Malu and J Gamboa share their family secrets

MANILA, Philippines - It’s all in the family for J and Malu Gamboa’s restaurant, Milky Way, following in the footsteps of their mother Julie Araullo-Gamboa. The brother-sister tandem has been keeping the restaurant’s well-loved family traditions not only for next-of-kin, but for loyal customers who have been visiting the restaurant for generations.

Milky Way was first opened by Maria Cartagena de Tomas as an ice cream parlor in the 1950s. When she moved to the United States, the Araullo sisters bought the restaurant that stood across from Malacañang. “They were advised not to be business partners because they were sisters,” Malu confides.

The sisters’ partnership thrived and the business flourished, and soon, aside from ice cream, they started adding their own Pampango specialties. “And chicken asparagus sandwiches,” Malu says of the dish that soon became one of the most popular offerings, enduring to this day.

From the 1970s to 1990s, Milky Way branched out into fast food centers and office cafeterias, the menu evolving into a 350-entree list, coupled with 220 soups and salads, 180 desserts, and 72 sandwiches.

Growing up amidst the hustle and bustle of the Milky Way restaurant, both Malu and J have fond childhood memories. “All of us kids would work in the summer,” says Malu. She remembers handing out trays, opening soft drink bottles, and serving shakes. “It was more like hanging out and having fun,” says J. “We were always busog and happy!” 

Because they practically grew up in the restaurant, Malu says, “We enjoy being with a lot of people. We enjoy great food and travel,” adding that the whole family makes it a point to travel together at least once a year and taste the local cuisine of the places they visit.

J shares that his early exposure to food at the restaurant made him interested in pursuing culinary studies, which he did at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst, graduating cum laude with a Bachelor of Science degree in Hotel, Restaurant and Travel Administration.

J is happy that more and more Filipinos are becoming professional chefs. “As more Filipinos become professional chefs, our local food will also develop.”

When he is not busy at his different restaurants, J is active in programs wherein he teaches local cooks Western standards of cooking. But he always makes it clear to the participants of these programs: “You are here to learn techniques, but apply these techniques and standards to your own local cuisine.” He stresses that the taste itself should not be changed, but the food can be improved by using a higher level of technique. J adds, “Filipino cuisine could become the next hot international cuisine if we improve the standards and techniques used.”

Today, the family maintains three Milky Way branches in Rockwell Power Plant, Makati, and Greenhills V Mall, while a cousin owns a Milky Way grill in Las Piñas.

“We are very hands-on,” says Malu. “Mom goes to the Greenhills branch every week,” she says, adding that their mother is already in her 70s. And following their mother’s partnership with her siblings, Malu and J have been enjoying a fruitful partnership.

“We get along because we can’t do the same things,” says Malu, explaining that she works best as the front of house – meeting with clients, talking with guests – while J finds fulfillment in all aspects of cooking, from buying and sourcing the ingredients to cooking the food and developing the menu. The siblings have been working together for 15 years, since opening El Cirkulo, a tapas restaurant, in 1995. Since their first business venture together, Malu and J have also opened Azuthai, a Thai restaurant. Though they already have their own successful restaurants, Malu says that the siblings still keep up Milky Way because “among all of our restaurants, it is the most popular and the most favorite. It is still doing well.”

When it comes to making changes in the restaurant, J says immediately: “The menu is set in stone,” adding, “All the food we serve here is food that we like to eat. If we don’t like to eat it, we don’t sell it... This is food we can stand by.” Malu adds, “The food here is like food in our house,” highlighting how Milky Way is a very personal family affair for them.

Though the restaurant offers lutong bahay, Malu and J recall many of their friends have given up trying to duplicate the dishes at home. One of the dishes that has been often imitated but never duplicated is Milky Way’s crispy hito dish. Surprisingly, the dish came to be during one family lunch, without any plans of putting it on the menu. “Katuwaan lang (Just for fun),” says Malu. “ We thought nobody will order this – it’s just hito.” But since the family enjoyed the dish so much, it made it into the menu and has turned out to be one of the restaurant’s biggest hits. “We serve 20 to 30 of these a day.”

 For the most out-of-this-world Milky Way experience, Malu and J suggest tokwa’t baboy (clients swear it is the best in town), crispy hito, their award-winning kare-kare, crispy pata, and adobong pusit. For merienda, pancit luglog and halo-halo are highly recommended.

The crispy pata is particularly special, the siblings say. Unlike the usual, suckling pig is used to make this deluxe version of crispy pata most succulent, and thus needs to be ordered ahead.

As for the halo-halo, Malu explains that it is especially tasty because “we make every ingredient” – from the sago and beans to the ice cream on top. “That’s the difference here,” she says, adding that the dishes are made by the original cooks. J says that it is the high-quality ingredients that make the dishes more luxurious.

“We still have ten of the cooks from when my mom started,” says Malu. “They love cooking... It’s their life.” Even their nieces and nephews have come into the fold to become the next generation of cooks, making Milky Way a family restaurant not just of the Gamboas, but of the cooks’ and the loyal clientele’s families as well.

Malu says that while they are retaining the authentic tastes of their offerings, what they have improved on through the years is the food quality. “J has brought in modern and scientific ways of cooking,” shares Malu.

J adds that they have improved the standards. “Before, cooking was done mostly by feel. Now we have modern techniques to provide higher quality and be more consistent and efficient.”

“We hope to maintain and keep improving the quality of our food,” says Malu on Milky Way’s future. “We hope to remain a regular dining option of our guests” and their families for many more generations to come.

In line with improvements that the Gamboas are making, they have decided to go back to their sweet roots. “We are excited about relaunching our ice cream line,” says Malu. Milky Way has gone back to offering their time-tested ice cream flavors – ube, cheese, and avocado. “These are original flavors from the 1950s,” Malu adds.

From its start as an ice cream parlor to a canteen to a full-fledged restaurant now with ice cream back on the menu, J says, “We are coming full circle.”

Now, Chef J introduces his daughter Lucia as “our newest employee.” Just like her father did many years ago, Lucia spent her summer helping out at the restaurant – and having a grand time doing it, proving that at Milky Way, there are no family secrets, just delicious traditions waiting to be shared.