In the latest episode of our Munchies series Family Food, we visited a popular Filipino restaurant in Queens, New York: Renee’s Kitchenette.
This home-style family restaurant was named after the family’s matriarch, who has worked there for over thirty years.
Today, she’s joined by her sons, daughter, and granddaughter, all of whom help cook delicious, traditional Filipino specialties. The eatery takes inspiration from native Pampanga in the Philippines, where Renee grew up.
The beloved mother and grandmother originally opened the restaurant with her husband, who loved cooking. In fact, her husband is the one who named the restaurant after Renee. Unfortunately, he’s since passed away, but his legacy lives on through his family.
Renee’s Kitchenette was the first Filipino restaurant in its neighborhood of Little Manila, Woodside, Queens, and is known for kare kare, as well as a variety of grilled meats. The family gets their ingredients from local Asian supermarkets.
“We grill everything, from fish to pork,” Erwin Dizon, Renee’s eldest son, said. “Anything we can put our hands on, we grill it.”
“All these dishes come from my grandparents, which passed down to my dad, which passed down to us,” he continued. “So it just comes from the heart. Whatever we do here is for them.”
Emma Dizon, Renee’s daughter, compared the restaurant to the family’s “kitchen from home.”
As Renee explained, her husband was an incredible chef who loved teaching others how to cook. “Even though he’s not here anymore … everybody is here to help me and continue his legacy,” she said.
“This is our love, and we’re doing it for her,” Erwin added. “And we’re doing it for my dad.”
You can watch the full interview on Munchies below.
The post The Family Restaurant Making the Best Filipino Food in NYC appeared first on VICE.
