The following story was published in Inquirer RED’s December 2014 issue
Margarita Forés’ culinary expedition does not exactly follow a linear pattern. It’s not the typical plot with an exile and a return, but rather, a merging of the places where she comes from and where she has been to. Hailing from a family surrounded by local Bacolod flavors and sweets from sugar mills, Forés simultaneously delighted in the local fare while nurturing a fascination for Italian cooking as a child. Now, having encountered the sweetest of both worlds, she merrily asserts that all her culinary triumphs began with an innocent love for food.
“As a child growing up, every summer was spent pretty much there in the sugar mill. I guess I was always surrounded by sweet and yummy things.” Forés had little need of formal induction into the world of cuisine. In her youngest years, much of the idle hours were spent watching her family’s cooks and majordomos turn local produce into what would be a modest culinary feast.
Hailing from a family surrounded by local Bacolod flavors and sweets from sugar mills, Margarita Forés simultaneously delighted in the local fare while nurturing a fascination for Italian cooking as a child
Beyond the home, going to groceries served as her habitual adventure. “It’s really funny because I loved going to the Unimart Supermarket,” she recounts. “I loved walking through the pasta section and looking at all the shapes that were available.” Apart from the familiar spaghettis and linguinis, there were the little alphabet-shaped pastas she was fond of eating with butter and cheese. One could almost say her latter years were spent recreating that childhood favorite.
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Her 11th year marked the start of a larger cultural exploration. At the prime of the martial law years, her family migrated to New York. “We left Manila in December, so even just the shock of winter weather and having to start riding public transportation at 11 years old were a real kind of culture shock.” The initial jolt of their migration was thankfully short-lived. What quickly followed was the delight of encountering the things that New York had to offer.
A celebrated melting pot of different cultures and cuisines, the city presented her with a host of different flavors: Italian, Jewish, Asian, Japanese, Ethiopian, Polish, Spanish, and French. “It was a real immersion to global food culture,” she attests. Eventually, however, simply being a spectator patronizing the state’s inexhaustible variety of culinary fare proved a little unfulfilling. She wanted not merely to marvel, but to participate in the fête.
“I enjoyed my work at Valentino. I loved the clothes and I loved that scene in New York, but somehow, it was the cooking that really appealed to me,” Margarita Forés shares
Her foray into the profession began with nothing too sudden or flamboyant. At that time, she was working for Valentino, surrounding herself with everything Italian—from folks to food to fashion. “I enjoyed my work at Valentino. I loved the clothes and I loved that scene in New York, but somehow, it was the cooking that really appealed to me,” she shares. Kindling a greater fondness for Italian cuisine than Italian clothes, she began cooking meals and hosting dinners just to satisfy her passion. “I would cook at my grandpa’s house upstate,” she says. “Eventually, I’d just make excuses to invite friends and have a chance to cook for them.”
When the family decided to return to Manila in 1985, the move prompted her to rethink what she would do to make a living. Though saddled with the uncertainties of youth, 1986 brought her the promise of a childhood dream fulfilled. “I asked my mom if I could maybe find a cooking course in Italy that would at least let me see for myself if that was the field that I really wanted to do. I found myself a place with a Signora in Florence, and I guess that’s pretty much what started my work with Italian food.”
“I asked my mom if I could maybe find a cooking course in Italy that would at least let me see for myself if that was the field that I really wanted to do. I found myself a place with a Signora in Florence, and I guess that’s pretty much what started my work with Italian food”
Needless to say, the experience was an education of all sorts—not just on the country’s cuisine but on the rich Italian culture. “I would do the class with Signora in the morning. There were some days when part of the class [meant] going to the market and cooking whatever we found. And then, I also [studied] at a language school in the afternoon,” she narrates.
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Upon returning to the Philippines, she put to use her culinary knowledge and earned her stripes by way of working at Alta Via 1, the family’s Italian restaurant. To prove her mettle, Forés sought to keep the flavors as authentic as she can remember, gathering locally grown herbs from gourmet farms or cultivating them herself.
With the knowledge, the experience, and the skills, Fores decided it was high time for a solo act. Cooking up authentic Italian flavors, she did small catering jobs for a decade, paving the way for the opening of what are now considered highly remarkable restaurants.
Cooking up authentic Italian flavors, she did small catering jobs for a decade, paving the way for the opening of what are now considered highly remarkable restaurants
There’s Cibo that opened in 1997, a casual dining concept known for offering authentic yet affordable Italian dishes. There’s Lusso, which assumes an elegant old-world vibe, where the waiters are in their cotton dinner jackets and black ties, pleasantly serving high tea. The new addition to the line is Grace Park, which she describes as “a farm-to-table showcase for my most recent advocacy, which is to work with our farmers in promoting ingredients that are grown sustainably.” The restaurant similarly showcases Forés’ work with Casa Artusi, a culinary center espousing the philosophy of modern Italian cooking.
READ: Margarita Forés, celebrated chef and restaurateur, dies at 65
“The global market is starting to be impressed with Philippine cuisine,” Forés remarks. “I’d like to think that maybe whatever work I’ve done has helped to let other people outside the Philippine market know and discover our ingredients and our cuisine.” While improving Italian cooking in the country and simultaneously promoting Philippine flavors across the globe, Forés has succeeded in bridging the gap between local and foreign culinary cultures.
“I’d like to think that maybe whatever work I’ve done has helped to let other people outside the Philippine market know and discover our ingredients and our cuisine”
While she has undoubtedly come full circle with her established restaurants, her culinary expedition has yet to culminate next year, when Madrid Fusión—the most important chefs’ congress in the world—will be held in Manila for the first time, also due to Forés’ doing. “I’ve been to Madrid Fusión three times in the past,” she shares. “Every time I would go, at the back of my mind, [I said] one day, there’s going to be a Filipino chef on that stage presenting something about Filipino cuisine.”
Next year, Fores will make an appearance on the stage herself, making another of her sweet visions come to life.
Creative direction by Niña Muallam
Styling by Ria Prieto
Makeup by Apple Faraon of MAC Cosmetics
Hair by Rochelle Lacuna