Friends fulfill their culinary dream at Festival Supermall

MANILA, Philippines - Larry Cortez and chef Mauro Arjona Jr. are no strangers to going after a dream. After all, the pair had launched their venture, the Chef’s Barrel Group of Restaurants, which includes Chef’s Quarter, Uncle Cheffy’s Brick Oven Global Cuisine, Kuse Traditional Filipino Cuisine, and Old Vine Grille, in the same way.

Now the food-loving pair is trying out two food concepts that they hold dear — a more sophisticated take on the dampa and a contemporary version of a European pub — with two of their latest ventures: Market Basket and Chef’s Barrel, both located in Festival Supermall in Alabang, Muntinlupa City.

Market Basket celebrates Filipino food and gives it a contemporary yet homey twist. Taking inspiration from the dampa, the restaurant prides itself on the freshest, finest seasonal ingredients. It marries the farm-to-plate philosophy and the array of options that a dampa has with a modern, sophisticated restaurant.

Meanwhile, Chef’s Barrel brings the vibe of the European pubs of the ’70s and ’80s, popular hangout spots during that time, to the Alabang area. Envisioned by Cortez as an answer to the need to have a classy spot in the South to relax, Chef’s Barrel incorporates this casual yet elegant feel with warm wood furniture and panels, a contemporary take on traditional European pub food, and a vast selection of imported beers, wines, and liquor.

It’s hard to believe that the pair started out from humble beginnings. The two met at Truffles Restaurant in Greenbelt, owned by famous chef Billy King, where Arjona was tasked to help out in the kitchen and Cortez was employed as a waiter. Truffles is where the two learned all they know about continental cuisine.

 â€œWe not have had the formal training of usual restaurant owners, but what we know about food, we learnt firsthand from working with one of the best chefs in the country,” says Cortez. “It’s not just plain theory.”

Their continental cuisine background is reflected in both restaurants’ menus. Chef’s Barrel specializes in European bar favorites given a contemporary twist. A popular choice is their Rib Republic platter of various grilled meats and potato wedges. Another popular choice is the pissaladiere, a twist on thin-crust pizza baked with their special onion and anchovy sauce with spices and available in four variants: all-meat, seafood, marinated salmon, and vegetarian. The pissaladiere also doesn’t contain one particular topping that’s usually associated with pizza: cheese.

“We decided not to put any cheese to make the toppings stand out,” says chef Arjona. “However, if ever the customer wants cheese on their pissaladiere, they can request us. Actually, we allow customizing many of our dishes.”

Meanwhile, Market Basket mixes continental and Filipino dishes. For example, the restaurant offers European sauces to go with their grilled seafood. Another is their seafood bouillabaisse, which has elements of sinigang.

“I think loving seafood is something that unites the Philippines with the rest of the world,” says Cortez. “We want to introduce European dishes along with the usual dampa fare to show seafood’s versatility.”

The pair has paid attention to every detail; for example, the music in Chef’s Barrel to recreate a retro pub feel.

“We hired a music specialist to supply us with a special mix of music from the ’70s to ’90s to transport customers to the carefree time in their lives,” Cortez expounds. “We also invite acoustic groups to sing throwback hits on weekends to recreate the live music scene in bars in the past.”

Meanwhile, everything at Market Basket feels like a country home, from wooden chairs painted with cute sayings to potted herbs on each table, to the counter at the restaurant’s front selling freshly baked breads, pastries and products like olive oil and tinapa flakes.

“We want it to be a one-stop shop for gourmets in the South,” Cortez says. “It ties in with our ‘fresh’ concept because as early as now, we’d like to assure that the items from that counter will be freshly baked or made.”

The two restaurants, along with Starbucks Coffee, are the newest dining concepts at River Park, the latest dining cluster at Festival Supermall. Also set to open soon are exciting dining establishments such as Asahikawa Bangaichi Ramen, Mati’s Meat and Bread, Hog’s Breath Cafe, Bizu Patisserie, Planet Grapes, SF Bistro and a yet-to-be-named lounge concept.

Festival Supermall is a premier development in Filinvest City, Alabang, Muntinlupa City.  It is the only mall with five anchor stores: Shopwise Supercenter, SaveMore, Robinsons Department Store, Ace Hardware and Handyman. It has over 700 shops, a total of 2,300 multilevel parking slots, various food outlets, and indoor amusement rides.