Fish Out of Water is in the swim of things

One links the idiom “like a fish out of water” to some degree of discomfort. However, the new Filipino restaurant called Fish Out of Water in Greenbelt 5 shatters the usual associations that traditionally come with the expression. By breaking out of the comfort zone of traditional Filipino cooking and concocting new dishes using local ingredients, chef Peter Ayson has shown that being a fish out of water, by venturing into new culinary territory, allows creativity to flourish. He successfully comes up with dishes that satisfy the discriminating and educated tastes of today’s Filipino world citizen.

We started out with an appetizer of stuffed kalabasa flowers (P169), Manila angulas served with toasts (P165), and crispy baby squid (P235). The morsels of kalabasa were light and tasty, stuffed with just the right amount of herb-seasoned pork and cheese, and the baby squid was caramelized in an orange sauce, with a hint of cinnamon and a light sprinkling of sesame seeds.

The angulas were a pleasant surprise. More familiar with anguila (Spanish for eel) or anguria (the spiny green fruit with a squash-like flavor), we had to ask what the angulas were. “Dilis,” we were told, and we almost refrained from trying it. Fortunately, we overcame the bias against what we thought was the usual dried, bony, over-fried fish and were pleasantly surprised with what we got — crisp, tasty, anchovy-sized fillets coated in batter with just the right amount of saltiness. Items in the appetizer list that could serve as non-Fear Factor introductions to Filipino cuisine for our urban-raised children or foreign guests include fried frog legs with mango chipotle sauce (P195), Pateros balut pate with apples, cashew and brandy (P235), or smoked fish samosas (P215) made from tinapa.

Manila Rockefeller oysters (P298) are rendered unique by the addition of saluyot, along with the usual cream and bacon bits. Ilocano and other saluyot eaters like me are glad to discover that it is prepared in a manner that could encourage more enthusiasm for the healthy vegetable. Although the slimy texture of the cooked leaves may be unacceptable to the uninitiated, warm saluyot salad (P245) is quite pleasant even for those who are not partial to the vegetable. Saluyot leaves are partially wilted over a flame, then and incorporated with lettuce and other salad greens, and accompanied by kesong puti and a pleasantly tart, yet lightly sweet wild berry vinaigrette. This is made from inumagan — what is commonly called wild cherries in the Baguio City market. Those acquainted with the wild cherries know that the fruit could be extremely sour or bitter (mapakla). It takes considerable kitchen magic to transform the fruit into a palatable dressing, making the berry vinaigrette quite special.

The entrees reflect what is available in the Filipino marketplace and the chefs combine delicacies and influences from various regions of the Philippines and abroad. For example, grilled Saranggani Bay milkfish is paired with Lucban longganisa risotto (P299), and Batangas backyard chicken is cooked in a Texas mole stew (P299).

“(The restaurant) is our small way of paying tribute to a nation of voyagers and conquerors. It is our way of saluting how great people from a small nation can embrace and champion global colors, flavors, cultures and ways of lives,” says restaurant owner Raymund Magdaluyo. “Tito George Ramos told me a story about a group of Filipino jump-shippers (en route to Acapulco) who escaped in the 1760s to the swamps of Louisiana fearing persecution from their Spanish masters. The Filipinos, known as Manilamen, built several villages, exported and transplanted their indigenous shrimp-drying industry, and eventually assimilated with their Hispanic-American neighbors. The Manilamen were the first documented Filipinos to migrate to the United States. Imagine adobong baboy eaten on the same table with Cajun gumbo and jambalaya. This and other Filipino fish-out-of-water stories inspired us to concoct a restaurant and a menu built around New World recipes and the best of Philippine ingredients.”

Truly, the entrees reflect the global Filipino’s manifold tastes. We tried the delicious crisp Changi butterflied tilapia in coconut and pepper cream sauce (P295), which was reminiscent of Singaporean fare (hence Changi), labahita ala bacalao pasta cooked in tomato sauce Italian-style, and the crisp espada show, which was swordfish served with crisp Szechuan noodles (P379). A mouthwatering killer rock lobster (P565), thus named because of its rich artery-blocking crab fat sauce, was served with roasted vegetable pilaf, while the smoky gaminess of wild boar tapa (P439) was tempered by sautéed carrots and raspberry tea couscous.

Since we inevitably relent to the temptation of dessert, we were able to sample a refreshing tropical sorbet sampler of watermelon, cantaloupe and honeydew (P95), and a light kapeng barako and tablea mousse, which had layers of Batangas coffee and Spanish chocolate (P125). Most enjoyable was the Laguna lime cheesecake (P125) that had the perfect degree of tartness. Delicious!

The restaurant’s cuisine has shown that being a fish out of water and transcending what is conventional and comfortable may turn out to be a good thing. The food successfully blends traditional ingredients and cooking methods with imagination and experience to come up with out-of-the-ordinary, yet somehow familiar flavors.

“This is ‘coming home’ cuisine,” explains chef Peter Ayson. “We anchor ourselves to the familiar. Nothing beats good country home cooking, and you eat what makes you feel good and warm and hearty.”

And indeed, while a fish out of water is out of its element and rendered squirming, uncomfortable and futilely gasping for air, the Fish Out of Water restaurant incarnation is comfortably in the swim of things when it comes to flavor, presentation and feel. Like the ingenious Filipinos who attain success away from the homeland in alien territory, Fish Out of Water adapts, thrives and surprises the diner as it figuratively alternates between the gills of traditional cooking and the lungs of more progressive and contemporary local fare. It provides a progressive, rejuvenating breath of fresh air for Filipino food. Definitely, the creativity there may turn the tide for us. It augurs well in our ongoing and collective bid to attain a world-class, internationally popular national cuisine.

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Fish Out of Water is at 3-038, at the third floor, Greenbelt 5, Makati City. For reservations and inquiries, call 729-3858.