Luk Thai Restaurant

A lot of Thai restaurants have started to sprout out throughout the country and it has recently gained much popularity. Credit goes to the fact that a lot of people are now health conscious and Thai cuisine is known to be lighter plus it has herbs and spices which prove to be medicinal. But most of all, its because of Thai cuisine’s amazing and distinct taste. And one Restaurant in Cebu was able to capture that distinct taste and has already made its mark here in Cebu – Luk Thai Restaurant.
It’s success can be credited to its famous chef – Chef Anton.

Antonio Alcazar or more famously known as Chef Anton , came from a big family. He is the 2nd to the youngest in a brood of nine children. The whole family which is originally from Bayawan Negros Oriental, loves to cook mostly Filipino and Spanish dishes. So it’s no wonder that he got inclined in the field of cooking as well. He even has a sibling who also went into the food business.

When Anton was Eighteen, he went to Manila to study Mass Communications at one of the Universities there. But due to financial difficulties, he had to give it up and work in order to survive. He landed a job at SAWADEE Thai Restaurant – it’s a fine dining restaurant situated in Greenhills. This is where he learned the ropes of his craft. For three years he worked at the Greenhills branch before moving to their other branch at Shangrila Edsa Mall. During the first three years, he worked his way through the ranks. He first worked as food checker, then Food Preparation, rice and noodles cook and then appetizer cook. One day with a sudden stroke of luck, the Head Chef then was absent and he was made to cook the entire menu for that day and that was the break that he needed. His cooking abilities were discovered and from then on, he was promoted as the Head Chef of SAWADEE Thai. This was from 1993 to 2003. He had a total of thirteen years wherein he really learned and mastered the craft of cooking – specifically Thai cuisine.

Along the way, Chef Anton took up basic short term cooking courses where he learned the basic knowledge in food preparation. But he credits most of his expertise from the years he had with hands on experience. Although these courses did contribute to his proficiency but actual experience gave him the right techniques. Actual day to day work proved to be much better in honing his skills than what he learned in the four walls of his classroom.

Chef Anton considers himself as the kind of chef who closely follows the native way of Thai cuisine. He only uses authentic thai ingredients and doesn’t use MSG. He doesn’t use alternatives or takes short cuts in the food preparation. He is proud to say that even if he is a Filipino, he has mastered thai cooking. Even his Thai customers swear by the authenticity of the taste of his dishes. He believes that you don’t have to be a Thailander in order to cook Thai food. Just like Ms. Cristeta Comerford, the first Filipina head chef at the White House under President Obama’s administration. She is made to prepare various International cuisine for state dinners and other official functions. She is a Filipina and yet she cooks International cuisine and does it excellently that even U.S. President Barrack Obama praises her. This fact only validates that you don’t have to be a native of its country in order to whip up real authentic dishes.

In 2004, Chef Anton partnered as an industrial partner with the daughter of one of the owners of SAWADEE Thai and opened Thuk Thai Restaurant. This restaurant has an al fresco concept as compared to SAWADEE Thai’s fine dining. But despite it, he had a lot of celebrity clients like John Lloyd Cruz, Liz Uy, Dennis Trillo, the parents of Billy Joe Crawford are just to name a few. It just shows that as long as you serve exceptional dishes, the ambiance really doesn’t make much difference. But Chef Anton’s biggest break came last December 2008. Pepsi Herrera first discovered his sumptuous food at Thuk Thai Restaurant and she immediately told Kris Aquino about him. She brought some dishes to Kris for her to taste and evidently, Kris Aquino got hooked. Since then, Chef Anton became the first real chef to be featured and guested on the Boy and Kris show as one of their featured celebrity chefs. Not only that, he twice graced the self titled magazine of Kris Aquino and from then on he became an instant celebrity. For days, his cellphone kept on getting inquiries and orders. Even work offers came piling in.

Chef Anton became Kris Aquino’s favorite Thai Chef. In fact, he already cooked in Kris Aquino’s house during family gatherings and was lucky enough to have met the Late ex- President Corazon Aquino. Kris always orders Tom Yam Mee soup whenever she or her family has colds. This is because this soup has fragrant herbs in its ingredients, which has medicinal properties that has long proved to be a cure of the common cold.

So with all the success and celebrity status that he got, what brought Chef Anton to Cebu? He used to visit Cebu regularly especially during Sinulog celebrations. And although he already had a lot of offers in Manila, he first offered the business to his close family friend here in Cebu – Ms. Clynia Ingan. Clynia’s main business really is into foreign exchange but she grabbed the opportunity to open a food business venture with Chef Anton. She had always wanted to go into the food business that’s why she immediately grabbed the opportunity.

And so last June 18, 2009, Luk Thai first opened its doors to the public. It has a total seating capacity of 50 and is open at 11:00 a.m to 2:00 p.m. for lunch and opens again at 6:oo p.m. till 10:00 p.m. for dinner. They are open daily. The ambiance is very calming and uncluttered. The cleanliness of the kitchen is visible through the glass panels. We could see the chef preparing the dishes and if we are lucky to catch him in a singing mood then we could also see the other side of Chef Anton. For during the younger years of Chef Anton’s life, he used to be part of their church choir in Redemptorist Church in Dumaguete City. Aside from that he has won in various amateurs singing contest not only during those days but until now.

Despite the restaurants infant stage, it already has a lot of regular customers who just couldn’t resist the delectable thai dishes of Luk Thai. Thai Cuisine is well-known for being hot and spicy and for its balance of five fundamental flavors in each dish - hot (spicy), sour, sweet, salty, and sometimes even bitter. So far, Luk Thai was able to pinpoint its best sellers as the Pork Spareribs (which is cooked in slow fire for it to be really tender), Pineapple Fried rice, Grilled Lapu-lapu, Mixed Seafoods and for the vegetables, stir fried kangkong. My personal favorites are the spare ribs, Khai Yat (diced pork omelet) and the Yam Sam –O (pomelo Salad. And for a truly refreshing iced tea drink, try their Lemon Grass Iced tea.

Luk Thai has an extensive menu of 85 dishes, but chef Anton still has a lot of other dishes up on his sleeve. He plans to serve exciting new dishes from time to time. Right now, he has affordable rice toppings for the students but without compromising the taste and authenticity of the food. For curry lovers out there, Luk Thai also has an extensive menu for curry dishes. Chef Anton’s personal curry dishes are the GAENG KHEAWAN if he likes it hot and spicy or GAENG PED for a milder alternative.

Luk Thai offers delivery service so call them now at Telephone number 032-238-9839. Or better yet head off to the restaurant at St. Patrick’s Square, R. Aboitiz St. Cebu City. It’s at the back of Redemptorist Church fronting gate 3 of St. Theresa’s College and experience for yourself a whole new world of Thai cuisine.

KRIS AQUINO’S FAVORITES
1. GAI BAI TUEY – Chicken Pandan
2. PHAD THUA NGOK – Beansprouts with fried beancurd and sliced pork
3. KHAO PHAD SAPPAROD – Thai Pineapple fried rice
4. KHAI YAT SAI MOO SAB – Diced pork Omelet
5. THOD GRATHIAM PRIG THAI MEUK – Fried garlic and Pepper Squid
6. TOM YAM MEE – Hot and Sour Soup with lemon grass, herbs and spices
7. YAM SOM-O – Pomelo Salad
8. PHAD PAKBOONG FAI DANG – Stir fried kangkong in oyster sauce

CHEF ANTON’S PERSONAL FAVORITES
1. GAI MANAW – Thai Lemon Chicken
2. SIKRONG MOO TOD – Fried Pork spareribs
3. PHAD THALAY – Mixed Seafoods
4. PLA PHAW – Grilled whole Lapu-lapu with sweet & sour tamarind sauce
5. KHAO PHAD NAM PRIG – Fried rice with chili oil
6. PHAD THAI – Rice stick noodles with ground pork, shrimp and peanuts
7. TAB TIM GROB – Crunchy waterchestnuts with macapuno strips in coco cream
8. KHAO NEAW MAMMUANG – Sticky rice with ripe mango


by: Candice Sandiego-Acuna