That is what he intimated to my dad during a chat they had on Facebook.
This is because Chef Tatung will soon launch his book in a few days — on April 1, 2016, through the efforts of ABS-CBN Publishing.
I am not a spoiler, though. I just want to capture Chef Tatung’s posts on his Facebook account for the Foodfinders on Foodfinds Asia, who will be equally proud of this milestone in this celebrity chef’s culinary career.
Here is Chef Tatung’s FB post (March 30, 2016):
Shooting additional footage for a documentary on Muslim cookery around the Manila Golden Mosque in Quiapo. (Source: Chef Tatung’s FB)
My book finally goes to bed and is off to press tomorrow! It will be available nationwide in a few more days. This is it-poof of many years of hard work and struggle.
Thank you all for joining me in this journey. I’ve given up running restaurants (so painfully) in exchange of finishing this book. I’ve been away from friends and family just to pursue this project, but i know it is all worth it.
I dedicate this book to my grandmothers juanita and natividad, for with out their love and cooking i would not have gained the lessons to lead me to writing this work.
Many of you would not know the value of what you have until you lose it. This book is actually my attempt at preserving what i felt i was begining to lose about my self and my heritage. You will understand more of what im talking about when you read my book.
Very few people know that i practically raised two kids on my own. Son of my brother, who since childhood lived away from the rest of the family in cebu. And it has only been through my cooking that i am able to tell them about our family. What it was like when we were young. What we ate when we were together. These children will never have the experience of having their grandmothers (boths ofws) cook for them, and feed them stories of our foreparents.
I attempt to be a parent with all my limitations, and feel them. I know they are not the only ones in this predicament. There are millions more.
The way we prepare and eat filipino food today is part of a social diahrea that not only affects our stomachs but our spirits as well. The discourse on filipino food should not only be limited to gastronomy but a discussion of social justice and equity. The way we feed our people is a reflection of our psyche.
There is indeed so much to taste, but much more to reflect upon. I pray that my book makes a difference somehow.
Chef Tatung began his culinary adventures sharing his favorite family recipes with close friends, and in no time, quickly gained a following. Converting part of his home into Tatung’s Garden Cafe, and by word of mouth, eventually became a favorite spot among foodies searching for familiar, traditional flavors with a refreshing and contemporary twist.
