In love with Takway

Published on: 27th May, 2010

If there’s a native dish that is sorely underrated, it must be adobong takway,  that slimy but fiber-rich plebian food that no one seems to  bother.  It’s cousin, the laswa, that iconic Negrense vegetable soup, has already made it to our restaurants but takway has remained in our homes.

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I think it’s time takway took its place in the table of global Negrense food. Perhaps our chefs can take a look at it and innovate? I’ve been having a  love affair with takway for months now, and the range of possibilities are endless.

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For the uninitiated, takway is the runner of the taro plant, or gabi colocasia esculentum.

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From plain adobo, I have tried garnishing takway with garlic chips and dried herring fillets [tabagak, bala, another underrated Negrense plebian food that has already hit the global table].  The household help has innovated by using different vinegars [the native one from tuba is the best] and other spices. It can also be cooked to shreds, or simply soft but intact — the choice is yours, depending on how slimy and soft you want it.

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The most fantastic I’ve tried was takway dusted with freshly-ground  spice mix given by Ronnie B: black peppers with dried lemon rinds and Mediterranean sea salt.  The “lowly” takway held its own beside these international flavors, which further convinced me that hey, there must be future place for takway in the global dining table.  Think takway with caviar. Or maybe some strong cheese…

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RESTAURANT REVIEW. They kept going to and fro, ignoring our desperate hand signals. When finally, we  caught one of them and told him  we  wanted to order, the poor guy shook  his head sheepishly, said  no he cannot take our order and moved on.  Again the desperate hand signals.  What’s the matter with the  people of Max’s Restaurant in SM City Bacolod? You sit there, and no one seems to want to get your order.  You order, and then they bungle it.

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After months of resisting Max’s,  I went there last week, and got exactly the same sad treatment I got several months back. Must be my face? Last week, nobody wanted to get our order. Months back, they got my order and made me wait for 30 minutes for — guess what – tocino breakfast!

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When I asked why the order was taking too long, the waiter told me sorry, please wait awhile because they really prepare the food per order, as in they start from scratch. I managed to smile at the obvious stupidity. Wow, I said, if you start from scratch making the tocino, how many days do I have to wait while you cure it? Still not getting it, the waiter, with a straight face, replied: Dali lang na sir a. [That’s going to be fast].

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Kidding aside,  Max’s should review their service. It’s too bad if this continues, because it offers some very innovative dishes aside from its fried chicken.  It’s sinigang series, for example, was fantastic. Too bad if it doesn’t match its forward menu development with efficient service *

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