Atching Lillian Borromeo's Kapampangan Cuisine

Atching Lillian Borromeo (4 April, 2017)


Atching Lillian Borromeo (GPS: 15.06151, 120.71917) is the doyen of Kapampangan cuisine in the Philippines. Her full name is Lillian Mercado-Lising Borromeo, but she is known fondly as Atching Lillian. The term "Atching" is a honourific corresponding to "Auntie" in the local language. Atching Lillian's home was the second stop of the Food Frenzy Safari on 4 April, 2017. It is located in the barangay of Parian, in the municipality of Mexico, in the province of Pampanga, in Luzon, Philippines.

A practitioner of authentic Kapampangan cuisine, Atching Lillian is often regarded as a national treasure, and it was our enormous pleasure to have the opportunity to visit her at her home, which itself is a period building from the early 20th century. The dining area is like the display gallery of a museum, except that, people lived, worked, entertained here.



In preparation for our arrival, Atching Lillian had prepared a big feast for us. All the dishes were laid out as a buffet awaiting us. So as soon as we got there, the first thing we did was to take photographs of the various dishes before settling down to get to know Atching Lillian.

Atching Lillian is famous for this cookie. She won national recognition way back in 1978, when her heirloom recipe was featured in Panorama Magazine, a national publication. Since then, she has made her appearance on local TV cooking programs, becoming the Filipino version of Julia Child. During our visit, she did a demonstation of making the San Nicholas cookies. Also called Sanikulas, these brittle cookies are the perfect snack during afternoon coffee break. The cookies are stamped with the insignia of St. Nicholas, who is reverred as the patron saint of bakers.

After we were done with the cooking demonstration, it was time to dig in to the food. There was so much to eat, and everything was delicious. Although the food can be considered foreign to me, none was an acquired taste. They were all very agreeable to my palate. My only regret is that I had to pace myself and not overeat, as we have many more food stops ahead.

International foodies trooped into Atching Lillian's house (4 April, 2017)


The dining room at Atching Lillian's is decked with family heirloom. (4 April, 2017)


A piece of Atching Lillian's Sanikulas cookie. (4 April, 2017)


Atching Lillian's wooden moulds for making the Sanikulas cookies. (4 April, 2017)


Atching Lillian with a tray of her Sanikulas cookies. (4 April, 2017)


Joining us at Atching Lillian's house is Poch Jorolan, who runs Everybody's Cafe, a very popular cafe in Pampanga province. (4 April, 2017)


Pindang Damulag (4 April, 2017)


Pindang Damulag is buffalo (carabao) meat, and is one of the exotic Kapampangan dishes.

Pork Longanisa (4 April, 2017)


The Pork Longanisa is Spanish sausage that is popular not only in the Philippines, but in many other Spanish-speaking countries.

Pork Tocino (4 April, 2017)


The Pork Tocino is a pork bacon that is popular in the Philippines.

Lagat Hito (4 April, 2017)


Atching Lillian's Pampanga-style Tamales (4 April, 2017)


This is Atching Lillian's version of tamale, a dish that originates in Mesoamerica, among the Aztecs and Maya, and is therefore a Mexican influence to Filipino cuisine.

Some of the honours received by Atching Lillian for her contribution to Filipino cooking, and in particular, Kapampangan cuisine. (4 April, 2017)



Chef Sau preparing a cocoa drink for us (4 April, 2017)


Here I am in Atching Lillian's dining room, surrounded by her religious iconography. (4 April, 2017)


Group shot with Atching Lillian and Chef Sau. (4 April, 2017)

Address

Atching Lillian Borromeo opens her home to visitors to taste authentic Kapampangan cuisine. To book, she requests a minimum of 10 diners.

Atching Lillian Borromeo
2021, 174 3, Barangay Parian, Mexico,
Pampanga, Philippines.
Phone: +63 915 773 0788
GPS: 15.06151, 120.71917
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/atchinglillian/

Going to Atching Lillian Borromeo's house

If you have made an appointment to visit Atching Lillian, and are coming from Manila, take the North Luzon Expressway until the interchange with Route 3 (Jose Abad Santos Avenue) at Mexico, Pampanga. Head east on Jose Abad Santos Avenue in the direction of Barangay Parian. At the PTT petrol station, turn left and almost immediately, turn right on the first junction. Atching Lillian's house is on the left side of the country lane.

Atching Lillian Borromeo on Google Maps Street View

This is the entrance to Atching Lillian Borromeo's house (Nov 2015). She has since added a signboard.

Atching Lillian Borromeo is on the map of World Street Food Congress 2017 15-Hour Food Frenzy Safari

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