Cheyenne Suarez

Balcabua Pares earns top honors at regional food festival

Article (news)

Jeeves De Veyra

<div><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1787308903547balabacua pares and green mango drink.jpg" style="width:960px" class="fr-fic fr-dib" width="960" alt="Balbacua Pares by Mercure Mactan executive chef Pao Aviso. Jeeves De Veyra"/>Balbacua Pares by Mercure Mactan executive chef Pao Aviso. Jeeves De VeyraEver tried Balbacua Pares?</div>This Filipino mashup was one of the dishes served at the Megaworld Hotels and Resorts&#x27; (MHR) Timpla Dinner that capped the group&#x27;s 2026 F&amp;B Conference jointly hosted by the Boracay Newcoast hotels.This was like a food and wine festival grand tasting event. Each of the 16 MHR hotels were given booths inside the Boracay Newcoast Convention Center, and their respective chefs and kitchen teams had to make a concept from scratch around a featured dish and drink.The Balbacua Pares by Mercure Mactan and executive chef Pao Aviso brought top honors as the Best Dish as well as the gold award for Best Overall Showcase Experience.Aviso recounted that the dish was mostly a happy accident — he prepared a big batch of balbacua for an event that did not push through. On the same day, he had the Cebu governor drop by, looking for merienda, and he whipped up the dish on the spot. This was also served to 48th ASEAN summit delegates at the Mactan Expo Center Convention last year and got rave reviews.Compared to the original version, this time Aviso held back on the balbacua&#x27;s distinctive annatto flavors while retaining the broth&#x27;s collagen-rich texture. He served it as a noodle soup dish instead of pairing it with rice as done with traditional pares, and added chunks of tender ribeye. His team&#x27;s Green Mango Mocktail on the side was a thoughtful drink pairing, with the slightly sour notes complementing the rich meaty flavors of the dish.<div><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1787309887522paolo aviso and his diosehs and drink.jpg" style="width:960px" class="fr-fic fr-dib" width="960" alt="Chef Pao Aviso with the Balbacua Pares and Green Mango Mocktail. Jeeves De VeyraChef Pao Aviso with the Balbacua Pares and Green Mango Mocktail. Jeeves De Veyra"/>Chef Pao Aviso with the Balbacua Pares and Green Mango Mocktail. Jeeves De Veyra</div>Chef Chubby Timban of Kingsford Hotel took silver with his Baka Tula-sog or slow braised beef with yam, pineapples, and a thick deep spicy bagoong tablea sauce, paired with a coconut cocktail using Andy Player whisky as a base. The whisky under Emperador Distillers, a sister company of MHR, showed off the unique collaborations possible under the Alliance Global umbrella.Meanwhile, Boracay Newcoast&#x27;s Chancellor Hotel Chef Jhon Ryan German won bronze with his spread of grilled skewered lapu-lapu with a shelf full of atsara and local pickles, which showcased the island&#x27;s seafood.Beyond the top winners were emerging talents: a personal pick is the Batwan Laksa with Sticky Mango Rice mocktail by Belmont Manila&#x27;s team led by F&amp;B manager Jacq Durana. It was still a laksa, but it used the Ilonggo staple batwan as a fruitier souring agent.Another standout was the collection of bonbons by Savoy Mactan&#x27;s pastry chef and chocolatier, Alex Surig Jr. The bonbons had a variety of fillings such as the Cebuano peanut delicacies masareal, masi, and kanusilba.<div><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1787310133976batwan laksa and sticky mango rice mocktail.jpg" style="width:960px" class="fr-fic fr-dib" width="960" alt="Batwan Laksa and Sticky Mango Rice Mocktail. Jeeves De Veyra"/>Batwan Laksa and Sticky Mango Rice Mocktail. Jeeves De Veyra</div>What used to just be a culinary conference has grown into a gathering that goes well beyond the kitchen. Topics such as personal branding, storytelling, and even data analysis for forecasting were discussed to give the chefs and their teams a more holistic view of their respective hotels&#x27; F&amp;B business. They even got personnel like hygienists, front-of-house staff, and hotel general managers to attend the conference. One of the speakers of note was Chef Vojtech Végh, whose restaurant in Indonesia has taken much attention as having no trash receptacles in the kitchen, with everything being upcycled to edible entrees.The MHR group has already been looking into these zero-waste practices, as seen in Chef Ariel Castañeda&#x27;s &quot;Circular Menu&quot; at Mariott Courtyard in Iloilo. His croquette of kusahos, an Ilonggo version of tapa, rests on sweet chips made with watermelon rind and fruit peels. These are already served in the hotel as snacks and pass-arounds.<div><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1787310340900MARIOTT COURTYARD - Circular Cuisine.jpg" style="width:960px" class="fr-fic fr-dib" width="960" alt="Circular cuisine at Marriott Courtyard. Jeeves De Veyra"/>Circular cuisine at Marriott Courtyard. Jeeves De Veyra</div>All in all, it was a gathering of MHR&#x27;s best and brightest, each serving a taste of what the group will be cooking up in their own kitchens. With the breadth and depth of learning and innovation shared at Timpla, there will be a lot to look forward to this year until MHR&#x27;s next F&amp;B conference, which will be hosted by the Grand Westside Hotel in 2027.

Ever tried Balbacua Pares? This Filipino mashup was one of the dishes served at the Megaworld Hotels and Resorts' Timpla Dinner that capped the group's 2026 F&amp;B Conference jointly hosted by the Boracay Newcoast hotels.

Ever tried Balbacua Pares? This Filipino mashup was one of the dishes served at the Megaworld Hotels and Resorts' Timpla Dinner that capped the group's 2026 F&B Conference jointly hosted by the Boracay Newcoast hotels.

Balbacua Pares earns top honors at regional food festival

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Balbacua Pares earns top honors at regional food festival

Jeeves De Veyra

Published August 21, 2026 07:20 PM PHT

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Updated August 22, 2026 01:55 AM PHT

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