Local Filipino pop-up experience Istorya is back with its fourth installment, this time focusing on Spanish colonial and Mexican influence on the archipelago’s cuisine. Galeón, a two-part series, launched at Saffron the Eatery on August 19 with culinary creations and stories of how islanders took ingredients and techniques from the Manila-Acapulco galleon trade and made them their own.
“We’re now sharing stories of how Filipinos had agency during the colonial rule of 333 years and raising awareness through the dishes and stories we’re able to tell from island to table,” says founder Walbert Castillo.
The first part of the Galeón series explores the early Spanish period in the Philippines, from Spaniards’ arrival in 1521 to how native Filipinos adapted to the religion, social hierarchy and other cultural influences the colonizers brought with them through the galleon trade route between the Philippines and Mexico—creating a cuisine that is “both international and Indigenous,” says co-owner Monica Blanco.
left to right) Chefs Dio Buan, Joseph Lim, Anjelique Leslie-Rivas
Photo by: Alex Cinco / Courtesy
The talents of Filipino-American chefs Dio Buan from Joël Robuchon, Joseph Lim from Raku and Anjelique Leslie-Rivas of Let’s Hibachi combine with the wisdom of culinary historians—including renowned Filipina author Felice Prudente Sta. Maria—to curate a 10-course pre-fixe meal ($110) interspersed with storytelling from Istorya’s personable and knowledgeable staff.
“In an interview with one of our historians, she said [Filipinos] welcomed [the Spaniards] because they had been traveling a long way; they were hungry and many of their group had died. The Filipinos fed them, took care of them. And one of the first things they offered was food,” Blanco says.
“We hope to share that same hospitality and spirit with others,” Castillo adds.
History is told through dishes like escabeche with lightly torched salmon soaked in a delightful vinegar solution with supremed orange and pickled Fresno pepper. Tempura soft-shell crab is served with an Alavar sauce authentic to the Zamboanga region. Hand-pulled pancit noodles are colored and flavored with squid ink and given a calamari crunch.
Confections like flan de leche punctuate the meal, an unadulterated family recipe from the founder’s mother Vi Castillo. And ensaymada with ube butter and shavings of queso de bola—the Filipino version of edam cheese—digs down to the inherent cultural connections of Filipino food, as it was developed in collaboration with local Mexican-Venezuelan bakery La Cordillera Delights MX on East Tropicana.
Part one will continue with monthly seatings through October. The second part of the Galeón series will begin in November and examine the Mexican galleon trade in the 17th to early 19th centuries, including Mestizo cooking and Creole foodways.
It’s all part of a bridge Istorya is building to understand the Philippines’ past and diasporic present. Centuries of colonial rule and the hardship of Filipinos leaving their homeland tend to create a disconnect from culture. Being second-generation, Castillo and Blanco felt that disconnect growing up. But by unearthing the history of the country’s food, connection to culture can be found, they say.
“Heritage isn’t always hidden,” Castillo says. “It’s been there beneath us this whole entire time.And all you need is that nudge to reclaim that narrative, to dig that out.”
ISTORYA: GALEÓN Saffron the Eatery, 3545 S. Decatur Blvd., istoryalv.com. Seatings at 5 & 8 p.m. on select dates, reservations required.
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Dining and Cooking