SINGAPORE – Where would you go to find the best Filipino cuisine in your neighborhood?

If you actually live in the Philippines, there’d be no debate. Just step out of your front door and head to your favorite eatery.

But in Singapore, things are a little different. While there is a vibrant Filipino community here, Filipino cuisine isn’t as popular as, say, Japanese or Thai food. That makes finding an authentic Filipino restaurant serving delicious food a little bit harder. But it can be done, if you know just where to look.

Kuya’s Kusinang Pinoy (My Brother’s Kitchen) is located on the ground floor of an unassuming building in Singapore’s North Bridge Road, just outside of the main city center. There are famous landmarks nearby, like the National Library and the colonial-era Raffles Hotel, but Kuya’s Kusinang Pinoy is easy to walk past.

Stop at the leafy green exterior of the restaurant, however, and walk in, and you will be rewarded with the delicious smells and appetizing sights of authentic, freshly-cooked Filipino cuisine, everything from sisig to lechon to bulalo soup, all made according to family recipes.

Starting out

Family is at the heart of Kuya’s Kusinang Pinoy, run by the Bonus family, including mother Sandra, father Raymond (both 51) and daughter Marie, 27. They hail from the Pampanga province in Luzon, but they didn’t all come to Singapore at once. In fact, they didn’t come to Singapore intending to go into the F&B industry at all.

Sandra was the first of the family to arrive, drawn by the promise of working as a nurse. She heard about the opportunity from a relative and flew over in 2007 in search of a new life.

Her husband Raymond joined her in Singapore after a few years. Having worked as a jeepney driver in the Philippines, he worked in a Filipino restaurant (as there are obviously no jeepneys in Singapore). For a while, life was good. Then the COVID-19 pandemic struck in December 2019.

“Nurses were not allowed to go out of Singapore, my children were in the Philippines,” Sandra recalled. “So basically, [it was] only the two of us here.”

To make matters worse, Raymond was let go from his job and was unemployed for some months. But there was a silver lining, as the couple saw the opportunity amid their adversity.

“Those were the times we tried catering to [staff] at NUH (National University Hospital). Not many food stalls were open, and I had Filipino colleagues, craving for Filipino food,” Sandra said.

Raymond was already well-known among her colleagues for whipping up sumptuous Filipino meals whenever they held parties and gatherings at their house. Sandra would collate orders from her colleagues for lunch and dinner, Raymond would cook them at home, and then bring them over to the hungry crowd.

Raymond, a stocky man with a big smile, shared that his love of cooking came from his own parents, who owned a family business in their local market, serving food to customers. Cooking became a passion for him, and he combined his mother’s recipes with his own creations. Sandra’s colleagues certainly loved it.

“They were the ones who said, why don’t you open a restaurant?” Sandra recalled.

Taking the plunge

In November 2020, Raymond and Sandra took the plunge. They opened their own restaurant at North Bridge Road, in the same premises as a former restaurant where Raymond once worked. He was familiar with the area, even making friends with the security guards in the building. Kuya’s Kusinang Pinoy got its start.

But the couple felt there was something missing. Their daughter Marie was a business graduate, and they felt her research and marketing skills would be very valuable in helping them jumpstart their new enterprise.

Even though she was still in the Philippines, she used Google to conduct research on the area, scouting out the competition and the likely customer market. But a choice faced Marie, who had her own small business in the Philippines. Should she continue with it, or go to Singapore and help her parents?

In the end, Marie decided to take the more challenging route, and move to a different country. But one positive was that the family could spend more time together. And fortunately for them, they had a landlady who was reasonable about the rent, and gave them a generous rate when they were just starting out.

Surmounting challenges

Still, there were many challenges, Marie disclosed. She had to help her parents navigate Singapore’s strict system of rules and regulations for restaurants, especially labor rules. It wasn’t like back home, where they could rely on extended family members and friends to pitch in and help out. 

Sourcing for ingredients was another concern. While Raymond made friends with some of his suppliers, Marie still had to figure out how to get what else they needed, including importing ingredients from the Philippines.

The family encountered a number of problems. An experiment with offering island-wide delivery fizzled out after difficulties with getting their correct location listed led to delays. There were also labor challenges, as Singapore rules meant that they needed to hire a Malaysian worker, who was less familiar with Filipino dishes, especially those that contained pork.

But they persevered, and soon found a loyal group of customers that helped their business to thrive. Marie mentioned that due to the restaurant’s homely decor, some customers would drop by during the pandemic era when there were still travel restrictions, just so they could pretend they were back in the Philippines.

Marie’s other siblings would eventually make their way to Singapore, too, and help out in the growing family business.

Another highlight was having a customer hold their wedding reception in the restaurant itself, a happy and memorable day for both the couple and the Bonus family.

For them, in addition to serving up good food, they would also like to change the stereotype that Filipinos in Singapore only work in the healthcare or homecare sectors. And they also have a message for Filipinos working here.

“There’s a home away from home. And we open this little home for those people who feel homesick and are missing the taste of home.” – Rappler.com

Kuya’s Kusaing Pinoy is located at 420 North Bridge Road #01-06 North Bridge Centre, 188727. Opening hours: Tuesdays to Sundays, 12 noon to 8pm (closed on Mondays).