It all started when Center for Asian Culinary Studies student Judy Ann Santos informed me that she was going to be Chef Tony’s sidekick for a day. They were going to our school, and Café Ysabel was one of their stopovers.

I’m a great fan of Anthony Bourdain, having read his "Kitchen Confidential" almost a decade ago and enjoyed the blunt frankness, the sharp-edged wit, and the seemingly sinister irreverence for gourmet personas. Plus, there are randy and carnal exploits, which kitchen personnel are predisposed to, yet which he avoids, because it may point accusing fingers and create issues that would be a nuisance to his fresh, second marriage.

Nevertheless, I’ve followed his programs on all the red-eyed mornings they’d show his episodes on, and as the years passed, Bourdain the chef evolved into a gastronomic philosopher – fearless, better honed for the world, with the same mix of intelligent, cunning, and sardonic wit that keeps viewers asking for more. It has come to a point that when I’m in a country he’s visited, a pilgrimage to places he’s featured seems to be part of the tour. And he was surprised at all the places I’ve checked out which he featured on his shows.

Café Ysabel was in charge of showing Anthony Bourdain the Spanish-Filipino heritage and European influences that left a mark on our national cuisine. I thought it was a good time to present "La Cocina Sulipeña," our town cuisine in Pampanga. Having watched what our TV host liked in his programs, I saw that he was most inspired by classic ancestral recipes that demanded care, preparation, and lengthy cooking, something that seems to be a rarity in the urban jungles where his shows are a hit.

One can see the total preparation of the courses to be served and how proud I was to see how intense everyone was, from my son, Gino, who took the reins of the preparations, to Junjun de Guzman, who never left his desserts, and my sous chefs Toto and Lawrence. My daughter Giannina, our food stylist, chose the dishes to be plated on camera. It seemed as though this was the fulfillment of dream to get the Philippines seen on the world map of gastronomy. I even had to shoo Juday away that night from the kitchen and tell her to get some rest, as she had joined the preparations from the start.

The crew arrived a few hours beforehand. It seemed that they were all familiar to me, having seen glimpses of them in many episodes, particularly Todd (the guy who gained fame when he accidentally crashed plates at Padang restaurant in Bali). We immediately hit it off, and they proceeded to shoot us doing the dishes as Chef Tony came in. Juday and I were seated with him for our interview, tasting, and discussion.

Like any chef, he is impressed by off-cuts, variety meats, and offal. This is because it is food that is filled with machismo: "pagkain ng mga barako," stud, or chef food as we would term it. It is not pretentious, it is tasty, difficult to cook and prepare. Cooks, slaves, and household help labored over their stoves to produce this flavorful food with touches of bravado and creativity.

He also enjoys game, and if served without the macabre trimmings, it will be well appreciated. (So as not to pre-empt the show, I would suggest that all Pinoy foodies watch this episode on Discovery Travel and Living in February 2009.)

As Tony dined on cam, I was waiting for the familiar "umm" sound. I’ve come to realize that one measure of delight is the sound or voice tone that emanates from every regular diner that my waiters look for and report. I’ve heard it all, from a simple lip smack to voices going falsetto, and we did hear Tony’s TV "umm."

The dinner was a complete Cocido Sulipeño done from scratch with cured duck, chicken, pata, and homemade sausage, all braised with beef shanks, vegetables, bananas, chickpeas, and beans, served with four accompanying sauces – a roasted eggplant, a squash puree, a tomato sofrito, and an arayat vinaigrette.

I do believe food as a bonding experience or as an instrument for appreciation should dig deep into the portion of a being’s collective unconscious. Therefore, its history and anthropology have to be well-explained to introduce and complete the experience. Juday went further into her explanations on Filipino eating, family, and celebrations. It took Bourdain a few moments to know that the feeling she was describing was having the Pinoy host take charge of the guest’s life once they are under the host’s roof.

Chef Tony even liked the Corte Riva Petite Sirah 2005 made by Filipinos, Cortes and Rivera in Napa Valley, during the shoot. I complemented him for his discerning taste in wine because I boasted that our Pinoy winemakers made five wines and all took five points each from Robert Parker’s ratings.

As I asked him about his quick views on Filipino foodies, one of the dishes he said which had made its mark on him is sisig. I even told him that now we have to import pigs’ heads due to the demand, and it is a throwaway item in abattoirs abroad. Of course, it can’t go without its partner, the classic Pale Pilsen, which we served after the shoot.

He observed that one of the most interesting and unique features of Philippine cooking, one which fascinates him is how we mix bitter flavors with our food. When he first heard about it, he was really put off until he tried pinapaitan, which he thought was sheer genius, and ampalaya, among others.

I did explain that bitter flavors do not only have a medicinal side (as he was surprised that Ilocanos have pinapaitan for breakfast), but also enhance the appetite as I compared Campari and Jagermmeister as stomach calmers at the end, like an Underberg. I also told him to look for a sweet finish at the end, if he ever tries another bowl of pinapaitan, after the bitter onslaught.

After the shoot, we invited the crew for dinner. Though stuffed, Chef Tony said he would oblige us with a few bites. The producer, Jared, told us that Tony hardly eats off-cam, reserving himself, but this time he was feasting lovingly on Gino’s morcillas or blood sausages and the mixed meats, calling it absolute genius because this was everything he liked. (Unfortunately, we did not shoot this).

This hearty dinner went on well; he quaffed more beer and the others drank their fill of more Mediterranean wine with the food. For enders, Chef Tony downed a tocino del cielo in two gulps. He compared it with the Portuguese version, made with pork fat, after we explained that as a Spanish colony, all egg whites were used for building churches. This is also why he realized Mexicans and South Americans are addicted to flans and custards.

His visit to the Philippines certainly will console a national spirit hungry for recognition of its cuisine. I think Pinoys won’t have to approach him on the street now and ask why we have been passed over so many times.

His parting words to me were, "Gene, how do you put the Philippines and write about it in a one-hour show?" The answer was simple – "You don’t! This is just scratching the surface and when you come back, there are so many delicious meals you still have to go through and many loving families to host you." As they say in New York Chef Tony, "You ain’t seen nothin’ yet!"