After naming two Pinoys as part of its 2021 list of Best New Chefs, Food & Wine magazine recently honored two more Filipino chefs by including their dish on its list of Best Bites of 2021.
The publication’s Restaurant Editor Khushbu Shah chose eight standout dishes of the year in the US and one of them is the Fiesta Spaghetti of the Fil-Am fast food counter Pogiboy of Chefs Tom Cunanan and Paolo Dungca in Washington DC.
The Fiesta Spaghetti takes inspiration from the world famous fast food classic of Jollibee but given a chef’s spin. The sauce of the Fiesta Spaghetti is a Bolognese assembled from hot dogs and Gouda cheese.
“It's deeply savory but also has a punch of sweetness from the banana ketchup in the sauce,” writes Shah of the dish. “What's not to love about a giant plate of carbs covered in cheese and tossed with slices of bright pink hot dogs? It's a dish that doesn't take itself too seriously, but just seriously enough to be the best version out there.”
Better than Jollibee? We’ll let Pinoys in DC be the judge of that.
Tom admitted to Bon Appetit recently that the dish is indeed an ode to Jollibee, his favorite Pinoy fast food. During his immersion visit to the Philippines in 2019 to learn about traditional Filipino cooking, while local chefs were treating him to selections in our homegrown cuisine, he would still stop by a Jollibee every single day to snack on his faves.
The Food and Wine Best Bites list also includes the Crispy Provolone from L.A.’s Ospi, the Butter Terrine at Lutie’s in Austin, and the Gimbap Supreme from Toki Portland, Oregon, among others.