A decade of grilling Argentinian steaks
There are two things that restaurateur Carlo Calma Lorenzana credits for the opportunity to carry celebrated Argentinian steakhouse La Cabrera in Manila—Boca Juan Filipinas, his wine distribution company with good friend Bobby Basa Tenchavez, and his honeymoon with wife Julia.
“Since Bobby and I are the exclusive importers of Bodega Lagarde in the Philippines, they would invite us every year for their vendimia (harvest) in Mendoza, Argentina,” Lorenzana says. “I had very limited resources when Julia and I got engaged so I thought it was best to time our honeymoon in 2013 with the Lagarde vendimia to save on costs and enjoy an exciting country with my new wife at the same time. We decided to visit Buenos Aires first, which is almost two hours away from Mendoza by plane.”
During that trip, Julia did her research and filled up their itinerary with visits to different steakhouses. They tried a lot of popular ones, but it was La Cabrera that left them a good impression, so much so that after their first meal, they returned to eat there again the next day.
“It was really the excellent food and wonderful experience that made us think of bringing La Cabrera to Manila. Julia and I believed that fellow Filipinos would like it as much as we did,” he says. “We then reached out to their manager and asked if they would be interested to come. Luckily, they responded positively.”
Risk
Lorenzana is also thankful that owner Gaston Rivera had an open mind and was willing to take a risk in opening the first La Cabrera in Asia in Manila, ahead of the bigger cities. Eight months after the Lorenzanas’ March 2013 honeymoon, Rivera flew in to check out Manila for the first time. The first La Cabrera Manila opened in July 2014.
“Everything happened so fast, that in hindsight, I think it was really fate. Destiny,” he says.
‘Parrillada’
Ten years later, the restaurant is still alive and kicking—with a few more upcoming branches in strategic locations in the country, and more than a handful of food specials to be introduced every quarter. This is on top of what they continue to excel in, which is promoting lesser-known cuts like entraña, cuadril, asado del centro and vacio, as well as letting guests enjoy the meats in an unadulterated manner—without butter or any marinade. “Just technique and excellent meat. The Argentinian way,” Lorenzana says.
To commemorate their continued success, they had a two-night affair that celebrated their specialties. The first was a parrillada at their Ayala 6750 branch where the chefs grilled outdoors and served their bestsellers including the beloved chicharrones, empanadas and alfajores, followed by a collaboration dinner with Spanish restaurant Txoko in Edsa Shangri-La.
“We wanted to combine two methods of grilling—in Argentina (parrilla) and Spain (asador), plus the dishes found in their respective grill restaurants. There were a number of tastings and a big chunk of back and forth to come up with the Argentina x Spain menu,” he says.
The menu was composed of dishes that showed duality. It started with a beef chicharron taco with salsa guacamole, and Txoko’s signature bread pillow with tomato foam and Serrano ham.
It continued with a delicious grilled oxtail and mushroom cannelloni draped with provolone cheese and pepper sauce. Then came two types of blood sausages: the Argentinian came with chimichurri, while the Spanish variety has salsa roja and cilantro.
The mains featured grilled octopus and baby squid with foie gras and cured egg yolk sauce on pilaf, as well as coulette and flank steaks with mussels, chorizo and roasted garlic. The multicourse meal ended with a pani puri with vanilla ice cream and dulce de leche.
They went to Argentina for their honeymoon—and came back with a baby, in the form of La Cabrera.
La Cabrera’s two branches are at 6750 Ayala Avenue Office Tower in Makati, and at Edsa Shangri-La Hotel, Ortigas, Pasig. Txoko Asador is at Esteban Street, Legazpi Village, Makati.
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