Fresh Catch, Clean Seas

 

Vicente 'Enting' Lacson Lobaton and his son Mark are the keepers of a family tradition that is evolving into a national treasure. Enting learned the trade on his father's boat - assisting him in fresh caught catch at sea, as Mark followed after, training while growing up around their fast expanding eatery business. 

Their manukan that has since drawn locals and visitors to Sagay for its hearty home cooking - mother at the till, Enting in the kitchen, Mark doing daily purchases. The family philosophy is food prepared with care - grounded and rooted in people and place. 

These food stewards have naturally evolved into advocating for the sustainable slow food practice of sourcing fresh caught, fair trade, clean food fare. Participating in the growing slow food movement in Negros Island and Terra Madre gatherings in the Visayas, and soon Asia and the Pacific as well.

Enting's Special of Sagay

Although the grilled dishes are still a main draw at their family-owned restaurant, Enting's Special of Sagay, both Enting and Mark are incomparable kinilaw artists, whom a growing crowd of food hunters purposefully come to Sagay to enjoy. 

Western Visayas is surrounded by rich fishing grounds - from Cadiz, where the big boats trawl deep open waters - to Old Sagay, where the fishermen have set up their thriving village and wet market by the water. 

Kinilaw is a dish predating colonized history by at least a thousand years - dating between the 10th to the 13th centuries A.D. It is one of the most ancient Philippine foods and methods of food preparation. 

Sagay's roadside stall offerings

It is rooted in the Filipino seafaring culture of its islands and coastal regions. Filipino food and travel experts - Doreen Fernandez, Susan Calo Madina, Claude Tayag, Ige Ramos and Clinton Palanca - have proposed kinilaw as a more distinctly Filipino national dish than the more universal adobo. 

The kinilaw national map is a geography of Filipino loves - it is a graph of our preferences, a picture book of our collective quest for that ever fleeting freshness in food. Their preparations are imbued with the alchemy of carefully balanced flavors and measured mixing of select ingredients. 

Fish at the local wet market

Under vast skies, over rolling waves, into the bright sunlight and stinging spray - Sagay is now an easy two-hour drive out of Bacolod. Sailing through wide smooth paved roads still lined in sections by sugarcane cane fields on either side - Sagay has a growing marine sanctuary, soon to rival Sipalay's. 

We left Bacolod early in the morning - driving while the day was still cool and the roads clear of traffic. We stopped by Victorias City for a light breakfast and coffee to ease us along and tide us over until the main event of our day - lunch at Enting's Special of Sagay. With an array of kinilaw specially prepared by Mark in front of our whole crew - a delightful feast of the senses, indeed. 

Interviewing Mark Laboton before he mesmerized us with his kinilaw

We were gently enticed into a carefully curated selection of seafood - fresh flavors of the sea steadily escalating in nuanced sweetness. First on the chopping board was the local Tanique (Spanish mackerel) with a distinct texture specific to the waters here - fresh catch raised in Sagay’s 32,000 hectare protected seascape. 

As Mark washed the tender chunks in brined water, we were directed to lean in and catch the cubes slowly gaining a clear gelatin shine as it absorbed the cleansing salt bath. We were each awe-struck by the wonder in the care this preparation brought on. 

Kinilaw prepping

Next to be prepared was dalinuan (yellow stripe scud) - little two-inch fingerlings, so tender and tasty. Surgically deboned and filleted from head to tail with quick and clean precise cuts down either side of its spine. 

We ended the day’s triad of delights topped with tender juicy shrimp - beheaded and deveined to keep it tasting fresh and crisp. A thin sliver of fresh cut onion (sibuyas bombay) added a zing to each bite. One young crew member who had only just been initiated into the art of eating kinilaw was immediately turned into a true believer - speaking to the power of this gastronomic delicacy. 

Holy trinity of delight & harmony

Enting's Special of Sagay ferment their own tuba vinegar - bought fresh each day, some sugar is added to bring home the sourness with a final note of sweetness, true to its Negrense roots. It is served in a bowl with some finely chopped crushed ginger and tiny wild chilies (siling labuyo). 

Here they do not soak kinilaw in the vinegar since that will cause it to cook too quickly. Instead kinilaw is dipped, never submerged for too long. 

Mark smiles with joy & pride as he presents his kinilaw

We headed home completely satisfied - taste buds awakened, bellies full, filled with wonder and delight. Loaded with take home goodies to share with our loved ones who missed our day's adventure - as we opened each parcel with them, we experienced a renewed awe as the familiar scent and tang of fresh kinilaw perked us up once more. 

As long as the sea is blue and the land is green - ever ancient and always new, treasures continue to be harvested from the bountiful, well cared for waters and soil. From past, to now, and for always - nature's stewards like Enting and Mark continue to contribute to their thriving community. May their tribe thrive. 

Article by: Issa Urra (bhaktiCD.org)

Photos by: Unit A Creatives / Mayee Fabregas / Enting’s special of Sagay FB page