About CHOP

Who We are: The Culinary Historians of the Philippines (CHOP), founded on February 18, 2011 by Regina Newport, is a Manila-based non-profit sister organization of the Culinary Historians of Washington, D.C. (CHoWDC). We are not historians in the academic or scholarly sense of the word; we are students of culinary history, food ways, and gastronomy who want to give back to society through culinary-based activities and advocacy programs.

CHOP Logo

The festive "palayok" (clay pot) represents the colorful history of Philippine cuisine, with all the various influences distilled into a truly unique culinary culture. We believe that what we learn about the past should inspire the present and the future of our own cuisine.

KALAN-BANGA, Calamba, Laguna, Saturday, June 15, 2019

CHOP raises a toast to Jose Rizal's birthplace in Calamba Laguna, in celebration of Philippine Independence Day and our national hero's birthday.

BANGSAMORO LUNCH, to celebrate Filipino Food Month (April), Saturday, April 13, 2019, at Chef Jessie's Place

CHOP embarked on an edible cultural journey to BANGSAMORO, in celebration of “Filipino Food Month” in April, and learned a lot about the food and culture of our Moro brothers and sisters. This 6-course Lunch & Lecture was curated (and cooked) by Datu Shariff Pendatun, an accomplished chef and descendant of both the pre-Islamic rajahs of Buayan in Mindanao and of  Maguindanao’s first sultan, Shariff Muhammad Kabungsuwan—an Arab-Malay prince who brought Islam to Mindanao in the 15^thcentury.

"LARAWAN, THE MUSICAL," Film Showing, Villa Escudero, February 23, 2019

The highlight of the day tour of Villa Escudero was a screening of "And Larawan," the film adaptation of "Larawan, The Musical," which is based on National Artist for Literature Nick Joaquin's play, "A Portrait of the Artist as Filipino," first published in 1952. The movie was produced by Culturtain, and the producers and other people behind the production (Director Loy Arcenas, Producer Girlie Rodis, Celeste Legaspi, and Rachel Alejandro) were in attendance, and provided very interesting information about the making of the movie during the Q&A session that followed the screening.