Meet the chefs who will fire up the IFEX Kitchen 2026

PRESS RELEASE

A showcase that combines delicious innovations with compelling storytelling, all presented through live cooking demonstrations led by local and international culinary talents and personalities, IFEX Kitchen 2026 sets its sights on highlighting the profile of Filipino food in the global scene. Under the curation of 2025 FOODPhilippines Advocate Raine Cabral Laysico, 11 Filipino chefs will present the richness and depth of Philippine cuisine and dining traditions by creating innovative dishes using exemplary ingredients from the participating MSMEs at IFEX Philippines 2026. 

The chefs are a mix of trailblazers, rising stars running Michelin-recognized establishments, and global citizens. Thus, attendees can not only expect to taste world-class dishes and creative fusions of Pinoy ingredients with multicultural influences, but also get to hear thoughtful insights on the Filipino diaspora, cultural representation, and Filipino cuisine’s influence on the global food scene. 

Chef Morris Danzen Catanghal

Chef Morris Danzen Catanghal’s story of spreading the word about Filipino cuisine internationally began like a classic story of every overseas Filipino worker: with a dream of helping his family become more upwardly mobile. But whether in Sicily, where he fused Filipino flavors with Italian cooking, or, more recently, in Australia, where he expands the possibilities of Pinoy cooking at CMD Supper Club, Catanghal always carries his love of and pride in Filipino cuisine. The chef made his IFEX Kitchen debut last year, together with his fellow Melbourne transplant and Adobros co-founder, Chef Michael Francis Pastrana, and he’ll be bringing even more creative kitchen ideas with his second IFEX Philippines homecoming.

Chef Myke “Tatung” Sarthou

His approach to food through the lens of cultural storytelling and heritage preservation has made Chef Myke “Tatung” Sarthou a driving force in the Filipinos’ renewed interest in local cuisine. Through his words, dishes, and widely followed cooking platform Simpol, the restaurateur and best-selling author inspires the public not only to cook but also to dive deeper into how Filipino food is a bedrock of culture and community. With his restaurant Lore now a Michelin Selected establishment, Sarthou proves that the appeal of Filipino food is not only personal but also communal and universal, especially when prepared and presented with sincerity and mastery.

Watch Chef Morris and Chef Tatung whip up local dishes and discuss contemporary Filipino home-cooking, the Filipino diaspora, and the Filipino table as home in IFEX Kitchen Gastronomy Exchange Vol. 1: Everyday Filipino, Reframed on May 22, 2026, at the Hall D (Tent) of the World Trade Center, Pasay City. 

Chef Rex De Guzman

British-born Filipino Chef Rex de Guzman has been introducing the delights of Filipino-style barbecue and street food to the London dining scene for more than 10 years, especially through his restaurant Turo Turo UK. He will reach a broader international audience with his first book, Kamayan: The Filipino Cookbook, slated for publication later this year, where he features more than 70 classic Filipino recipes. Through his IFEX Philippines debut, De Guzman will get to dive more into the country’s unique ingredients and flavors and present his take on contemporary Pinoy cooking.

Chef Miggy Cabel Moreno

Culture and heritage are both central to Chef Miggy Cabel Moreno’s cooking. A proud Tausug, he entered the culinary industry almost a decade ago with the clear intention of representing Southern Mindanao cooking, particularly dishes from Zamboanga, Basilan, Sulu, and Tawi-Tawi. The Bib Gourmand that his restaurants, Palm Grill and Cabel, earned from the Michelin Guide last year doesn’t so much validate the region’s culinary culture. Rather, it amplifies the chef’s belief that Southern Mindanao fare is just as worthy of being learned, enjoyed, and appreciated as a flavorful component of Filipino cuisine.

Catch Chef Rex and Chef Miggy engage in a cross-cultural exchange and witness how Southern Mindanao culinary traditions meld with European techniques during IFEX Kitchen Gastronomy Exchange Vol. 2: Regional and Global Lens on May 22, 2026, at the Hall D (Tent) of the World Trade Center, Pasay City. 

Chef Nouel Catis

Chef Nouel Catis’s long and storied culinary career has reached both stratospheric heights (the Burj Al Arab, Etihad Airways) and pelagic depths (the underwater restaurant Al Mahara). His Dubai chocolate creation also dominated TikTok and even caused a global shortage of pistachios. Still, the veteran chef never forgets his roots. For Catis’s second IFEX Kitchen appearance, attendees can expect another live cooking session that will yield something mouth-wateringly sweet.

Chef Mark Singson

The Vancouver-raised Chef Mark Singson describes his cooking style as “Gateway Filipino Cuisine,” reflective of his experience as a global Filipino engaging with a multicultural audience. Through his boutique catering company, Food Art Music Canada, he offers diners an immersive experience of Pinoy flavors, including the diverse influences that make Filipino dishes pleasing to the palate. The first runner-up on the sixth season of Top Chef Canada, Singson also travels, cooks, and hosts pop-up events all over Canada, thus ensuring the growing presence of Philippine cuisine in Canada’s dynamic food scene. 

Witness Chef Nouel and Chef Mark cook up a storm and share their takes on how Filipino ingredients and regional identities are interpreted through different culinary lenses at IFEX Kitchen Gastronomy Exchange Vol. 3: Technique & Territory on May 22, 2026, at the Hall D (Tent) of the World Trade Center, Pasay City. 

Chef Ross Magnaye

The restaurant Serai in Melbourne was envisioned to be a dining spot that wouldn’t be out of place if it were transplanted right smack in Manila. It is thus the perfect vessel for co-founder Chef Ross Magnaye’s core memories of joyous birthdays, weddings, and fiestas from when he was growing up in the Philippines. In his kitchen, Magnaye integrates Australian ingredients with Filipino flavors, and then presents the sumptuous end results with a showman’s flair.  encouraging everyone around the table to dig in. 

Chef David “Dabo” Pamplona

Another returning name to IFEX Kitchen is the Salon Culinaire Dubai multi-awardee Chef David “Dabo” Pamplona. After getting a taste of the wealth of Philippine-sourced ingredients last year, where he integrated Filipino flavors into Latin American and Pan-Asian cuisines, Pamplona is excited to explore even more, bringing his unique perspective that has made his Dubai-based restaurant Naimas Café and Bistro one of the gateways to Filipino cuisine in the Middle East.

Chef Rolando “Lau” Laudico

Chef Rolando “Lau” Laudico is a chef’s chef. Together with his wife, Chef Jacqueline “Jac” Laudico, he pioneered serving Filipino cuisine as fine-dining fare and has remained a staunch advocate of Philippine food for more than 25 years now. He matches his passion and kitchen know-how with a keen business sense, providing other chefs a blueprint on how to be a food entrepreneur with a lasting brand and influence in the industry. 

Join Chef Ross, Chef Dabo, and Chef Lau’s live cooking session mixed with a delicious walk down memory lane, plus insights on third-culture gastronomy, at IFEX Kitchen Gastronomy Exchange Vol. 4: The Table We Remember and Recreate on May 23, 2026, at the Hall D (Tent) of the World Trade Center, Pasay City.

Chef Ricci Carmona

Baker and chocolatier Chef Ricci Carmona’s success with her Melbourne-based brand Dirty Ice Cream is a sweet, well-earned victory after years of struggling as a Filipina immigrant working in kitchens dominated by white male chefs. Aside from promoting the gata-based Filipino ice cream through her business, Carmona also creates classic Filipino baked goods and sugary treats made with Philippine-sourced chocolates, proving that Pinoy cuisine is also a treasure trove of sweet ingredients and confections. 

Chef Jacqueline “Jac” Laudico

Beyond her celebrity chef status, which has opened up opportunities for collaborations and brand ambassadorship, Chef Jacqueline “Jac” Laudico’s decades-long work in pastry and chocolate-making has put Filipino desserts on everyone’s radar, local and international diners alike. She continues to guarantee that Pinoy sweets will always be part of the country’s culinary evolution by sharing her knowledge with other chefs and bakers, whether it is in a fine-dining restaurant’s state-of-the-art galley or in the humbler quarters of a provincial bakery. 

Gorge on the Pinoy sweet treats made and served with a contemporary twist by Chef Ricci and Chef Jac at IFEX Kitchen Gastronomy Exchange Vol. 5: Sweet Memory, Modern Presentation on May 23, 2026, at the Hall D (Tent) of the World Trade Center, Pasay City.

***

Savor the best that the tropics have to offer at IFEX Philippines 2026: Tropical Flavors for the World, which runs from May 21-23, 2026, at the World Trade Center, Pasay City. Register here for tickets.