T.Dining's Champion For Philippine Cuisine 2020 Goes To The Man Behind 'Sarsa', JP Anglo
Hailing from Negros, one of the country’s culinary capitals and home to iconic Filipino classics such as inasal and batchoy, this rockstar chef clearly has one mission: to elevate Filipino cuisine by using local ingredients and techniques in a contemporary way.
After honing his skills at Le Cordon Bleu in Sydney, Anglo returned and opened several restaurants in the Philippines including Sarsa, a Filipino-Negrense bistro, which showcases dishes creatively made using locally-sourced ingredients and methodologies from all over the archipelago.
From his sinigang fried chicken infused with batwan (a wild fruit that grows in the forests of the islands of Panay and Negros) to his version of twice-cooked pork belly and gising-gising seasoned with Ilonggo staples such as giramos (bagoong) and sinamak (spiced vinegar), respectively, each dish he makes is distinctly local, done in unexpected ways. Anglo, on his many trips around the Philippines, strongly urges local communities to use their own resources whenever possible.