February 16, 2011

A lesson in tastes

I wish I could say that we were at Café Ysabel (see the posts of the past two days) for a romantic Valentine dinner for two, but I took those photos back in January. Dr. Fernando Zialcita, a professor at the Ateneo de Manila University's Sociology and Anthropology Department, teaches a course titled "Culture and the Senses," which is an exploration and study of the history of Filipino culture as evidenced not only by what we can see (art, architecture, and the like) but also by what we can experience through the other senses (smell, taste, hearing). For the lesson about taste, Dr. Zialcita partnered with Chef Gene Gonzalez who came up with a seven-course comparative degustation menu titled "Exploring Filipino Taste in Seven Courses" which they made available to others not enrolled in the class. The three-hour dinner and lecture traces the history and influences of dishes from different regions of the Philippines, and compares and contrasts them with similar dishes from Spain, China, Mexico, Malaysia, Thailand, India and the U.S. I found the lecture and tasting absolutely fascinating! And even with tiny servings, we were full to bursting by the end of the night—it was still 14 dishes, after all, and that's not counting the Queso de Bola–Edam Cheese comparison that he added. Now I'm curious about the other lessons in Dr. Zialcita's Culture and the Senses course…

menu for Chef Gene Gonzalez's 'Exploring Filipino Taste in Seven Courses'

20 comments:

Photo Cache said...

that is a full full meal. i didn't realize that biryani is part of our culture? isn't it indian dish?

Buck said...

An amazing course. Wish I had something like it here. My Mum's from the Bahamas and it's been quite an education for me to learn that some of the foods I always thought of as Bahamian really came from other British colonies. It wouldn't surprise me that Filipinos 'adopted' biryani...

Olivier said...

un vrai repas gargantuesque , hummmm

Cezar and Léia said...

Amazing idea, I would love to be part of this class!
Léia

Hilda said...

Photo Cache:
In the menu, the first item is the Filipino version. So yes, Biryani is Indian; it's Bringhe that is from Luzon.

Rob Siemann said...

This sounds, looks and feels fantastic, where do we enrol???

James Mark said...

Fascinating! I think you've convinced me to eat out one evening this week.

Oakland Daily Photo said...

What an intriguing idea. A course like this in California would be a huge hit.

Rob Siemann said...

Hello Hilda, you might want to see this, it is about Intramuros.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-12487741

Cezar and Léia said...

Hey sweet Hilda,
I hope everything is okay there, please don't work so hard!
purrs and love
Luna and mommy Léia

Nieves said...

Nice blog, I will come again!

Francisca said...

Wish I could of been there!

Ken Mac said...

I'm game!

alex said...

truly, food is something that we all do.

Leif Hagen said...

Dear Hilda -
I must say again that I'm really missing your daily photo blog postings! I guess you are quite busy with work and life - hope you and yours are doing well!
Kindest regards from EAGAN daily photo

Oakland Daily Photo said...

More work demands I bet. Hoping you soon find the time to post again.

Pinay Beauty said...

I need this beauty diet! thanks for this I get starving..haha!
http://isyuko.blogspot.com/

Leigh Villegas said...

Hi! I took that class 2 years ago. It was a great experience. Chef Gene was also there to explain what we were eating and the significance of each to Filipino culture. :)

Tamera said...

We miss you Hilda! Come back soon! :o)

sent said...

Love to attend this class Filipino people known for their rich culture in culinary arts. I hope that Filipino food recognize in other country.

buy and sell philippines