For someone who brought home a Sesame Street cookbook as a young boy so he could bake cookies and who associates Sunday lunch with his mom’s braised oxtail, chef Benjo Tuason has certainly a lot of fond memories about food.
Tuason is the man behind URBN Bar & Kitchen’s flavorful dishes. “My food philosophy is to cook with love,” he says. “I try to incorporate family recipes.”
For instance, URBN’s lasagna is named after his aunt who taught him how to make the dish.
Not only is URBN today’s “it” bar—the young fashionable set goes there, especially during LOOK Magazine’s Wednesday night—it’s also a cozy dinner spot. That is, before the DJ starts spinning his tunes.
“The club will take care of itself so we want to move forward,” Tuason says. “You can just lounge around for dinner and have your comfort food.”
URBN’s sleek brown leather sofas, wooden tables, and its rugged appeal provide the perfect contrast to its refined yet familiar dishes.
But just like URBN’s slightly unpolished charm, dishes are presented simply, without unnecessary garnishes or add-ons most diners would prefer to toss aside.
“We try to do things without the fuss and pretensions,” he says.
One of URBN’s signature dishes is the manchego soufflé served in a simple stark white platter. The rich and nutty taste of manchego cheese is combined with the smooth and airy quality of a soufflé, which simply melts in one’s mouth.
Topping off the fluffy creation is a crispy jamón serrano, making the dish a savory treat.
“I enjoy making the soufflé because you never know if it’s going to rise or not,” he jokes. “You always need to say a little prayer.”
As he divides his time between the three kitchens he runs, URBN, Relik and Shawarma Guys, and also works on Sundays, Tuason “enjoys the stress, the pressure and the challenge,” partly due to his experience in Australia.
“I went to Australia to study more and worked in pretty much all the capitals and tried everything, from a fast-food place to a three-hat restaurant like the Botanical,” he recalls.
He adds, “I also like the lamb dish because it’s very Aussie and it speaks of my time in Australia.”
The herb-crusted rack of lamb is served with roasted pumpkin and garlic yogurt sauce. The crust’s crunchy texture and blended flavors of thyme, parsley, horseradish and butter provide a refreshing contrast to the lamb’s juicy filling taste.
Food from travels
“We have modern comfort food so it’s basically what my partners and I like eating and what I’ve experienced during my travels,” Tuason says.
Before URBN opened, he was in Paris and found himself unsatisfied with the duck confit he ate so he decided to make his “own little version, which has the duck taste with the crispy pata feel.”
“Every dish here has a story,” he says. “In every dish that I do, I try to relate what I felt to our customers.”
He adds, “Like when you try my mom’s oxtail dish, I hope you feel that it’s Sunday lunch.”
No matter how big or small his experiences, Tuason has a knack for translating them into his cooking.
For his best-selling cheesecake dessert, he found an unlikely inspiration in P10 egg pies found in a nearby local bakery. The creamy salted caramel cheesecake combined with the consistency of an egg pie is definitely a sweet finale.
“You have to let the produce do its magic and, basically, you just have to love it because it requires a lot of patience, discipline, passion and love,” he quips. “If you can study abroad, go for it because the experience is irreplaceable but, at the end of the day, just eat and experiment.”
Though he and his partners continue to “brainstorm crazy ideas” and plan to make their establishments known for their quality dining experience, Tuason also hopes to open one day a quaint 40-seater restaurant his mom could run.
If that doesn’t make you swoon, his dishes will.
URBN Bar & Kitchen is at 3/F, Fort Pointe II Bldg., 28th St., BGC (formerly Pier One), Fort Bonifacio, Taguig