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Hapag takes on Western Visayas cuisine its own way in new tasting menu

BY Romeo Moran

December 20, 2024
6:00 pm

You’ve never tasted Visayan food like this

Hapag is having a moment right now. The upscale Filipino restaurant in Rockwell, Makati has just premiered its newest tasting menu, which takes beloved dishes and flavors from a Filipino culinary capital in the Western Visayas region and serves them in its own unique way.

“We’ve noticed our guests are eager for something new,” says Thirdy Dolatre, one-half of the creative culinary minds behind Hapag, along with Kevin “Nav” Navoa. “We felt it was the perfect moment to embrace a more ambitious vision [with Western Visayan cuisine].”

“We felt it was the perfect moment to embrace a more ambitious vision [with Western Visayan cuisine],” says Thirdy Dolatre

Of course, this particular vision was spurred when the two connected with the region. “When we visited Iloilo, we realized our understanding of the region’s cuisine was only surface-level,” says Navoa. They forged the flavors of the new menu through the winds and rains of Tropical Storm Kristine—and ended up with a set that more than satisfactorily tickles the tongue.

The seven-course menu begins with the Hapag version of Iloilo’s famous La Paz batchoy, first concocted at the La Paz Public Market in Iloilo City. This starter sees the original flavors preserved in a new form, paired with tender and chewy puto rice cakes that go well with the savory noodle soup. This gives the diner a taste of what’s to come throughout the meal—ideas that are fully familiar to those who have had these delicacies in the Philippines but presented in out-of-the-box ways that still stay true.

"When Nav and I visited Iloilo in 2021, I told him my mission for thetrip was to try as many batchoy variations as possible. I think that batchoy-making is reminiscent of Japan’s ramen culture—each version is unique, reflecting the personal touch of its maker," says Thirdy Dolatre — “When Nav and I visited Iloilo in 2021, I told him my mission for the trip was to try as many batchoy variations as possible. I think that batchoy-making is reminiscent of Japan’s ramen culture—each version is unique, reflecting the personal touch of its maker,” says Thirdy Dolatre

Batchoy at Puto (pork bone broth with homemade noodles, fried garlic, scallions, chicharon and crispy pork face, sourdough rice cake)

From La Paz batchoy, the menu travels to Bacolod inasal skewers that showcase the chicken’s gizzard, skin, and rear end; a showstopping kinilaw of three different kinds of fish served with a side of cacao vinegar, an ode to the kinilaw masters of Sagay, Negros Occidental; ginataang tambo (bamboo shoots) with Negros blue crab and a sweet corn custard; topped by a reimagining of Negros piaya (unleavened bread) with potato miso stuffing that serves as a tortilla-esque wrap for river shrimp salad and Sturia caviar from France.

Inasal (grilled chicken, gizzard, skin and bottoms basted with an annatto glaze, served with house chili and garlic-infusedcoconut vinegar and homemade chicken super stock shoyu) — Inasal (grilled chicken, gizzard, skin and bottoms basted with an annatto glaze, served with house chili and garlic-infused coconut vinegar and homemade chicken super stock shoyu)

Kinilaw (three kinds of fish dressed in calamansi and ginger, served with pickled jalapeño, onions, and cucumbers, with Negrosmizuna that tastes like wasabi, and pickled gamet seaweed to refresh the palate. On the side, it is served with Negros criollo cacao vinegar) — Kinilaw (three kinds of fish dressed in calamansi and ginger, served with pickled jalapeño, onions, and cucumbers, with Negros mizuna that tastes like wasabi, and pickled gamet seaweed to refresh the palate. On the side, it is served with Negros criollo cacao vinegar)

Tambo (bamboo shoots, sweet corn custard, talbos ng kamote and Negros blue crab simmered in a flavorful coconut saucethat’s been flavored with aromatics and roasted crab shells) — Tambo (bamboo shoots, sweet corn custard, talbos ng kamote and Negros blue crab simmered in a flavorful coconut sauce that’s been flavored with aromatics and roasted crab shells)

“There were so many inspirations behind this menu because of our recent trip. The first thing we did was land in Bacolod, and our cook, Jairus, was generous enough to let us into their home to try his mom’s cooking. We specifically requested to try a dish called tambo. It was amazing and inspired one of the dishes we created for this menu,” says Kevin “Nav” Navoa

The five appetizer courses set the table well for the main course: a combo of the kadyos, baboy, at langka stew of pork belly with chorizo Negrense; and the flavorful sinugbang adobado, or grilled dry-aged red snapper fish that’s served with the eponymous adobado sauce—a mixture of tuba vinegar, turmeric, coconut milk, and aromatics. The two dishes are paired with a hearty serving of kalo-kalo nga may kalkag, garlic fried rice dotted with kalkag or baby shrimps.

All throughout the meal, you’ll also wash the dishes down with Hapag’s highly curated selection of wines, paired by in-house sommelier Erin Ganuelas-Recto. The opening courses are matched with champagne (her personal favorite with the inasal), while the meaty main gets the perfect red wine to go with it.

Hapag: Preparing the cold shrimp salad served as a side to the piaya — Preparing the cold shrimp salad served as a side to the piaya

Piaya (savory and crisp potato miso sourdough piaya that’s been cooked on the plancha served with a cold shrimp salad tossedin tofu mayonnaise, some herbs, citrus, and Kaviari caviar) — Piaya (savory and crisp potato miso sourdough piaya that’s been cooked on the plancha served with a cold shrimp salad tossed in tofu mayonnaise, some herbs, citrus, and Kaviari caviar)

By the time we got to the main course, we were full and satisfied but not to the point where our bellies got uncomfortable. That may be the beauty of this tasting menu, which ramped up the volume near the end without overdoing it.

The salo salo set is comprised of a KBL, adobadong sinugba, ensalada, and kalkag nga kalo kalo

A full-course meal won’t be complete without dessert, and Hapag doesn’t skimp on that, either. The final course got us three different dessert dishes: the restaurant’s take on the flaky favorite Napoleones pastry as well as butterscotch fudge brownies made of Que Rica’s famous pili nuts, and chocolate ice cream created from Bacolod-grown criollo cacao. The dessert course puts together a worthy finishing touch to a memorable meal that you’re sure to be raving about with your friends and family for a while (like I did).

Criollo cacao ice cream (rich and decadent chocolate ice cream made with rare cacao from Negros, topped with a crisp chocolate paper,finished with a dash of Asin Tultul) — Criollo cacao ice cream (rich and decadent chocolate ice cream made with rare cacao from Negros, topped with a crisp chocolate paper,
finished with a dash of Asin Tultul)

Accompanying the napoleones is a pili nut butterscotch—a warm, chewy, and caramel-like butterscotch square infused with local Querica pili nuts from Bicol

Closer look at the napoleones (puff pastry filled with toasted rice pastry cream, ripe Guimaras mangoes)

While it’s easy to say that Dolatre and Navoa’s new menu may be “disrespecting” the food’s heritage and real-life cultural roots by removing it from its original circumstances and elevating it at Hapag, there wasn’t any erasure going on when they put this menu together. The chefs did their legwork and sufficiently paid their due courtesy to the homes these recipes grew from; what they did is an exercise in pushing the possibilities of the art based on their own abilities and imaginations.

While it’s easy to say that Dolatre and Navoa’s new menu may be “disrespecting” the food’s heritage and real-life cultural roots by removing it from its original circumstances and elevating it at Hapag, there wasn’t any erasure going on when they put this menu together

The originals were and will never be erased—you can still have and enjoy them in their original forms any time you like, especially once you’ve tried the Hapag version. Think of this as them simply flexing their creative muscles in honor of the established traditions. For this diner who feels that tasting menus could be hit or miss because of the format, Hapag knocks its idea well out of the park.