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What the Holidays are like: Margarita Fores, restaurateur and Asia’s Best Chef 2016
Chef Margarita Fores is as accomplished as any chef could hope to be. Consider the slew of restaurants to her name: Lusso, Grace Park, Alta, everybody's favorite Cibo, and the former Pepato and Cafe Bola — not to mention the most sought after catering company in the country, Cibo Di Marghi, of which she is at the helm. No wonder she's named Asia's Best Female Chef for 2016.
Knowing that she’s served her food to so many VIPs, from the heads of state present at the Asia Pacific Economic Convention 2015, to ex-President Aquino, Noche Buena in her home must be the hottest invitation in town. But at launch of Cathay Pacific's #LifeWellTraveled campaign of which she is an ambassador, Chef Gaita reveals holidays have always been about family. Below is our quick chat with Chef Gaita about noche buena, travelling, and of course food.
How is Noche Buena like in your house?
It’s been a family tradition of ours to keep the food light, because we’re almost always on a plane ride to Hong Kong on Christmas day.
Noche Buena happens in our house in Cubao (the family home, known as the “Bahay na Puti” of the Araneta clan—ed). And it’s not just me in the kitchen preparing everything; it’s open to the entire family to help prepare everything.
We have a turkey, some cheeses, meats — [food that are] all fairly easy to prepare on our own so that we can be by ourselves, and the rest of the household staff can go home and spend the holidays with their families.
A plane ride on Christmas day! What do you pack when you go off on a trip?
I’m at that age when I know my sense of style, where I know who I am, more or less. So I stick to the basics. I don’t plan my outfits in advance. There’s a lot of black, and sunglasses. If ever I need to accessorize, I like scarves. I find that a bright colored scarf makes my outfit interesting. I don’t pack much, and I always make sure to bring an extra piece of luggage to fill with food!
What food have you brought back recently via your own luggage?
Not inside my own, but I recently brought in a shipment of crabs from Hong Kong, flew in via Cathay Pacific! I brought in truffles as well.
Where are your favorite places to go to in the world?
Well of course Italy, both for work and since I love the place. And if you want to know what’s coming next in terms of the culinary trends, New York is the place to go. I’ve noticed a lot of interest in Asian cuisine. I can’t be quite sure why, but I believe it’s because the food seems so exotic to the west.
There’s also interest in South America cuisine. I’m hoping to go to Columbia soon. I’ve heard great things about it, and thinking that Stella (Marquez Araneta) has all sorts of stories about her country that I would love to see for myself. She hasn’t been back in her home country for decades, so it would be nice to be with her during the trip.
Is it safe to assume that you plan your itinerary according to the places you want to eat in?
If there’s one thing that winning Asia’s Best Female Chef [in 2016] did for me, it was that the restaurants that were always booked or hard to get a table in finally opened their doors, haha! Because of that also, chefs all over the world have become my friends. And from them I get inspiration and bring it back in the Philippines. Being in a different country and experiencing all it has to offer keeps me creative. — LA, GMA News
