Don Alba brings authentic Spanish food to Quezon City

Anastacio de Alba, better known as the Don Alba or Señor Alba of the famous Alba Restaurante Español, likes to speak in parables.

He relates: Once, there was an haciendero and his son. The haciendero asked his son about their hacienda and the son answered that everything was beautiful. He inspected the hacienda everyday at six in the morning and everything looked beautiful. And how about his girlfriend, the haciendero asked. The son replied that he saw his girlfriend everyday at eight in the evening, and she too always looked beautiful. So, the haciendero suggested that his son change his routine and, instead, inspect his hacienda at eight in the evening and see his girlfriend at six in the morning. Following his father’s advice, the son discovered that the hacienda did not look as beautiful at night and neither did his girlfriend, very early in the morning.

"One of the most important lessons my father taught me is dedication. If I want our restaurant to succeed, I should always be thinking about the business. I should never neglect it, not even for a day," says Don Alba’s son, Miguel who, together with his wife Cachelle, manages the newly-opened Alba branch along the busy restaurant row at Tomas Morato in Quezon City. Don Alba, well-known as the dean of Spanish cuisine, remains a culinary consultant and adviser.

"When I first arrived in the Philippines in 1952," Don Alba relates, "Spanish food was only home food – paella alanganin, cocido alanganin. Nothing was done professionally. I was the first chef to arrive in the country after Liberation to teach Spanish cooking and to inaugurate Casino Español, which at that time was the only social place in Manila besides the Manila Hotel."

At the end of his contract, he went back home to his native Spain, only to return after six months, to this country that he had learned to love. It was then that he opened his own Cocina Español at Isaac Peral St., now United Nations Ave. in Manila. This modest eatery, which had only five tables, was to evolve through the years into the elegant Alba Restaurante Español that we know today, located in Bel-Air, Makati, and now also in Tomas Morato in Quezon City.

"We have been serving the people of this beautiful country for the past 50 years, from the time of President Quirino," Don Alba remarks, "and that means a lot to us."

At Alba, they continue to enjoy authentic Spanish dishes, prepared with the same meticulous care, from the original recipes of Don Alba, which include his most popular Paella Valenciana, Lengua Sevillana, and Callos a la Madrileña. Not many people know that the Solomillo, or Steak a la Pobre, which is now found in many restaurants, and yet is unknown outside the Philippines, was actually one of the many dishes Don Alba invented.

"Many have tried to copy my recipes," Don Alba observes, "but it can never be the same. They cannot give it the same feeling, the same love and attention."

Through the years, Don Alba successfully opened and operated several restaurants, including the Alba Restaurant and Supper Club along the old Dewey, now Roxas, Blvd., the Taberna Gitana in Quezon City, La Parilla and Patio Flamenco on Roxas Blvd., Patio Alba in Makati, Jardin de Alba in Greenhills, as well as two executive canteens, The Bull and Bear Club at the former Makati Stock Exchange and the DBP canteen. And how can anyone forget La Mancha in Magallanes, with its unique façade that is dominated by a three-storey tower and a huge windmill, an image right out of Miguel de Cervantes’ Don Quixote?

"Every time I build a restaurant, I have an inspiration. It could be my wife, the mother of my children," Don Alba reveals.

"I’m always inspired by a woman, except this time, I was inspired by my son Miguel," he says, referring to the new branch at Tomas Morato.

"My father used to take me along to his restaurants when I was still very young," Miguel relates, "and I think that even then, I was already getting my training from him."

Eventually, Miguel worked for his father, but in the back room, taking care of the accounting requirements of the business. However, it did not take long for him to realize that "the real action in the restaurant business is in the kitchen," he relates.

So in 1997, he enrolled at the Center for Culinary Arts, Manila (CCA), where he got his formal education in the food business.

"At CCA, I learned the techniques, the methods. But the soul, the heart, the artistry, I learned from Papa," Miguel remarks. "Papa will not leave me with houses or cars or money, but it’s more than that. He is leaving me with something to take care of, which is this business, the restaurant, how to be of service to the people, and his recipes, which he is handing down to me."

Alba at Tomas Morato can easily seat 100. A captivating mural by an Angono artist of the town of Avila, Don Alba’s beloved hometown, can be found in the function room, which seats 40.

Don Alba is so confident about his son’s ability to manage the restaurant, together with his wife Cachelle, a magna cum laude graduate in Business Administration from UP.

"They make a tremendous team," says Don Alba, who is generous with his praises and expressions of approval for his daughter-in-law of two years. "She has been a big influence in Miguel’s life, not only in the restaurant business but also in general."

Where before, father and son would experience some friction, which is normal in any father-and-son relationship, now there is Cachelle to bridge whatever gap there might be.

"My son is more complete than me," Don Alba says. "He got professional training, while I learned everything I know from the calderos, from the kitchen," he laughs.

With more time in his hands now, Don Alba is able to concentrate on cooking up more new creations. He has also decided to don a new culinary hat, that of pastelero (baker). At Alba in Tomas Morato, you can get such sweet delights as Tarta al Cointreau, Tarta de Chocolate Gran Duque d’Alba, Tarta de Santa Teresa, Tarta Cappuccino, Almendrados, Ojaldritos, and of course, Don Alba’s special Canonigo.

You can also take home special deli items, such as Chorizo Bilbao, Jamon Serrano, Smoked Tanguingue, Chorizo Pamplona, Salchichas Madrileña, Sobresada, Queso Manchego, Salmon and more.

The great tradition of authentic Spanish cuisine and dining started by Don Alba 50 years ago is very much alive and well in its new home in Alba on Tomas Morato.

Miguel can’t help but recall what people have said about Alba: "If your date takes you out to dine at Alba’s, then you must be special."