Roots Siargao

24/08/2024

OCEAN TO TABLE: Part III

Growing roots.

Suppliers that become collaborators. Collaborators that become friends. The result of it all? A deeper connection with the island we call home. The validation of our purpose; to generate a positive impact on our surrounding community and environment through a gastronomic model rooted in a specific landscape, that offers projects and collaborations steaming from interdisciplinary research, a clear methodology of collective creation and local partnerships.

24/08/2024

OCEAN TO TABLE: Part II

"Good things, you can't rush into them." - Chef José Andrés

The journey to each dish is guided by a focus on freshness and care for every ingredient. From product selection to mise en place and preparation, meticulousness is the linchpin behind it all.

22/08/2024

Our greatest asset, our team.

22/08/2024

REPURPOSING

Our macerated grated calamansi peels, transformed into the base of our calamansicello sour and our calamancello, reflect our commitment to repurposing food waste, by transforming it into inputs for new products.

22/08/2024

CEVICHE

Ceviche, undeniably the most cherished dish at Roots, holds special significance for our founders, as Peru, where they first connected, is the birthplace of this culinary delight. The team's strong bonds were cultivated through the daily ritual of savoring ceviche.

Roots' rendition pays homage to the freshest catch of the day, infused with local flavors by substituting calamansi for lime. It rests on a bed of sweet potato and is enhanced with pickled singkamas and the fruit of the nypa palm flower, providing a distinctive and crunchy finishing touch. The addition of kinilaw-inspired coconut milk leche de tigre contributes a creamy texture.

19/04/2024

CALAMANSI PIE

Our take on the classic lemon pie, featuring our favorite endemic citrus as a substitute of lemon: the calamansi. We use this ubiquitous ingredient of Filipino cuisine to make calamansi crumble, filled with calamansi juice curd, and topped with giant pomelo, candied pomelo skin, and a generous layer of burned meringue.

Fun fact: the leftover calamansi peels are grated and macerated in neutral alcohol to create our refreshing and characterful Calamansicello Sour cocktail.

19/04/2024

SITAW

Yardlong beans (Vigna unguiculata subsp. sesquipedalis), also known as sitaw in the Philippines, are a common ingredient in Filipino cuisine, often stir-fried or sautéed with aromatics, meat, and other vegetables, or blanched and added to soups and stews.

Presented in a braided form, and resting on an emulsion of locally-sourced leaves (coriander, ginger, Thai basil, and kaffir lime leaves), our sitaw is sautéed with candied nuts and Chevre cheese from , and garnished with basil leaves and marigold flowers.

19/04/2024

SAME SAME, BUT DIFFERENT.

Mango, locally known as “mangga”, is the Philippines’ national fruit and possibly one of our favorites. Although Carabao, Pico and Katchamita (also known as Indian) mango are the most common varieties locally found, a wide range that includes Apple mango, Kuini mango or Paho mango are also easily available.

How many varieties of mango can you identify in the picture?

05/03/2024

https://www.tatlerasia.com/dining/food/casa-kaos-roots-restaurant-siargao

Tatler Dining Philippines

Two chefs, an art director, an anthropologist, and a couple of business strategists—this is Casa Kaos, the creative hub behind Roots, Siargao.

04/03/2024

Our schiacciata, a homage to 's roots, is a delightful homemade focaccia hailing from Tuscany, where he grew up. This crisp and chewy creation is crafted with a blend of flour, yeast, olive oil, water, and salt.

The term "schiacciare" in Italian, meaning to press down, describes the action before baking, yielding numerous air bubbles and an irresistible crunchiness.

04/03/2024

CURRENTLY RESEARCHING: Kamias (Averrhoa bilimbi)

Kamias is a Southeast Asian tree. Found in many local households in the Philippines, its small fruits can be boiled and crushed to extract its sour flavor, or processed into pickled, relish, dried candies, or juice. It is also consumed raw with rock salt, or employed as a tamarind substitute.

After foraging some in the wilderness of Siargao, the team is researching these and other uses to incorporate kamias into our offer, following our philosophy to fuse local ingredients with our culinary roots.

03/03/2024

Rainbow Runner Tartar

Pepinitos • Roasted Guyabano Cured Egg Yolk • Gotu Kola

Rainbow Runner, a locally abundant, fatty fish often referred to as the Filipino salmon, takes center stage in this dish. Its flavorful flesh is smoked using leftover wood from the production of tables at Roots and paired with guyabano, which is oven-roasted to caramelize the sugars. The dish is complemented with two plants sourced from Siargao's wilderness: pepinitos, which we pickle, and gotu kola. Beautifully placed in the center is an egg yolk cured in soy sauce.