“The ultimate supportive tita” was how Raul described Margarita. Although his mother and aunt have long been in the food industry, he didn’t choose the same path until he was a year and a half into his Creative Writing program at the University of British Columbia; he transferred to Johnson & Wales Culinary School in Rhode Island. They didn’t force him to—“in fact, they almost encouraged us not to,” Raul says, due to the tough and relentless pace of running food businesses that makes one rush through family dinners or miss holidays completely—but when Margarita heard of it, she quickly called him back to wish him luck. “She always left her line open. It didn’t matter how busy she was—in whatever event she was in, if she couldn’t answer then, she would always call back and hear out my questions.”
Beyond belief
When Raul returned home after his studies, Margarita invited him to cook with her at some events, though he felt he lacked the experience to do so. In 2017, he, along with her mentees Jorge Mendez and Angelo Comsti were invited to cook in a four-hands dinner with Vicky Cheng at VEA, his Michelin-starred restaurant in Hong Kong. “I told her, ‘Ta Marge, baka you want somebody better? I’m like, ‘Michelin-starred restaurant, ‘di ko kaya ‘yan.’ Sabi niya, ‘Ano ka ba? Of course, kaya mo yan.’ ” Raul agreed to join: “I was so nervous,” he recalls. “That was probably the best kitchen I’ve worked in at that time, and chef Margarita just said, ‘Hey, just cook. Relax. You got this.’ ”
It was the biggest push Margarita gave Raul, and it gave him the confidence he needed to move forward. “When she invited me to cook at VEA,” he pauses and says, “it taught me that I could do anything. Ever since then, it’s become a memory that I go back to whenever I doubt myself.”
Another time was when the she recruited him again to cook in a collaboration dinner with Alain Passard, whose Parisian restaurant, L’Arpège, has held its three-star Michelin rating since 1996. The kitchen was a tense, high-pressure environment, as is typical of French kitchens, but when the last plates of apple tarts and French cheeses were sent off, he found himself standing in silence with Miko Calo, Alain, and Margarita. “We all looked at each other, tapos nagtawanan na lang kaming apat,” Raul recalls. “When it’s all said and done, we’re all still human. You don’t do this to be yelled at. You do this because you enjoy doing it. So, if there’s something she taught me—and even my mom taught me—you’re supposed to love what you’re doing.”
In full support
Being present was Margarita’s gift to the country’s food and beverage industry. “We’ve opened nine Mamous in the time that it’s been open. Every single one that Margarita was alive for, she was there at the opening. Every single one. She would make it a point to be there,” Raul says. Even if Margarita was at work elsewhere, she would appear in this old friend’s restaurant opening or that new chef’s pop-up, until the last week of her life, when, tired from a catering event in Tagaytay, she appeared at Palacio de Memoria for an occasion. “She was always that person.”
Margarita’s talked about among circles in the food and beverage industry, especially in afterparties. “We just expect her to walk in,” Raul says.
Frequently Asked Questions
Margarita Forés is a celebrated Filipino chef, culinary pioneer, icon, and mentor to many in the local food and beverage industry. She is also known for being the aunt and mentor of chef Raul Forés.
No, they almost encouraged him and others not to enter the industry because the tough and relentless pace of running food businesses often leads to rushed family dinners and missed holidays.
Margarita invited Raul to cook with her at some events after finishing his studies. He was brought along to cook in a four-hands dinner with Vicky Cheng at VEA, his Michelin-starred restaurant in Hong Kong. They also participated in a high-pressure collaboration dinner with Alain Passard at his three-star Michelin Parisian restaurant, L’Arpège
Raul learned from his aunt how you do not work in the kitchen just to be yelled at, but because you enjoy it, and that you are supposed to love what you are doing even in intense environments.
She was known for her fierce loyalty and habit of personally showing up to support every single restaurant opening, such as every Mamou opening she was alive for, and even new pop-up events until her final days.
