But she’s not about to leave either Rockwell or Top of the Citi anytime soon. With this latest development, fans of her cooking simply have a new venue to indulge themselves in with what the chef has to offer.
By Alex Y. Vergara
After decades of preparing meals for her catering business in different kitchens, Chef Jessie Sincioco now has a new and permanent “home” in Makati. Aptly named Chef Jessie’s Place, the newly constructed five-story building along Obrero Street (between Pililla and Tanay Streets) in Barangay Olympia, Makati is now partly operational.
Apart from functioning as the central kitchen for all her catering events, Chef Jessie envisions the place as an events venue, as it also houses two huge rooms on the third and second floors that could sit up to 100 and 200 persons, respectively. Designed by Architect Arnold Laxama, the building and its interiors are now undergoing finishing touches except for the kitchen, which is already fully operational.
“I’ve decided to turn part of the building as an events venue to introduce the place to people,” says Chef Jessie, who’s also the woman behind such restaurants as Rockwell Club and Top of the Citi by Chef Jessie. “It would depend on people’s response. Once the place becomes popular, I’m open to the idea of putting up a casual-dining restaurant here.”
For now, the two rooms are open for small, intimate parties, including product launches, baptism, and even small wedding parties. The menu, she says, “shouldn’t go far from what I’m doing, which are mostly French and Mediterranean.” But the chef, who has gained a reputation over the years for catering to various diplomatic and embassy parties, also wants to serve “internationally known” Filipino dishes.
Since starting her catering business in the early 1990s, Chef Jessie prepared her offerings, which included huge and high-profile gatherings like feeding thousands of Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation delegates, including 21 heads of state in 2017, as well as personally providing Pope Francis his meals during the pontiff’s papal visit in Manila in 2015, at various locations. A separate location in nearby Cardona Street houses additional tools of the trade such as tables, chairs and various catering equipment.
“Most of the time, my team and I prepared the food at Rockwell. Sometimes, we also cooked them at the Top of the Citi,” she says. “It was a bit difficult for us, especially during big events, but we made do.”
Cooking in these places has now become a thing of the past with the opening of Chef Jessie’s Place. And since almost all her heavy-duty kitchen appliances have reached their full productive lives, she deemed it wise to invest in new ones, from ovens to stoves, refrigerators to freezers. All of them are on full display, as she toured us in her bright, spanking and state-of-the-art kitchen.
Once it formally opens sometime in March, Chef Jessie’s Place will also house her company’s offices on the fourth floor as well as a pastry and coffee shop on the first floor. A roof deck on the fifth floor is another potential party venue. But what Chef Jessie is most excited about is the circular-shaped chapel adjacent to her offices. Dedicated to the Holy Trinity, the place of worship, which features a skylight at the center, was designed by the devout Roman Catholic chef herself.
“When I was having the building designed, I told the architects before they submitted their respective designs that there’s one area that’s non-negotiable. And that’s the chapel on the top floor,” Chef Jessie shares.
The circular, glass-covered opening on the ceiling not only functions as a natural source of light, but also symbolizes, says Chef Jessie, God the Father, “who’s the source of everything.” A “Star of Bethlehem,” inspired by the original one featured at the Church of the Nativity in Jerusalem, also occupies a place of honor in the chapel.
“We all know that Jesus himself is the Star of Bethlehem,” she says. “To complete the Holy Trinity, I will have an image of the Holy Spirit installed over there.”
As a Valentine treat to a number of journalists, food columnists and bloggers, Chef Jessie opened her place to them on Valentine’s Day. The second floor venue hosted a sit-down dinner (P2,000 per person), while the much bigger venue upstairs featured a buffet spread of some of the chef’s classic dishes (P3,500 for two persons). As the night wore on, the former became a jazz bar of sorts, as guests were encouraged to sing or try their hand at the piano. Meanwhile, those upstairs, including this writer, were treated to a joint performance by singers Renz Fernando and Madonna Decena.
The writers shared both venues to paying guests, but Chef Jessie didn’t earn a single centavo from both dinner parties, as proceeds from the simultaneous events went to Caritas Manila, one of her preferred beneficiaries. By the way, fans of Chef Jessie’s cooking need not worry. She’s not leaving Rockwell or Top of the City anytime soon in favor of her new place. With this development, they now have more venues to indulge themselves in to what she has to offer.
