on the last one—that’s where Chef Tatung is.
Save this: driving directions and location map
Though he has always been interested in the culinary arts, Myke “Tatung” Sarthou did
not really foresee becoming a chef by occupation. However, family
members and close friends who enjoyed the delicious meals he would
prepare for them urged him to hold private dinners in his home.
Eventually, he accepted an invitation to put up a larger-scale
restaurant in the heart of Taguig City.“It was never purely Filipino cuisine before,” Sarthou shares. “I only used to have it as a set menu during Fridays, but people kept asking for it on other days, so I ended up going in that direction.”
Inside Chef Tatung
There’s never a dull moment in Chef Tatung’s life. There are times
when he handles a full house because people do come by the hundreds. “I
used to run out of space in my old place,” he laughs. “I’d have to set
up tables in the parking areas, which meant that the customers would end
up parking their vehicles in my neighbors’ spaces. I’m glad that I had
the opportunity to relocate here. It’s a similar set-up, so the story
isn’t lost. Plus, there’s a wow factor!”
Interior details
Like with most restaurants, we started with an appetizer. Chef Tatung’s Chicken Sisig Wraps (P330)
is the best-selling dish in this category. It’s a healthier alternative
to your typical sisig dish as it consists of minced grilled chicken,
onions and chili served wrapped in lettuce leaves to be topped with a
special mango sauce. Despite its simplistic appearance, Sarthou told us
that quite a bit of preparation goes into making this dish. It is well
worth the money and the labor, though; the chicken is absolutely divine
and grilled to perfection—the mango sauce just adds to the magic.
Chicken Sisig Wraps
Pokipoki Gratin
Palabok Negra
We had the Honey Glazed Slow-Roasted Lechon (P520), a
lechon dish that consists of tender pork belly slices that are
slow-roasted for six hours before being served with garlic and
lemongrass. I was relieved by this dish because I finally discovered a
form of lechon that I could actually picture myself eating—depressing
videos from grade school have dissuaded me from eating lechon in its
typical whole pig appearance. Also, honey goes really well with pork
dishes, so this is something that I can see many people enjoying.
Honey Glazed Slow-Roasted Lechon
Lengua Adobo
Pichi-Pichi with Quezo de Bola
Warm Tsoknut Chocolate Cake
Banana-Buko Sundae
Chef Tatung has opened so many doors for Filipino cuisine—just
because these are flavors that we are used to doesn’t mean we should not
experiment with different ingredients and textures. Let Chef Tatung
take your tastebuds on a little adventure. You’ll find that his
restaurant is a great place to be.
Wow! I saw Chef Tatung in a TV show, I really don't know that he has a restaurant like this. Thanks for sharing! does Chef Tatung's Restaurant offer a catering services in Taguig?
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