Named to Asia’s 50 Best Restaurant list, Metiz may be one of the toughest reservations to get in Manila, and it has raised plant-based eating to a new level, though it also serves fish and meat dishes. The name derives from the term mestizo, which the Spanish used to designate those of mixed-race European and indigenous heritage. Chef Stephane Duhesme, who is half-French and half-Filipino, trained at restaurants in New York, Tokyo and Hong Kong before opening his first restaurant in Bogota. During his time in South America, he became obsessed with fermentation techniques, and the mission for Metiz is “to serve traditional Filipino flavors in non-traditional forms.”

Stepping into the low-ceilinged dining room of Metiz, which opened in 2019, feels like joining a vibrant culinary innovation lab, where a team of dynamic young chefs is experimenting nightly with fermentation, foam and plant-based Philippine ingredients to create eight-course evening menus. The dining area, which is lined with shelves crammed with jars of pickling ingredients, opens right into the kitchen and a constant view of the courses in preparation. As the focus is on seasonal products and Filipino techniques, illustrative dishes are the catfish hito or poached chicken breast in coconut milk and clam sauce.

Now a Makati gourmet go-to, Metronome was opened by one of the Philippine’s most celebrated female chefs, Miko Calo, just before the country’s long Covid lockdown. Calo studied at Le Cordon Bleu in Paris before spending many years working at Atelier Joel Robuchon, including opening the famous French chef’s outpost in Singapore. Her first Philippine gourmet foray is a sleek contemporary brasserie, where she serves her modern take on French cuisine. Located in Legazpi Village, the intimate space was designed by Noel Bernardo with teal blue banquettes and an Art Deco-style marble bar. Not only does Calo work with local ingredients but she also highlights artisans like local bakeries (the Daily Knead and Manila Bake) who make mini-baguettes and multigrain sourdough for her bread baskets and the last fine bone china maker in the Philippines who crafted the exquisite sea urchin-shaped bowls to serve her remarkable fresh uni with orzo, uni sabayon and bonito foam as well as the elongated tub that cradles her divine dark chocolate mousse with crème Chantilly. Filipino French fusion at its finest.

Manila’s most exciting new restaurant opened in 2016 and is already a game-changer in Philippine haute cuisine.