For Boutwood, Filipino food is in its new era of confidence.
Josh Boutwood’s handlebar mustache is almost impossible to miss at first glance: striking, deliberate, and confident. It embodies the character of the celebrity chef, whose take on contemporary Filipino cuisine is just as bold: ever-evolving yet timeless, multifaceted yet distinct.
“Right now, there’s not much big difference between what we enjoy in the Philippines and what the world enjoys,” Boutwood told radar in a sit-down interview. “We have become so sophisticated that we can pretty much do whatever we want to.”
The Filipino-British Boutwood speaks from experience, having pushed Philippine cuisine to new heights in his restaurants. The Test Kitchen, as its name suggests, is where he champions experimentation with dishes shaped by his years as corporate executive chef of The Bistro Group, whose brands include TGI Friday’s, Italianni’s, and Fish & Co. Helm offers an intimate, theatrical experience with a multi-course tasting menu for just 24 guests in a minimalistic room of black, copper, and gray. Ember blends cultures on each plate, showcasing diverse techniques and ingredients while celebrating global flavors. Juniper provides carefully crafted courses, from appetizer to dessert, each designed to complement gin-based drinks.
Last September, he brought that same fusion-minded, sophisticated approach to Osteria, a limited-time pop-up inspired by Italy’s casual eateries. The pop-up, according to him, was “a bastardized style of Italian”—not as an act of rebellion but as an affectionate take on a cuisine he has long admired, shaped by his mixed heritage and multifaceted training.
“I don’t have an Italian grandmother,” he said with a smile. “Oftentimes, it feels very wrong to create a cuisine where you don’t have any connection to that culture. But I always have love and passion for Italian food. I enjoy eating it, and I want to replicate a restaurant that I enjoy eating in.”
Boutwood noted that Filipinos are no strangers to adaptation, even becoming playful in the process. He highlighted the sweet spaghetti filled with hotdogs and processed cheese and the carbonara made creamy with all-purpose cream and evaporated milk. To him, these show how Filipino tastes reinterpret influences rather than merely imitate them.
“[The sweet] spaghetti is made in such a way that our generations grew up to it,” he said. “We’re so accustomed to that flavor profile that when we’re in other countries, we kind of miss it.” He recalled a family trip to London where his kids lit up at the sight of a familiar Filipino fast-food chain: “It’s quite challenging when you have a traditional bolognese and not appreciate the one you grew up on.”
For Boutwood, every culture has the right to interpret any cuisine as it sees fit. “In my understanding, we belong to the world. Countries are just borders, imaginary lines,” he said.
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He, of all people, should know that. As his website notes, his formative years were “almost nomadic,” moving from Bedford to Boracay to Northern Europe. In the aughts, he traveled between Spain and the United Kingdom, working as a dishwasher and prep cook for his mother’s restaurants before returning to Boracay in 2010 and settling in Metro Manila two years later.
Reflecting on a career defined by movement and curiosity, he said the truest form of appreciation for any cuisine is adapting it until it becomes understandable to a particular culture. “It’s not challenging for us to accept slight differences in cuisines. Instead, we’re able to enjoy those interpretations as Filipinos.”
The new era of freedom for Filipino cuisine
Boutwood believes Filipino cuisine has entered a new era of freedom, especially now that the COVID-19 pandemic is behind the industry. “We become a lot more traveled, acceptable to different cuisines,” he said. “For me as a chef, that is fantastic because it puts me in a position where I can experiment to new heights and challenge the boundaries as much as possible.”
After the success of Osteria, Boutwood’s appetite for innovation and creativity remains insatiable. He’s refocusing on Helm, which recently launched a Harry Potter-inspired tasting menu following a successful Star Wars run. He’s also revisiting his popular monochromatic dishes, in which a meal features a dominant color in multiple hues.
“It’s exciting for us,” he said. “We’re changing the menu, we’re trying out different ideas and combinations of flavor.”
October also marks a tense yet thrilling time for Filipino chefs. On the 30th, the MICHELIN Guide, which awards the culinary industry’s coveted MICHELIN stars denoting world-class standards in food and service, will announce its inaugural Philippine restaurant selection. Inspectors began their selection process last February in Metro Manila, Pampanga, Tagaytay, Cavite, and Cebu.
But Boutwood, his signature handlebar mustache intact, maintains grace under pressure. Despite some stress while waiting for that email “any moment,” he remains more exuberant than anxious.
“Fifteen years ago, I find it very hard to remember the cuisine we had because we just had so much greatness up until then,” he said. “At the moment, Filipino cuisine is absolutely on fire. The energy is so electrifying… We’ll see what happens.”
