The Aristocrat Beyond Troubling Times: Manila, My City at War!
As part of the Filipinas Heritage Library’s Manila, My City at War!, a month-long commemorative event for the 70th anniversary of the Battle for Manila, stories about the World War II entitled Life Goes On and the War on Air were shared last Saturday, February 21, 2015 at the Ayala Museum. Guest speakers were invited to talk about the everyday life and culture in Manila during the Japanese occupation. Among the topics discussed were the Tagalog language, medicine, transportation & utilities, books, komiks, radio and music.
One of the speakers, Mrs. Priscilla Reyes Pacheco, shared some of the stories of their family’s business and now known as one of the city’s oldest existing restaurant: The Aristocrat. All walks of life were (and are still now) the customers of the famous Filipino restaurant. The dishes that were served back then and loved by the Japanese and Americans are still being served. Dinuguan, puto, arroz caldo, halo-halo, mechado are some of the dishes. There were no problems in sourcing the ingredients as they were getting it locally. Mrs. Pacheco emphasized that life back then was still normal. People ate food, got married and went on with their business. “As long as there was commerce, there was life,” she claimed. Although they were forced to close the store for a couple of times, The Aristocrat didn’t stop booming. They didn’t mind the bombing and war. Instead, they adapted to change. The kept their legacy by securing their knowledge and values that eventually sustained them throughout their lives and keeping their family together.
Later that afternoon, the visitors were served merienda. The delicious lumpiang sariwa, ensaymada and lechon kawali are some of the evidence that the quality of the food has not changed since the restaurant was established.
Manila, My City At War! will have another conference on February 28, 2015. For more details, you can visit the Filipinas Heritage Library’s official Facebook page.
