Two female chefs, one Asian-forward menu
For many of us, Asian dishes have been synonymous with comfort—a taste of nostalgia—having grown up with the familiar comfort of rice, noodles, and slow-cooked soups and stews. But just as they remind us of home, they too are home to bold flavors, which make them the perfect canvas for inventive dishes that honor tradition while embracing modern creativity.
Longtime friends and chefs Christine Roque and Jo Arciaga of Half Saints are pushing the envelope once more—not just with the launch of their newest branch in Bonifacio Global City (BGC), but also with a new menu of bold, Asian-forward dishes. Continuing what they call their “personal approach and deepened focus on food that balances craft, culture, and creativity,” the duo stays true to this ethos since founding Half Saints in 2018.
“Everything we serve is house-made, from the breads and condiments to the mix-ins for our cocktails. We avoid ultra-processed shortcuts and put in the long hours where it matters,” says Roque.
“Different location, same approach”
From their inaugural branch and flagship in Quezon City (their “beating heart” as they call it) to the many collaborations and events they’ve taken part in, down to their expansions in both Japan and recently, BGC, Half Saints remains rooted in making their brand of innovative gastronomy accessible to more people, while of course, taking the same hands-on approach in serving up a personal and memorable experience.
“Different location, same approach,” says Arciaga. “We want to share with BGC about what matters to us, so the experience is still very personal. A lot of the new dishes also come from childhood flavors we grew up with. We hope to help people in BGC make good memories here just as much as we helped QC people make lasting memories.”
But that isn’t to say that the chefs employ a cut-and-paste approach in their newly minted BGC branch, as it still carries the spirit of Half Saints. “The design of our spaces always reflects our evolution as individuals and as a brand,” Roque explains.
Thus reflecting Half Saints’ design language, the space echoes a play of textures and contrasts—of marbled tables and plush chairs, mirrored copper planes against organic stone, and a statement rope-light installation that softens the room, adds flow, and, in Roque’s words, “embodies the organic flow of nourishment, connection, and creation that defines who we are.”
“The rope-light in BGC runs like a luminous artery through the space, connecting the guest entrance to the kitchen—the heart of the restaurant,” Roque explains. “Every guest who steps through the door becomes part of that current, giving life to the restaurant, while the team who moves around it is the lifeblood that keeps it beating. Together, they complete the cycle of energy, care, and service that sustains Half Saints every day.”
Culinary innovation meets timeless craftsmanship
On the other hand, the new menu—while still containing some of the well-loved dishes and desserts from their flagship—leans more toward Asian influences, designed for sharing. But while seemingly comforting in appearance (and on paper), the flavor profile reveals a more playful edge with a kick of spice, of boldness, of bite.
“We have local ingredients in every dish, for example, sampaloc and taba ng talangka (crab fat), but the approach is very multi-cultural—though mostly Southeast Asian-driven—using a mix of both local and international specialty ingredients,” Roque explains.
Echoing the same spirit of collaboration that goes into designing the space (the chefs, after all, partnered with Jomarie Deplomo and Mycah Lim of 1 x 2 Design + Construction for this), they welcome a collaboration with Villeroy & Boch, a well-known German heritage ceramics brand, in their BGC branch. Bringing together culinary innovation with timeless craftsmanship, guests can partake in selected Half Saints’ dishes, served on Villeroy & Boch tableware. And it does make for pretty pictures, seeing the contrast of texture interplay with the food.
Starting off is a trifecta of appetizers: A Japanese take on chicharon—thin sheets of pork bagnet coated in a teriyaki glaze, served beside nori sheets and a dollop of cream cheese—meant to be layered, one on top of the other, then folded, for that mix of crunch, umami, creaminess, and touch of sweetness; a four-way tomato burrata salad, elevated with pesto and pickled tomatoes, both of which add a refreshing contrast to the rich, creamy, and chewy cheese; and a caesar tree, a playful take on a classic, which replaces the usual lettuce with a head of charred broccoli, served alongside a smattering of chickpeas, shiitake, and bacon.
The finisher? A generous rain of Grana Padano cheese, reminiscent of snow on a Christmas day.
A gastronomic feast of flavors
Before the next courses arrive, a cart rolls by—part apothecary, part cocktail station—stocked with fresh herbs, fruits, florals, purees, and syrups, with drinking glasses and a bottle of gin nestled underneath. It’s a “gin garden cart,” Arciaga explains, inviting guests to personalize a drink of their choosing (or to let the bartender curate one based on preferred tastes). If you’re lucky, you can catch it rolling by, as it is a Half Saints exclusive in their BGC branch—available every Friday during “Free-flow Fridays.”
This, and an interlude of Twilight (dalandan cordial and Don Papa rum) later, the mains appear. Bright and zesty flavors come alive in fried Thai pork ribs, which come glazed in a sour-sweet mix of tamarind sauce and patis, topped with shallots—followed by Southeast Asian “tacos,” which mirror the Mexican concept, but use scallion pancakes instead of tortilla shells, a richly flavorful shredded beef rendang instead of ground beef, and toppings of cucumber, cilantro, yogurt, and herbs.
Cutting across all this richness is a mellow plate of a deceptively simple risotto, but one that is packed with flavor. Slow-cooked in taba ng talangka, the rice is then topped with cream, ikura, tobiko, and then, edamame. Can’t forget the finisher, of course: A fried piece of soft-shelled crab that just slides right on top. But before all that is yet another alcoholic intermission: a granita made with calamansi liqueur, coconut water, and mint, which acts as a palate cleanser of sorts, but one that is more adult in nature.
The final noteworthy dish is an all-meat puff pizza, which trades the classic dough for flaky puff pastry. On it goes the usual pizza elements of tomato sauce, cheese, and some kind of green—in this case, arugula—but the Half Saints version goes all out with bacon, chorizo, and sausage to truly make it a meaty, hefty pizza. Tying all the elements together is a swicy (sweet and spicy) chili honey blend that is drizzled on the pizza.
To end the gustatory experience, a Half Saints Tokyo dessert makes a brief visit: the Arigatokyo. “It’s the Tokyo version of our bestselling Merci Buko Cream Puff,” Roque explains with a laugh. A play on words that somehow stuck with the Half Saints team, this sweet treat features coconut cream custard with young coconut meat folded into it, and a smattering of pili and cashew nuts for that bite.
“[Here at Half Saints], we don’t just celebrate the ingredients, but give respect to the people behind them,” Roque ends. “We hope guests will be able to taste the craft and the heart that we put in it [in our dishes].”
And truly, you shall. Come hungry and leave full and well-fed, the Half Saints way.
The new branch of Half Saints is located on the ground floor of Milestone Building, 5th Avenue, Bonifacio Global City, Taguig. For more updates, follow @halfsaints on Instagram and Facebook
