Kitchen Turns 1

It’s been a good year for foodies. Not only have restaurants been opening left and right, but the level of good food and interior design in Metro Manila’s eating places has improved tremendously.

One restaurant that undeniably contributed to this trend is Kitchen, which turned one-year-old this month. The good thing about surviving twelve months a nationwide economic crisis and coming out without a scratch is that one can take stock of the situation with more optimism and excitement than everybody else. So Kitchen is starting its second year on an upbeat note: Patrons can expect a lot more with new additions on the menu, a deli in the works, catering services, and very soon more branches around Metro Manila.

The baby of restaurateurs Rikki Dee and Ricco Ocampo, Kitchen has developed a loyal following that cuts across the economic brackets with its reasonable prices and across age groups with its hip, communal dining style.

Veteran retailer Ricco Ocampo shares with a laugh the lessons he learned in his first year as a restaurateur, "Some of our favorites were not the public’s favorites. We discovered that the success of Kitchen is due to the consistency in food. It’s the quality of food that makes people come back."

Known for his eye for detail (Kitchen’s bill is brought to your table in a shot glass and the change is returned on a Christian Tortu plate) and good design (he likes to incorporate his own experiences in restaurants abroad to the local setting), Ricco knows very well that nice surroundings don’t make for repeat customers. "The first two months, people probably go to a restaurant because of the way the place looks," he concedes. "But there are so many nice restaurants in Manila yet they still fail. You appreciate the décor but after a while if the food is not good, you lose the customers."

Kitchen has just replaced 30 percent of its dishes with new ones that are surefire to be instant favorites. Among the past year’s bestsellers were Belly Flop, grilled salmon belly and garlic vegetables on pandan rice; Sourbill, duck adobo on pandan rice; and Cure-all, marinated Korean beef with leeks for its rice bowls. And from the pasta selections, it’s Sun-Dried, linguine topped with pesto and tuyo flakes; Small Fry, linguine with dulong and red egg and kamias; Something’s Fishy, sautéed tuna, linguine and capers; and Black Eye, squid with green peas on fettuccini.

New additions include a number of vegetarian selections. Since Ricco turned vegan, the joke between the partners is that now that he owns a restaurant, he still can’t eat everything he wants. "I find it hard to find restaurants that have the kind of food I want to eat. Why turn vegetarian? I think it’s a sign of the times. Eventually, people will be taking out fish and meat from their diet. I ‘m just preparing our customers for that."

He and Rikki Dee, the latter a big meat eater, have come up with selections that will please even non-vegetarians.

As for the new dishes that will delight vegans, there’s a tomato soup called – what else – I Say Tomato, You Say Tomato (and do your best Louis Armstrong impersonation), Cream of the Crop, romaine lettuce with grilled eggplant and shiitake mushroom with creamy balsamic vinegar; Hail Caesar, Kitchen’s version of the salad comes with pesto-covered croutons; Down Under, mushroom adobo. For seafood lovers, there’s Missing Ink, squid on rice rather than the old pasta dish and Under Wraps, grilled salmon belly.

The customer reviews have been very good that Kitchen will go full blast tomorrow on its deli operations. "We get so many takeouts every day and we’ve noticed that there are people living without maids who’d like to just heat their food when they get home."

Kitchen’s deli includes some of its best-selling dishes, dulong pasta sauce, pesto, wasabi nuts, garlic mayo sauce, creamy wasabi, crab fat sauce, pasta, bread and its deserts like cheesecake, chocolate cake and tiramisu.

Last month, they began catering services. Ricco says Kitchen has been turning down people who ask if Kitchen could do parties. Now that they’ve decided to cater for parties (from 30 to 120 people), they’re doing it the Kitchen way – literally. The staff will recreate the Kitchen look at your venue. Nothing formal – just hip, casual dining with Kitchen’s aluminum topped tables and dark-wood benches. The menu will be what you will find at the restaurant. "It’s a big operation but we can handle it because my wife Tina (Maristela-Ocampo) loves to do flowers. We don’t have to get an outside florist, Tina will be involved in the setup of decor, which is a big plus for us."

Kitchen will also open smaller branches called Kitchenettes, seating about 50 people and serving only the bestsellers. And if you’re enamored by the dining accouterments like the white rice bowls, glasses, plates, condiment holders and that little wooden box that hold the flatware, they will soon be available be available at Kitchen.

Ricco predicts that eventually the catering business will make up 30 percent and the deli 10 percent of the entire Kitchen business.

Looking back at the year that was for Kitchen, Ricco says, "You have to give people more than what they pay for. We’ve reached that level and culture in the restaurant industry that dictates restaurants have to be hip. It’s harder now because I want to be one step ahead of everybody else."

With Kitchen’s record in good food and an atmosphere that makes you want to hang out and chill with friends, they’ll be miles ahead in the coming years.