Chef Frances Tariga Returns Home to Launch Tadhana Makati

• Chef Frances Tariga returns to Manila after an international culinary career in cities like New York, London, and Dubai to open Tadhana Makati, which launches on May 15, 2026, at the Levanto Building on Jupiter Street.
• The restaurant is a flagship concept under MLG Hospitality (Mama Lou Group’s upscale division) and presents a modern fine-dining interpretation of Filipino cuisine.
• Its 10-course tasting menu (16 bites) reimagines everyday Filipino “middle-class cuisine” such as afritada, champorado, taho, and pares using global techniques like fermentation and dry-aging.
• The 20-seat dining room and 16-seat private space emphasize an intimate design, paired with curated cultural influences and a modern Filipino soundscape.
• Tadhana positions Filipino food within global fine dining by pairing local flavors and ingredients with premium imports, alongside a beverage program featuring wine, sake, champagne, and samalamig-inspired mocktails.

What happens when a global culinary powerhouse returns to her roots?

Chef Frances Tariga spent years building her career in some of the world’s most demanding kitchens, from New York to London to Dubai. She left the Philippines at 21 to refine her craft on an international stage, training under rigorous global standards and earning critical acclaim abroad.

Now, she returns to Makati City with a clear mission: to elevate Filipino food to the world stage without losing its everyday soul.

On May 15, 2026, she opened Tadhana Makati, a new fine-dining restaurant located at the Levanto Building on Jupiter Street. The restaurant serves as the flagship dining concept of MLG Hospitality, the upscale division of Mama Lou Group.

A new narrative for Filipino fine dining

At the center of Tadhana Makati is a 10-course tasting menu composed of 16 meticulously crafted bites. The approach combines modern techniques such as fermentation, dry-aging, and precise temperature control with deeply familiar Filipino flavor profiles.

Chef Tariga describes her culinary direction as “middle-class cuisine,” a deliberate focus on the food most Filipinos grow up eating at home.

Rather than centering heritage reconstruction or purely indigenous ingredients, Tadhana highlights dishes rooted in everyday Filipino life. Expect reinterpretations of champorado, afritada, taho, and late-night pares, elevated through refined technique and presentation.

The menu pairs premium global ingredients such as Wagyu and Kaluga caviar with local produce, including native citrus, wild greens, and fermented grains. It is a dialogue between comfort and craftsmanship, rooted in Filipino memory but executed with global technique.

Restaurant design and dining experience

The design of Tadhana Makati reflects its philosophy of cultural duality: local familiarity expressed through a global aesthetic.

The main dining room is an intimate 20-seat space designed with minimalism and warmth, prioritizing atmosphere over formality. The environment is intentionally contemporary, featuring a curated library of influences that shaped Chef Tariga’s culinary thinking, alongside a soundtrack of modern Filipino hip-hop.

For private dining, the restaurant offers a separate 16-seat room for more exclusive experiences.

Beverage program and concept

Tadhana Makati’s beverage program is structured into four distinct tracks: wine, sake, champagne, and a non-alcoholic program centered on samalamig-inspired drinks and craft mocktails.

This approach positions the restaurant within the global fine-dining conversation while maintaining a distinctly Filipino sensibility in its beverage identity.

Filipino cuisine on the global stage

Chef Frances Tariga’s return is framed as an evolution. Her goal is to demonstrate that Filipino cuisine can operate confidently within global fine dining systems without losing accessibility or cultural grounding.

By integrating international culinary discipline with Filipino hospitality, Tadhana Makati positions itself as a forward-looking expression of contemporary Filipino dining.

Photography Kim Santos