Kusina Master grew up in Quiapo eating street food
Chef Boy Logro has mastered cuisines of different cultures as he himself worked in different kitchens around the globe. He has cooked for kings and queens including Queen Elizabeth herself! In fact, he is the first ever Filipino executive chef of a famous seven star hotel in Manila. With dishes nothing short of amazing coming out of his kitchen, would anyone believe that the world renowned chef enjoys snacking on street food?
“BBQ, adobo, kwek-kwek, adidas, kikiam, fishball, Pinoy versions yan ng iba’t ibang pagkain sa restaurant tulad ng chicken feet, humba, tempura. Ito ang mga pagkain ng masa. Masarap ito (street food) balik-balikan dahil ito ang mga pagkaing kinalakihan.”
The idol sa kusina wasn’t always as big as he is today. And when he was just starting his cooking career in a restaurant in Quiapo, he snacked on the popular and very practical delicacies of the streets. With great appreciation for street food, Chef Boy Logro is the face of this year’s search for the best Pinoy street food.
Best Pinoy Street Food semi-finalists meet Chef Boy Logro
Twenty eight top street food cooks chosen by top culinary experts from Knorr, Del Monte, Nestle, CDO, Bounty Fresh, and Purefoods had a very special encounter with the kusina master himself, Chef Boy Logro during the semifinals of SM Hypermarket’s Best Pinoy Street Food. Champions in creating the best lugaw, tokwa’t baboy, pansit, mami, inihaw, silog, and sisig, the semi-finalists picked up tips and techniques from Chef Rene Ruz of Purefoods San Miguel Culinary Center, Chef Paulo Sia of Unilever Food Solutions, and, of course, from Chef Boy Logro.
“Madami kaming natutunan sa mga chef lalo na kay Chef Boy. Ang maganda pa dito, hindi na namin kailangan mag enroll o bumili ng mga libro para matuto… nandito na sila para magturo sa amin,” as said by Jose Guevara II of Lola Ebeng’s Lugawan and BBQ-han.
The contestants learned new dishes they could serve in their businesses like Chef Paulo’s signature sisig salpicao, Chef Rene’s “dirty” fries, and Chef Boy’s stir-fry chicken with vegetables in crystal noodle basket as well as his unique menudo with cheese. Chef Boy also taught them other helpful tips like food carvings, knife sharpening, healthy extenders, and some kitchen shortcuts to maximize cooking time which will help them be more creative and efficient in the kitchen. But more than the recipes and lessons learned was the inspiration the street food cooks got from the Philippines’ most popular culinary “Cinderella” story.
The Chef Boy experience
Everyone was on their feet as soon as Chef Boy arrived at Oceana. The former Quiapo helper turned internationally acclaimed chef was eager to meet with the contestants as well as to help the contest in determining who moves on to the next round. Chef Boy was well-prepared with his lecture as he gave out tips on how to attract more customers through garnishing, how to take care of knives, and a few recipes to add to the menu. But more than his lessons, the street cooks learned humility, hard-work, and enthusiasm from Chef Boy who, from humble beginnings, went on to cook for no less than the king of Oman, Queen Elizabeth, and the late Princess Diana. And even now that he has the longest running culinary show in national television, Chef Boy’s feet remain to be grounded. Chef Boy made sure that the contestants get the most out of their encounter, likewise, everyone made sure they get a photo with their number one idol sa kusina.
The owner of Badboy’s kitchen, Kenneth Nadela, said, “Malaking tulong itong ginawa ng SM Hypermarket lalo na sa mga small and budding business tulad namin. Naaassociate kami sa SM pati sa mga magagaling na chef ng Unilever and San Miguel. Maganda rin para sa business namin yung may picture kami kasama si Chef Boy.”
SM Hypermarket takes it to the streets
After two cook-offs, judged by Chef Boy himself, eighteen street cooks move on to the next round where they will be tested at the comforts of their own stalls. The Best Pinoy Street Food has invited experts, foodies, bloggers, and personalities to go to the finalists’ stalls and experience, first-hand, how they are with customers. This time, it’s not only their food that will do the talking; they will be graded on service, hygiene, presentation, basically the whole customer experience. From there, the 18 cooks will be cut down to the top ten. Then, on the grand finals, only 1 gets to win it all in the country’s first epic street food battle. The winner gets his/her very own food stall at SM Hypermarket rent-free for a year as well as large packs of food and ingredients perfect for starting a business courtesy of SM Hypermarket’s Food Service Center; the perfect solution to all HORECA needs.
“Maganda itong ginawa ng SM dahil dapat talaga mabigyang pansin and street food. Unang una, maraming Pilipino ang mahilig sa street food. Mayaman (o) mahirap mahilig nito. Miski ako. Nakalakihan na yan ng masang Pilipino…. We have to inspire them kasi mapagmamalaki talaga ang Pinoy street food.” – words by Chef Boy Logro
The Best Pinoy Street Food Grand Finals will be held at SM Hypermarket Cubao on November 28 and will gather food business owners, street cooks, and food fans in a day filled with prizes, freebies, and a flurry of great Pinoy street food.
To know more about the search for The Best Pinoy Street Food 2014, visit: https://www.wheninmanila.com/best-pinoy-street-food-2014-your-best-street-food-may-have-its-own-sm-stall/
