A taste of the Philippines
North Sydney restaurant serving up Filipino-style cuisine
NORTH SYDNEY — A slow and steady introduction to the rich and flavourful foods of the Philippines is now underway at the recently opened D’Theatre Resto and Bar in North Sydney.
Tempting the palates of visitors to the business venture of longtime friends Josh de Leon and Jaclyn Molto so far are pork cubes cooked in coconut milk and chilli peppers known as Bicol Express as well as adobo with chicken or pork and all of its spices.
There’s also crispy pata and pepper steak made fresh in the kitchen of Cape Breton’s first Filipino restaurant.
“This one, it is really good when you are drinking beer. It’s like an appetizer,” De Leon said as a steaming plate of pork sisig, a blend of minced pork with onions, peppers, ginseng and garlic, is placed on a table.
“We have the crispy pata, which is the pork knuckles. It’s deep fried. The skin is crispy — it’s really popular back home.”
Many more dishes popular in the Philippines will also be added to the menu, based on feedback from diners.
“We are still making North American foods but our inspiration is to introduce Canadians to our native cuisines,” said Molto. “In most of the islands we have different cultures and languages, so most provinces have their own dishes, too.”
That goes for the breakfast menu, as well, which now features the standard sausage, bacon, ham and eggs joined by what might be found on a plate most mornings in the Philippines. Cured beef and eggs with plain rice, fried milkfish, pork belly slices and sweet sausage are all part of morning servings at the new eatery.
Though the restaurant is relatively new to downtown North Sydney after officially opening three weeks ago, its two owners who live on the Northside have much experience in the food service industry.
Molto, 42, has 20 years of management experience in restaurants in Cape Breton and the Philippines, while de Leon, 37, has 10.
Both were immediately hired by the McDonald’s franchise upon their arrival here six years ago and both still work there while running their new restaurant and working other jobs.
“Six of us were hired at the same time at McDonald's and we came here at the same time,” said de Leon, who first met Molto in the airport as both were headed for Cape Breton for the first time.
“We are like families. We became friends and then friends who treat each other as family. We share ideas and we said ‘Why not put up a restaurant or bar? I think that would do good.’ We need to put something in North Sydney to make it more lively. First thing we want to introduce is the Filipino cuisine and tradition.”
As with all restaurant ventures, investment, capital and the right place to set up are the challenges. The D’Theatre opportunity came about through de Leon’s work at the neighbouring Canton Family Restaurant, where its owner, who also owns the D’Theatre location, suggested he open their Filipino restaurant there.
The two considered the idea for more than a year before opening its bar portion in November and then the restaurant in January.
Both are off to promising starts.
“We often thought we would open our own business because we have the knowledge but we don’t have the means, we don’t have the money,” said Molto.
“We were not really expecting that this opportunity would come. He was talking about his boss offering this building to us. It started from there. Every year is a struggle but we said that if we really wanted to make things happen, we have to do all the things that we can do. Our knowledge, our skills and the connections, we can talk to them just to make this all work.”
The bar portion of the venture is on the floor above the restaurant and features seating for more than 160, a large bar, dance floor and a stage to host either a band or a DJ. There’s also a room set aside to host private functions.
The restaurant has seating for 40 and has seen a steady clientele from neighbouring businesses but its owners are hopeful people from across the Cape Breton Regional Municipality will discover what they have to offer.