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Chef Tatung returns to his Quezon City ‘hood with a restaurant brimming with nostalgia

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Dahl Bennett

<p>Chef Myke “Tatung” Sarthou is finally back to running his own restaurant after a three-year hiatus. He credits providence and several serendipitous encounters for his newest venture— they seem to have brought him full circle to the very reason he was thrust into the business of food in the first place.</p><p>Called Talisay The Garden Café, the new restaurant brings Chef Tatung back to Teachers Village, Quezon City, but this time in Maginhawa Street, just a few blocks away from Matipid Street where he opened his first restaurant that carried his namesake, Chef Tatung, sometime in 2011.</p><div class="embed-wrap"><figure data-feedback="fb:likes,fb:comments"><img src="http://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/ancx/culture/2019/60/1ta.jpg"/><figcaption>Chef Tatung is only too happy to be back in Quezon City and doing the dishes he love.</figcaption></figure></div><h3>You may also like:</h3><ul>	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/ancx/food-drink/features/09/28/19/memories-of-1990s-malate-drinking-dating-and-partying-at-the-old-penguin-caf">Memories of &#x27;90s Malate: Drinking, dating, and partying at Penguin Café</a></li>	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/ancx/food-drink/restaurants/07/21/19/manilas-caf-culture-may-have-begun-with-a-simple-cup-of-chocolate-eh">Manila’s café culture may have begun with a simple cup of chocolate-eh</a></li>	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/ancx/food-drink/features/08/25/19/hanging-out-with-glenda-barretto-the-unstoppable-queen-of-via-mare-and-pinoy-fine-dining">Hanging out with Glenda Barretto, the unstoppable queen of Via Mare and Pinoy fine dining</a></li>	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/ancx/food-drink/restaurants/04/23/19/it-all-started-as-a-quaint-french-bistro-in-80s-adriatico-street">It all started as a quaint French bistro in ‘80s Adriatico Street</a></li></ul><p>Named after the chef’s hometown in Cebu, Talisay is his third restaurant—and this time he is running it with his brother Jomi who is currently on sabbatical after working and living in Germany for the last 20 years. “We have been apart for long and <em>parang</em> this is our reconnection,” he says. They scouted the Maginhawa area for a possible location and ended up renting the lot owned by the family of media veteran Che Che Lazaro whose Probe Productions house was Chef Tatung’s neighbor back in Matipid. “<em>Kilala ko sila</em> and they used to shoot in the garden of my restaurant.” Upon learning it was Chef Tatung who was interested in renting the property, Lazaro more than welcomed him as their new lessee.</p><div class="embed-wrap"><figure data-feedback="fb:likes,fb:comments"><img src="http://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/ancx/culture/2019/60/2tatung.jpg"/><figcaption>Chef Tatung is back in the Maginhawa area with Talisay, a family and big-group friendly restaurant that serves nostalgic Filipino cuisine and, soon, degustation sets.</figcaption></figure></div><p>Things took shape pretty quickly after finding the right location. The brothers were mulling over the name Talisay but initially thought it was <em>baduy</em>. “<em>Dami namin naisip,</em> then a friend, out of the blue, just said why not the name Talisay? <em>Di ba ang</em> weird, of all names <em>na maisip</em> <em>niya</em>?” he narrates. Interestingly enough, there was also a <em>talisay</em> tree right at the entrance, and that settled it for the Sarthous.</p><div> </div><h3>Serendipity now</h3><p>In the process of construction, Chef Tatung found out the carpenters he had hired were the same ones who put up his first restaurant. “<em>Sabi nung isa ‘alam mo ba</em> chef, <em>kami rin</em> <em>gumawa ng </em>restaurant <em>niyo dun sa kabila</em>?’ They were the same people, and now you!” he exclaims, referring to this writer who interviewed him back in 2011 when the interiors of Chef Tatung were still being given their last tropical touches. </p><p>Musing over the interesting coincidences, Chef Tatung feels he is where he is supposed to be. “I have been saying for the longest time that the best restaurant I had was my first because it was honest, it was really done the way things are supposed to be in an idealistic sense where <em>di mo iniisip kung anong sasabihin ng tao</em>. Now, I can say the food here is better. <em>Parang nakabalik ka at nabigyan ka ng pagkakataon</em> to apply what you’ve learned.”</p><div class="embed-wrap"><figure data-feedback="fb:likes,fb:comments"><img src="http://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/ancx/culture/2019/60/3tatung.jpg"/><figcaption>Talisay is a well-spaced restaurant that extends to a well-tended garden outside surrounded by a couple of fruit-bearing trees.</figcaption></figure></div><p>And he’s learned a lot in the past years. “I’ve been lucky in a lot of my projects <em>pero sa</em> business, I’ve been quite unlucky,” he reveals. When his Taguig restaurant closed in 2016, it thrust Chef Tatung into different endeavors. His business partnerships may have failed, but his book and media endeavors flourished. His first book, <em>Philippine Cookery: From Heart to Platter</em> published by ABS-CBN, won him “Best TV Chef Book Outside Europe” by the Gourmand World Cookbook Awards. Another book, <em>Dishkarte sa Kusina, </em>also by ABS-CBN Publishing, is now on its second printing. Chef Tatung became a household name sharing his mom-friendly recipes on Channel 2’s <em>Umagang Kay Ganda</em>, and he will soon be back as the morning TV show’s resident chef.</p><p>He also launched a successful Facebook page called <em>Simple </em>with nearly a million followers before it got hacked four months ago. Looking back, he says the only thing left to do is to keep going. “I just have to do what I’m good at and believe in it like I did before,” he says, making a reference to his first restaurant.</p><div> </div><h3>Nostalgic cuisine prepared from scratch</h3><p>In a way, Talisay brings back the original Chef Tatung concept in Matipid with nostalgia as the highlight of the menu. The dishes are reminiscent of big Sunday lunches with the clan where the food served is considered comforting yet celebratory. “It’s Filipino food but not your everyday kind like <em>pinakbet</em>. It’s more of paella, stews, <em>jamon</em>. <em>Yung parang sa pamilya,</em> one or two <em>lang ang nakakaalam magluto nun</em>,” Chef Tatung describes.</p><div class="embed-wrap"><figure data-feedback="fb:likes,fb:comments"><img src="http://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/ancx/culture/2019/60/4tatung.jpg"/><figcaption>Cilantro and peanut butter-based sauce are a welcome twist to Talisay’s Lumpiang Ubod wrapped in colorful crepes.</figcaption></figure></div><p>Many if not most of the dishes are prepared from scratch. The pineapple-glazed Jamon de Talisay is first cured for days, then slow-roasted for hours in a brick oven at the back of his restaurant. The Beef Rendang is a Maranao-style stew made from freshly grated coconut and spices and served with chutney and <em>palapa</em> which the staff prepares from scratch as well. Then there’s the rich chicken and seafood Paella cooked using fresh instead of canned tomatoes. They are laboriously reduced to a sauce texture until all the juices and sweetness mix with the rice.</p><div class="embed-wrap"><figure data-feedback="fb:likes,fb:comments"><img src="http://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/ancx/culture/2019/60/6tatung.jpg"/><figcaption>Talisay’s oysters are flown fresh from Iloilo.</figcaption></figure></div><p>“Our menu is innovative but not gimmicky. <em>Bago pero</em> still familiar. Clever <em>pero </em>sensible clever,” Chef Tatung says, attempting to describe Talisay’s offerings. He adds, “It’s refreshing to feel that you are in control again—you’re in control of the food, the quality, and all that.”</p><div class="embed-wrap"><figure data-feedback="fb:likes,fb:comments"><img src="http://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/ancx/culture/2019/60/5tatung.jpg"/><figcaption>A signature Chef Tatung appetizer is freshly-baked bread with garlic butter.</figcaption></figure></div><p>Talisay offers a wide range of dishes, from fresh oysters and Angus steaks, to classic fried chicken with salsa verde and potato wedges. They also bake their own bread and cakes for that home-cooked touch. “We can really have a cutting-edge resto if we want, <em>pero wala namang makain yung apo </em>or <em>si lola</em>. So we have something for everyone and we chose familiar dishes and our intent is to do [each dish] really well,” he says.</p><div class="embed-wrap"><figure data-feedback="fb:likes,fb:comments"><img src="http://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/ancx/culture/2019/60/7tatung.jpg"/><figcaption>Talisay’s Chicken and seafood Paella uses real tomatoes as base.</figcaption></figure></div><p>The restaurant stayed true to the bones of the bungalow it is now housed in. It is spacious, family-friendly, and at the same time, romantic. Tables are spaced well and glass windows run from corner to corner letting in the greens of the garden outside where an old <em>santol </em>tree shades the entire area.</p><div class="embed-wrap"><figure data-feedback="fb:likes,fb:comments"><img src="http://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/ancx/culture/2019/60/8tatung.jpg"/><figcaption>Beef Rendang is cooked Maranao style using toasted grated coconut and served with green mango chutney and the popular Mindanao condiment, palapa.</figcaption></figure></div><p>That old <em>santol</em> tree alone is a providential presence to Talisay because it gives the familiar feel of a provincial home—in this case, Chef Tatung’s version of his home. “Our clear vision for Talisay is that it’s not meant to be expanded or franchised. <em>Ito lang siya</em>. This is like our personal space.”</p><div> </div><div><em>Talisay The Garden Café is located at 44 Maginhawa Street, Teachers Village, Quezon City, (02) 8293-9077</em></div><div> </div><div><em>Photographs by Paulo Antonio Valenzuela</em></div>

<p>At Talisay The Garden Cafe, this chef-turned-author-TV host is back where it all started—cooking in an old converted bungalow in Teachers Village—and he couldn’t be happier.</p>

At Talisay The Garden Cafe, this chef-turned-author-TV host is back where it all started—cooking in an old converted bungalow in Teachers Village—and he couldn’t be happier.