The Panlasa Project (2016) is a documentary series focused on Philippine culinary heritage. The research began as a thesis project for the master’s degree in Food Studies at New York University. With the purpose of exploring the complexities of the Filipino palate, the hope for Panlasa (the Tagalog word for ‘taste’) was to address the challenges of defining a national Philippine cuisine through recorded interviews, cooking demonstrations, and recipes. From Filipino chefs to food writers and historians, the project aimed to capture a variety of culinary experiences and insights.

This iteration of the project has evolved primarily into an archive of family recipes, particularly from the late Filipino historian, antiquarian, and gourmand Martin “Sonny” Imperial Tinio, Jr., whose contribution to the research was immense and invaluable. A man of refined taste and vast knowledge, Tito Sonny opened his mind and his kitchen to the project, allowing glimpses into the lives of Filipino aristocracy long past. He shared all he knew about food and food history over several field trips and decadent meals, even requesting old family recipes be made in the laborious, traditional ways just to be filmed.

The project followed Tito Sonny from noisy restaurants in Manila to his serene family house in Baguio. It accompanied him to lavish parties in Batangas, where he knew which houses had the best dishes and where one shouldn’t waste their calories. It even trailed the family cook, Luis, as he wound through the tight stalls of the wet market buying supplies for several of the family’s meals. In the end, Tito Sonny and his love of food became the heart, soul, and stomach of The Panlasa Project.

I owe so much of what I know and appreciate about Philippine cuisine to Tito Sonny and I am eternally grateful to have learned from him. I dedicate this work to him with the hope that viewers will find something interesting and delicious to savor in it. From historical insight about the difference between the tsokolates and tips about pressing coconut milk or choosing the best crabs, there is so much to know from Tito Sonny. Yet, I would say that the greatest advice he ever gave was, “Eat when the food is good. Diet when the food is bad.”

The Panlasa Project (2016)

“The way we eat, what we eat, what we like to eat defines us all the time.”

Featuring: Sandy Daza, Micky Fenix, Patis Pamintuan Tesoro, and Martin Imperial Tinio, Jr.

Rellenong Bangus

Rellenong bangus (stuffed milk fish) recipe from the family house of Martin Imperial Tinio, Jr.

the lechonera

Martin Imperial Tinio, Jr. gives a tour of Mila’s Lechon in Quezon City and shares lore of lechon’s origin

stir-fried kangkong

Sandy Daza shares his stir-fried kangkong recipe in his kitchen at the Wooden Spoon

Director & Producer: Kayla Sotomil
Cinematographer & Editor: Harry Cepka
Sound Editor for trailer and bangus videos: Blair McClendon

Illustrator: Alexis Lopez
Banner design: Sean David Christensen

Special Thanks:
Sandy Daza, Micky Fenix, Patis Pamintuan Tesoro, Luis, Martin Imperial Tinio, Jr., Loudardo “Ochie” Zapanta, Elizabeth & Jesus Fernando, Jerico Fernando, Nina Tesoro Poblador, Pedro & Francisca Sotomil, and Jennifer Berg & NYU Food Studies

Dedicated to Martin Imperial Tinio, Jr. (1943-2019)