How I got there?? (The Farmers Market in Cubao Manila)
Almost everyone told me not to go to local markets in Manila because probably I could not find what I was looking for…perhaps a little bit true, but it is so in all countries we can not find all the ingredients we are looking for so easily. Actually when we chefs turn around in the markets we are not on the spot just looking for what we are looking for, but also to discover some new ingredients and understand part of the local culture of the place where we are.
Probably you wonder why you went there?? if everyone said not to go… I could respond to you in a different way, creating a few stories but everything is much easier. Hahahahaha A housewife convinced me (My Wife) and not my assistant chefs because maybe they hesitated that I would not like the market or think that I prefer only the Tokyo Tsukiji fish market however, I loved this place!!
I really liked the fish area where I could find some ingredients that I use very willingly inside my kitchen.
here is one of the dishes that I managed to do with all the ingredients taken in the Farmers Market after the visit: Belt Fish with Clams sauce, sea grape e yellow pepper sauce, grilled mini eggplant e micro greens. (100% all ingredients from Farmers Market)
Baby Octopus with tomato olives and capers (Luciana style) Linguine,we managed to make this Neapolitan classic dish thanks to the mini octopus we found in the market.
also the fruit and vegetable section has been very interesting where you can find local and international ingredients from other countries.I managed to find the local pumpkin flowers, an ingredient that I really like. and then a whole series of other vegetables and herbs from all over the world. 
Pumpkin flowers I like to cook in a very simple way: “Tempura” that I recommend you to try if you will be at my restaurant in Manila Salvatore Cuomo & Bar BGC . In short, it was really a great discovery that enriched my whole kitchen with new ingredients, freshness and a lot of local flavor, It will surely become one of my favorite stops here in Manila and for my team of chefs.
Cubao The Farmers Market: Araneta Center, Cubao, Quezon City, 1109 Metro Manila ( Hours 3am-9pm (Tuesdays-Saturdays), 4am-9pm (Sundays-Mondays) ) Tel.(02) 588 4000
Like this:
Like Loading...
Published by Salvatore Cuomo
Salvatore Cuomo was born in Naples, Italy, in 1972, son of an Italian father and Japanese mother.
Cuomo was first inspired by his father who also was an Italian Chef in Naples. He began at the young age of 11, where he trained himself in the kitchen and traveled frequently between Italy and Japan. He gradually learned how to blend the traditional Italian art of cooking with the Japanese art of perfection.
A few years later he traveled to Japan with his father who opened an Italian restaurant in Chiba in 1984. About those early years Salvatore told the press that it wasn't a good starting experience: "I didn’t like Japan at all, so after one year, I went back to Italy and spent 2–3 years studying at a culinary school. When I was 18, I returned to Japan after my father became terminally ill and I have been here ever since."[3] Cuomo said that Italian Cuisine was just starting to get popular in those days. He and his two brothers decided that in order to succeed in the restaurant business in Japan they would have to understand the Japanese food mentality. They spent a couple of years researching the market before opening a new restaurant in Tokyo with what Cuomo calls "Original Neapolitan pizza."
Since that time, Cuomo has been credited with catapulting Neapolitan pizza to fame in Japan, and today in all Asia with over 100 restaurant.
View all posts by Salvatore Cuomo
