Back from his break, Kevin Villarica catches a second wind at Le Feu Steak House with a well done menu of steaks, sides, and memorable sets

Four years after his self-imposed break, Kevin Villarica longed for cooking like he’s never longed for it before.

As someone who’s built a career in food, this was bound to happen. Even with his personal struggles and the sometimes unbearable consequences that come with being in the kitchen, Villarica has rediscovered the reason that led him to food in the first place.

“I was happy cooking again.” 

When at times he felt it was impossible to put himself again at the helm of a restaurant, Villarica’s reawakening is a reminder that a career is never linear.

During his hiatus, Villarica remained quietly in the shadows, working behind the scenes as consultant for Ginza Gyu and co-founder of Hapag where, alongside Kevin Navoa and Thirdy Dolatre, he devoted his energy into revolutionizing Filipino cuisine in their early days in Katipunan. 

Villarica also experienced a major shift in his life, focusing instead on being a loving husband and a doting father. So seeing Villarica again after several years, you sense that something has changed in him—a new way of being that is difficult to put into words. 

When at times he felt it was impossible to put himself again at the helm of a restaurant, Kevin Villarica’s reawakening is a reminder that a career is never linear

He may have walked away from the restaurant industry for a brief period but now he’s back running towards it at his own pace. 

“I miss cooking for people and making recipes again, and seeing my partners and families love the food,” he says gently when asked about the best moment about the process of opening Le Feu Steak House. “That’s how I started. That’s why I love to cook. I want people to be happy.”

After all these years, his fluency in food, his language of cooking never wavered. In his new world at the romantically European-inspired Le Feu Steak House in Hotel Celeste, Villarica’s skills remain intact. 

The location is a poetic starting point for Villarica’s resurgence, too. Slightly away from the chaotic pressure an epicenter location brings, the nondescript setting suits Villarica’s desire to evade the sometimes overwhelming intensity of a high-traffic location. 

Here, he intends to enjoy the journey, embrace cooking as a ritual, and wax nostalgic about memories that made him fall in love with food.

Taming the flame

Le Feu Steak House is Villarica’s blank canvas, a documentation of his professional journey in the industry as well as the personal dynamic he has since embraced. After a talk with the hotel owners, who not only needed to revamp the previous concept but also happen to be a family friend, Villarica broke free from his fine dining past and instead registered a more casual approach imbued with displays of elegance and refinement.

Even if a steakhouse wasn’t his original idea for the space. 

Nevertheless, Villarica’s sheer joy at being back in the kitchen shows. He dedicated himself to eating at “almost all the steakhouses in Manila” and drew from his extensive experience to fashion a hot property that burns bright since it first opened in November 2024.

Here, Kevin Villarica intends to enjoy the journey, embrace cooking as a ritual, and wax nostalgic about memories that made him fall in love with food

But with Manila littered with steakhouses, he knew he had to differentiate himself. “What I’ve noticed is halos lahat ng other dishes [of the other steakhouses], you won’t come back for it. You’re just going to go there for the steak. You’re not going to go back for the pasta or the fish. ’Yun ’yung gusto kong gawin,” he says. “You can come here again and you don’t have to order steak. Kasi ang hirap na there has to be an occasion for you to go to a steakhouse.”

Playing with fire at Le Feu Steak House

Poring over the menu, there’s a whole gamut of flexibility at play here. There are moments of classic dishes done askew but there are also flashes of brilliance that uphold Villarica’s march into more distilled fast casual territory.

A roasted pepper prawn bisque conveys a rich and comforting start but pair it with the air-dried wagyu bresaola Caesar salad and everything about where Villarica stands now comes into focus. The wagyu bresaola produces enough saltiness and gives it a slightly sweet and savory taste that doesn’t hit you in the face. “It’s simple but elevated,” he says about the salad that portrays the spirit of Le Feu Steak House.

Elsewhere, on the constantly changing seven-course menu, Villarica presents a light and uncomplicated pesto pasta made in honor of beloved chef Margarita Forés and his all-time favorite Cibo dish. 

Elsewhere, on the constantly changing seven-course menu, Villarica presents a light and uncomplicated pesto pasta made in honor of beloved chef Margarita Forés and his all-time favorite Cibo dish

“The way she does it is super simple. It’s like aglio olio and then there are chunks of basil paste, so you have to mix it,” he explains. “I was in the process of making the new set menu at the time when I found out [about her passing], so naisip ko gawa ako ng isang dish in honor of her. So I asked [her son] Amado [Forés] and he said yes.”

The limited-time pasta course from his P2,500 special set menu is reliably delicious and thrives on simplicity and a respect for the purity of ingredients that would make Margarita proud.

That said, the steaks—sourced from Rangers Valley, Australia—remain the stars in Villarica’s European-inspired universe. Particularly the Brazilian cuisine favorite, picanha.

A flavorful cut from the rump and enclosed with a layer of fat called the fat cap, Villarica’s picanha is packed with a robust and umami flavor as well as a buttery mouthfeel from the fat while you cut through it with your Nacionale Bladeworks knife. Honestly, it doesn’t require much but if you do want to be on the playful side, stick with the cheesy pommes aligot and the lovely Japanese sweet potato puree—both of which temper the richness of the picanha.

The desserts meanwhile are a welcome surprise to bookend any meal. The dark chocolate cake is a prominent recreation of a Snickers bar but it’s on the poached apple tart—cooked in hot red wine, detailed with creme Chantilly and a lemon cookie, and meticulously displayed on a ceramic cone—that showcases another peak. 

It’s a stylish autumnal dessert that could come across festive or sappy but it’s a fitting metaphor that embodies Villarica’s comeback: Avoiding the pitfalls of a stressful kitchen doesn’t have to come at the expense of your well-being. 

Villarica is just like his beautiful poached apple tart—an easygoing, elegant feat that holds its own terms so dearly.