New restaurant alert: James and Daughters at the Fort. —MARGAUX SALCEDO
New restaurant alert! Chef Jonas Ng of Le Jardin has opened a new restaurant at the Fort called James and Daughters.
James is Jonas’ father and the daughters are, obviously, his sisters. When they were thinking of a name, they shied away from using their own names and instead paid tribute to their dad, whom Jonas credits for their taste in all things gastronomy. “He never skimped on food and travel and books even if we couldn’t really afford [them],” he shares.
No borders cuisine
James and Daughters is Jonas’ new playground where he is now free to express himself. At Le Jardin, he explains, the kitchen was limited by what they thought people would appreciate as fine dining: foie gras and stuffy French fare. This time around, he is pretty much freestyling on whatever best local produce he can find.
“I decided to use (the various) cuisines I know to let the local ingredients sing,” he explains.
But it’s not fusion, he clarifies. “Fusion is combining cuisines,” he says.
He calls what he does “no borders” cuisine, simply using personal influences from everywhere instead of being dictated by any particular cuisine or region. He makes a tuna tataki togarashi with sesame soba, an ode to chef Tina Fineza, his late mentor from Vancouver; a crispy lechon belly that is pugon-roasted then appreciated with a Bicol express sauce, which he learned to make after spending time with relatives in Cebu; and a Kiam Hee Lo Ba, a Fujian-inspired pork belly braised with salted fish from a recipe he learned from his mom, whose ancestors are from Fujian province.
Chef Jonas is especially endeared to Fujian cuisine, as both of his parents hail from Fujian.
“It’s simpler—by fisher folk and farmers—less grandiose but delicious,” he explains. “Our cuisine uses more natural flavorings like fermented tofu, salted fermented vegetables, salted fish and stuff like that to give the dishes a kick instead of using MSG,” he adds.
He is proud that when Chinese guests of James and Daughters see the Kiam Hee Lo Ba on the menu, they get excited. As far as Jonas knows, this is not available anywhere else in Manila.
Best of all (for early risers), the restaurant serves breakfast (Tuesdays to Sundays). They serve, among other morning faves, champorado using Hiraya chocolate from Davao, and congee, because his dad loves lugaw.
New York-based bartender and restaurateur Francis Balbarin takes over the James and Daughters kitchen.
Kitchen takeover
Every now and then, he allows a guest chef to take over his kitchen, which is actually how I learned about his restaurant.
Flying in from New York, Francis Balbarin, fondly called Kiko by friends, took over James and Daughters Kitchen earlier this month. Francis is a New York-based Pinoy bartender who is cofounder and co-owner of Burgers and Brewskies at The Fort and the man responsible for its wild hits, such as the Walk of Shame Burger, a huge burger with a sunny side up on the top bun; the Call the Nurse, a meat patty atop mac and cheese sandwiched between the buns; and the Cuban Missile corn on the cob, inspired by the corn on the cob of Cafe Habana on Prince Street in New York.
While not a schooled chef, Francis takes the kitchen so seriously that over the many years he has been creating recipes as a restaurateur, he has grown as a chef in his own right.
“Our whole barkada of chefs are big fans of Kiko,” Jonas shares. “We’ve been fans of B&B (Burgers & Brewskies) since he opened. The way his chef mind works is so wild.”
So Jonas generously opened his kitchen for Kiko “because we wanted to see what he would do if no one was there to tell him what to do.”
I learned of James and Daughters from Francis himself. He is an old friend from the days of my sabbatical in New York and I know him as a fun-loving spirits master, not as a chef, although I would always beg him to make Habana’s corn on the cob (because he could) and what we used to call his Pendong Burger (because he is bald), a flavor-packed slider with blue cheese filling.
Kitayama Ox Hearts Tartare by Francis Balbarin for James and Daughters. —MARGAUX SALCEDO
Kitayama ox hearts
At his pop-up, I was genuinely blown away by how much he has improved as a cook. He could very well compete with today’s top restaurateurs in the industry.
Dinner started with grilled octopus with arugula and patani. Then he wowed customers with his Kitayama beef heart and rib eye tartare with quail egg. It’s hard to find good tartare in Manila, a dish that is harder to execute than it seems (Tonyboy Escalante still makes the best but you have to go all the way to Antonio’s Fine Dining in Tagaytay). I also loved the incorporation of ox hearts into the dish.
His third creation, thanks to the Tiger Milk Gang’s campaign, was the ever trendy ceviche. Francis used barramundi and scallops for the most part. It was seasoned with fresh lime juice and cilantro, as is the usual case, and Francis added kaffir leaves for character. I also loved how he added white corn for texture, sweet potato to contrast the acidity, mango for some sweetness, and on top just a snip of barramundi skin for crunch. It was a very cohesive ceviche and every bite was pleasurable.
His fourth dish, dedicated to his lovely wife Mayone (pronounced May 1), was likewise exceptional: squid ink pasta, because it is one of her favorite dishes. But Francis upped his squid ink pasta game by using shallots, anchovies and (best of all) taba ng talangka for his pasta sauce. And then the dish was finished with lemongrass “para mawala ang umay,” he explains. It was so good, I could have finished a larger bowl of it.
This was followed by seared duck breast with tamarind and guava gastrique, miso-glazed poached papaya, which drew attention the minute it left the kitchen due to the aroma of guava. The latter not only contrasted beautifully with the savory duck but also gave it a special, Asian-inspired character.
It was mostly comfort food refined for the seasoned diner. Quite in line with chef Jonas’ no borders theme.
I hope Francis frequents the Philippines more often to do more of these pop-up events. In the meantime, I know where I’m having breakfast and lunch in the coming days. I must try that Kiam Hee Lo Ba inspired by chef Jonas’ mom!
James and Daughters by Le Jardin. G/F Westin Residences Manila Sonata, 21st Dr., Fort Bonifacio, Taguig (near Essensa). For reservations, call +63 917 817 6584. Open Tuesdays to Sundays, breakfast until lunch from 7:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. and dinner 6:00 p.m. to 11:00 p.m. For more info, visit jamesanddaughters.ph.