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Bar Sinigang: A Secret Pop-Up, Santa Claus, and a Food Culture Revelation

5/15/2016

Article By Kevin Pelgone ~ Photos by Candice Lo

Typical. A word that I would so often use to describe familiar experiences, bordering on the mundane. Bar Sinigang was anything but typical.

The evening began in typical Filipino fashion: slightly late.

After waiting a few minutes with the majority of the guests already present, a ‘false prophet’ dressed in a black cloak approached the mass of hungry diners and proclaimed that the first two ravenous souls were to be seated. I’d like to say that my volunteering to be one of the first was motivated by my unbridled curiosity. In truth, I was hungry for some sinigang. My dear friend Joanne and I volunteered to be the first culinary pioneers – or was it guinea pigs? Either way, the evening began to shift away from the typical.

A large metal door gave way to a narrow and dim stairwell, perched above me, a man in what seemed like a Santa Claus or Krumpus get-up and a set of eyewear reminiscent of Geordi La Forge from Star Trek. Once at the top of the stairs, we were asked, “What is your purpose?” I stood a few steps behind Joanne and Santa La Forge and pondered the complexities of such a big question. Joanne instinctively said, “To eat sinigang!” What a simple yet appropriate response! “Yes we are indeed here to eat sinigang!” I nearly proclaimed. After receiving a masquerade-style mask and instructions to lose our names in favor of our seat numbers, we were encouraged to ‘discover.’ Discover what?

Ushered through another door into a dimly lit room filled with masked individuals, we began to suspend our disbelief. The secret clubhouse / speakeasy style den was converted to feature communal tables adorned with candles, skulls, eccentric odds and ends, but most importantly, different styles of patis – fish sauce: a fermented, salty fish-based condiment used to flavor many Asian dishes, one being the Filipino sinigang. Funky yet mellow music played in the background as we made our way to the most important side of the room: the Sinigang Bar.

The Sinigang Bar was immense. Several chefs and bartenders lined the back ready to take our custom order. A plethora of meats, seafood, and vegetables ranging from kangkong (water spinach) to taro were piled high in front of the broth station. We filled out our menus, ordered our special drinks, and patiently waited for our custom-made bowl of sinigang.

I wondered to myself: if our bowls are so unique, how could we call all these variations ‘sinigang?’ To answer this question, I must first describe sinigang.

For those uninitiated in Filipino cuisine, ‘sinigang’ is a stew made by combining a broth (typically a pork, beef, or seafood broth), a souring agent (tamarind, santol, kamias, sampaloc, guava, or sorrel - a new souring agent I discovered at Bar Sinigang), meats and/or seafood, and a wide variety of vegetables, served with a bed of pillowy rice. Filipinos typically enjoy this dish by adding chili peppers for heat and patis for another layer of salty goodness. Although served hot, its tartness gives it a pleasantly refreshing aftertaste.

Was everyone eating a bowl that included the basic formula of broth, souring agent, meat/seafood, and vegetables? Check. Did everyone have it over rice and with some patis? Mostly check. Was everyone’s lip smacking from the broth’s umami? Check. Was everyone’s cheeks slightly contracting from its tartness? Yes, check. If everyone’s dish was ‘sinigang’ then there is no wrong version of ‘sinigang’ so long as it met the basic formula requirements of:

Broth
+
Souring agent
+
Meat, Seafood, Veggies

What I discovered at the Bar Sinigang, put on by the talented Tim Luym and his team of “dark-minded” collaborators, was that Filipino cuisine is meant to be malleable. Each person, each family, each region has their own version of sinigang; versions dictated by what is readily and uniquely available to each person, family, or region. Ask any Filipino and they’ll tell you that their variation, their family’s, or their region’s is the absolute best of the best. Filipinos are proud of their food. They aren’t afraid to be vocal about it. But once you sit down with Filipinos, you will quickly realize that the talk about being the ‘best’ quickly gives way to their innate generosity as the lion share of food is quickly served to their guests. Which brings us to the overarching formula for Filipino food culture:

Find readily available ingredients
+
Make the best possible variation
+
Proudly exclaim that your variation is best
+
Politely and graciously share

Let me close with a snippet of an anecdote from Chef Cocoy Ventura shared that evening by Filipino Food Movement’s chairman, P.J. Quesada, “Sinigang was born out of a storm. It was the result of Filipinos finding uprooted ingredients after a typhoon. Things like root vegetables, fish, and fruits washed ashore and made its way into the stockpot.”

Born out of a storm, uprooted, making it’s way into a pot. Proud, gracious, and polite. Bar Sinigang, how typically Filipino.

Kevin Pelgone is a marketer, writer, and a contributor to the Filipino Food Movement. He is a partner at The Overlook Lounge at The Port Workspaces in Oakland, CA, and is the editor-in-chief for the soon-to-be launched Hey Bay! Magazine. Follow him on his daily exploits on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook @KPelgone and @Kevin.Cyril on Snapchat.

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Filipino Food Movement celebrates 1st Anniversary at San Francisco's Pistahan Festival

7/18/2013

Join the Movement at Yerba Buena Park for the 20th Annual Pistahan Parade & Festival and celebrate our heritage, our food, and our future. One year ago at Pistahan 2012, a group of volunteers led by the Quesada family began to work toward the common goal of promoting Filipino Cuisine to expand awareness & engagement with Filipino Foodies. Pistahan, by the FAAE, is celebrating its 20th year with more than 75,000 people expected to attend. The Filipino Food Movement will be featuring an all-new exhibit on Filipino Cuisine at the Ramar Foods Culinary Pavilion located at the Waterfall Terrace.

The Culinary Pavilion will be hosting several culinary contests and cooking demos by some of the Bay's most celebrated chefs. Sign Up for pavilion activities now!

Culinary Pavilion Schedule

Saturday, August 10 2013

11:00am Parade Steps off on Market St @ Civic Center, Pavilion Opens
1:00pm Philippine Exhibitor Showcase Part 1
1:30pm Magnolia® Purple Freeze Challenge (Bayanihan Stage)
2:00pm Demo by Chef Jessette Kalsi
3:00pm Philippine Exhibitor Showcase Part 2
4:00pm Pistahan Adobo Cook Off

Sunday, August 11 2013

11:00am 4th annual Kulinarya: A Culinary Showdown (Qualifying Round)
12:00pm Kulinarya: Amatuer Division
1:00pm Kulinarya: Professional Division
2:00pm Demo by Chef Tim Luym of Attic Restaurant
3:00pm Demo by Chef Charleen Cabaay of Kainbigan Restaurant
4:00pm Ramar Foods Balut Eating Contest
4:30pm Heavenly Ice Cream Tasting Bee

FILIPINO FOOD MOVEMENT​BLOG

Bar Sinigang: A Secret Pop-Up, Santa Claus, and a Food Culture Revelation

Article By Kevin Pelgone ~ Photos by Candice Lo

Filipino Food Movement celebrates 1st Anniversary at San Francisco's Pistahan Festival

FILIPINO FOOD MOVEMENT
BLOG