SOURING WITH TRUE SAVORY TASTE

To put it simply, it is the Filipino version of the buffet, except there are no plates, no utensils, no seats, no napkins, and only the most necessary table manners. Everyone lines up at the table and digs in. There is no need for etiquette, and as its name proposes, a boodle fight stresses a gathering of diners. The fighting, however, does not mean beating up one another. Instead, the goal is to “fight” over the best space and best food available on the table. Nothing represents the Filipino spirit of camaraderie and love of good food like a ‘kamayan’ feast or a boodle fight.

The Catch Seafoods and Grill Restaurant offers a selection of authentic Filipino cuisine in the most palatable way possible. It prides itself in serving top-notch boodle feasts that are not just pleasing to the palette but appealing to the eyes as well. Apart from the famous seafood boodle, the restaurant’s specialty is their grilled Tuna Panga (Tuna’s Jaw) - a delicacy known in the Visayas - one of the three principal geographical divisions of the Philippines. Many customers love its heavenly-rare taste because it was prepared using their unique and secret mixture. Although most of the items are homegrown Filipino dishes, the restaurant also offers a variety of menu items suited for other nationalities.

Embarking on a business venture in the middle of a pandemic poses numerous challenges and implies that it will be an impossible feat. In the restaurant industry, working with a loved one is undoubtedly and uniquely trying: the long hours, the punitive smoke, the dubiousness of success, and more variables would take a toll on two strangers, let alone two individuals who share a home, both smelling like onion, garlic, fried fish and everything else they burned that day. “Paradoxically enough, the reason that we work well together is that we have been together for nine years. Our shared moments have refined our understanding of what each person does well and where we each, respectively, may need reinforcement. We confidently trust and wholly believe each other not to feel over whelmed by it all. Working together is wonderfully rewarding yet challenging at times as we experience joy and hardship in equal measure. Even if we are working a 16-hour day, we are hyper-aware that what we are doing is hopefully making our lives and our staffs’ lives a tad easier and counterbalances some of the exhaustion—maybe not the tension of the day so much, but for sure exhaustion. Doing this alone would be much harder. It is also a highly-motivating environment that presents new and exciting trials that keep our relationship stronger.” says Michael, The Catch Seafoods and Grill Restaurant co-owner.

“The true clandestine towards working is the division of labour, alongside respect for the other person’s area of expertise,” adds Nikki, co-owner and Michael’s wife. She was a Human Resource Manager before she decided to go full time with her husband as head of the administrative and marketing.

Nikki is grateful that they are slowly gaining momentum in the food industry despite the challenges. “The excellence of our cuisine, the relentless efforts of our staff, and our desire to help the community in the most unprecedented of times are what make our restaurant successful. This motivation has allowed us to grow personally and continue developing our business for the years to come. The key is value for each other’s work, passion, much dialogue, and above all love for what we do.”