A sustainable farm-to-table cooking experience in an organic beach resort

Meet Ken and Kim

Ken first learned to cook from his lola (grandmother) at the age of 5. He started working in restaurants straight out of high school in 2001, working his way through different stations at some of the top restaurants in Los Angeles, San Francisco and Hong Kong. Ken was born in Saudi Arabia, then raised in the United States; Kim was born and raised in the United States and then later decided to start a farm to table, organic resort in Ken’s father's hometown. Ken and Kim use local ingredients, most of which come from their own garden or the local market, to create Antiqueño cuisine that reflects the unique flavors of the province of Antique. Ken is excited to share his abundant knowledge of cooking, and is passionate about creating unique menus that can translate his memories, experiences, and ideas to travelers.

"We aim to provide the environmentally conscious traveler an experience that focuses on sustainable dining, accommodation and support for the local community."

What to expect

Please note menu might vary. If there are particular dishes you are interested in trying, please include your request in the booking form.

In-home meal: (1-6 guests) Unlike a typical Traveling Spoon experience that takes place in a home, this unique experience with Kim and Ken takes place at their resort on a beach that houses a bamboo restaurant, organic garden, and guesthouses. Throughout Ken and Kim’s travels in Philippines, they could not find a place that reflected the true Filipino character, offered a unique menu, worked closely with the community, and felt warm and welcoming – so they decided to create their own, as a reflection of their ideal vacation! Everything in the resort is made from bamboo and all-natural materials. They also do not import any ingredients for their restaurant, and use only Filipino products, mostly local from the province to support the local community.

Your menu includes seafood or poultry prepared in three unique and creative ways. For example you might try whole fish in three ways: fish soup with garden vegetables, kinilaw (marinated raw fish in citrus, herbs and spices from their own garden, home made vinegar from fermented langgaw harvested from their their coconut trees), marinated fish fillet grilled over wood fire. Your meal concludes with a dessert such as coconut pudding with fresh fruit, latik and edible flowers. Please note that unlike a typical Traveling Spoon experience that takes place in a home, this experience takes place in your host's resort's restaurant. There will be other guests at the restaurant but they will not join you at your table. Ken and Kim will try to join you at the table during your meal but may not always be able to.

Cooking experience: (1-6 guests) Start with a tour of Kim and Ken's organic garden and learn to identify ingredients used in provincial Filipino cuisine. Next join Ken and Kim in their open kitchen where everybody can clearly watch what Ken and his team are doing. You will cook together for 2 hours as you learn to break down a whole fish, chicken or pork and prepare it in various ways, focusing on minimizing waste. For example, you might learn how to fillet a fish and grill it over wood fire, then use the bones to make sinigang (sour soup), and the remaining meat to make kinilaw (ceviche). Vegetables, edible flowers and herbs used in each dish are either harvested from their own garden, their relatives' garden or the local market.

Market visit: (1-6 guests) Ken will take you to the Tobias Fornier (Dao) Public Market in Antique. Market tours are only offered at 7am on Saturday mornings, the only market day of their town. Meet Ken at the resort and drive together 10 min to the local market. This is a great place to see all the local fruits and vegetables that are grown in this area. Walk through the market with Ken who will explain the local produce and how it is grown and used in Filipino cooking, before returning to the resort for your cooking class.

Notes: Please note that since this experience takes place at the bamboo restaurant in the resort, there will be other guests present too. However, your Traveling Spoon cooking class and meal will remain private and other guests will not join you. Kim and Ken can offer vegetarian, vegan and gluten free meals, on request. Please note that they have 3 dogs and a couple of cats, but they are very gentle and can be placed outside if guests are not fond of animals.

Getting here:
- Newly opened San Jose, Antique airport is just 34km/50min north of the resort. Flights are only available via Clark Airport through Philippine Airlines thrice weekly on Sunday, Tuesday and Thursday.
- Iloilo International Airport is 109 km, or 2.5 hrs away from the resort. More international and domestic flights are available throughout the week to this airport. From Iloilo airport, private door to door van service is 2000PHP. Also, Ceres Buses to Dao leave Molo terminal about every half hour for 118PHP one way.

Languages spoken: English

Sample menu

• Fish soup with garden vegetables
• Kinilaw (marinated raw fish in citrus, herbs and spices from their own garden, home made vinegar from fermented langgaw harvested from their coconut trees)
• Marinated fish filet grilled over wood fire
• Coconut pudding with fresh fruit, latik, edible flowers