Off the beaten track, far from the madding crowd, at the end of a row of seafood “paluto” restaurants on Macapagal Blvd. in Pasay City is a swanky Spanish restaurant called “Pastor’s Gastro Pub.”
Its gleaming glass façade makes it easy for any passerby or diner to see what’s or who’s inside the restaurant. Inside, accent walls are paneled with wooden bricks (leftover 2”x2” wooden bars used in the construction). The kitchen is like a nursery — completely surrounded by glass walls through which you could see New York-trained executive chef JJ Brian Saycon and his assistants prepare the food. Every function room is also separated from the main dining area by sliding glass doors, so from anywhere, you could see two slabs of Jamon Jabugo waiting for the kindest cut of all.
“I espouse transparency in government, and in my restaurant!” says Pastor “Boy” Saycon, controversial political strategist and famed cook (though he only cooks for friends in his Alabang home). Though Boy’s eldest son lords it over the kitchen, it is Boy’s recipes that he (Chef JJ) executes from his domain.
“I am a student of history, and I found out that to understand a people or country, you have to understand its food,” he continues. His recipes were culled from trips to Spain as history buff, race car driver, foodie and — who knows — political operator.
He points out proudly to his “flock” of diners that Pastor’s Jamon Jabugo has been fed for three years with acorns or bellotas. He even will give you a lecture on the difference between the quality of a black-hoofed pig (top of the line) versus one with a pinkish hue.
He will also let you in on the secret why Pastor’s paella (which my husband Ed and I swear by) is the real deal — it’s the quality of the rice they cook. Boy uses only arborio and bomba rice from Spain. My husband particularly likes the paella negra, which is seafood-based and a bit toasty (not like the risotto or the wet paella). It’s affordable, too, despite its ingredients.
The restaurant’s rabo de torro (the favorite of a Spanish Embassy official) is tender and sticky, and its gambas, juicy, flavorful and spicy. The steak, with a side dish of fried chilies (siling labuyo) and truffle fries, is uncomplicated, so you taste the goodness of the beef with just a dash of salt.
Boy believes in making his dishes affordable to all, so he has kebabs with mushrooms for P80. With brewed iced tea (not instant) you can easily impress your date.
Another favorite of mine is the croquettas.
“You’ll never believe what’s inside!” Boy grins. Not chicken or cheese or ground pork. Bacalao, shredded and mixed with mashed potatoes.
The salt-cured bacalao hangs inside the kitchen like meat slabs in a walk-in freezer. A secret Boy will not share is how to prepare the bacalao without that salty taste even if you just order them when you walk inside the restaurant. (My late mother-in-law used to soak the bacalao overnight in water to remove the salty taste. For home cooking, this is what is usually done.)
Bacalao ala Vizcaina is a specialty of the house as Boy is famed for this. At the Baguio Country Club on Holy Week, Boy is awaited for the bacalao he prepares.
“I want this to be a destination restaurant. You drive here because you want to eat here,” he says, saying honestly he doesn’t want to compete with the restaurants of Makati and The Fort.
Since Pastor’s is a stone’s throw away from the Senate and the Coconut Palace, Vice President Jojo Binay and several senators patronize his restaurant.
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The late STAR columnist Billy Esposo wrote of Boy Saycon in 2010: “Many of the civil society groups are only good for press releases and nothing more because they don’t have a Boy Saycon with them.
“It was Boy Saycon’s effective political operation that enabled COPA (The Council on Philippine Affairs) to successfully file a case on the Diosdado Macapagal Boulevard scam. It was Boy Saycon’s effective political operation that assembled the combined forces of the Left and the Right for EDSA II. It was Boy Saycon’s effective political operation that allowed VP candidate Jojo Binay to get Villar-Binay and Gibo-Binay votes in the provinces where these two presidential candidates were strong.”
So what’s cooking in Boy Saycon’s mind these days? At Pastor’s Gastro Pub, only fresh garlic is being minced, only beef is skewered and only iced tea is brewed. Maybe only wedding proposals and business deals are hatched here. With the restaurant’s transparency, you can take my word for it, or come see — and taste — for yourself.
(Pastor’s Gastro Pub is located behind Hobbies of Asia across Philippine National Bank and PAL head office on Macapagal Blvd. For inquiries, call 831-0073.)
(You may e-mail me at joanneraeramirez@yahoo.com.)