Nuit Regular’s newest restaurant will transport diners to the Philippines

Name: Makilala Contact: 105 Church St., makilala.ca, @makilala.ca Neighbourhood: St. Lawrence
Owners: Nuit, Jeff and Joel Regular Chef: Nuit Regular Accessibility: Fully accessible

With Kiin, Pai, Sukhothai and, most recently, Tha Phae Tavern, Jeff and Nuit Regular have built a Thai food empire around Nuit’s heritage. Their latest restaurant, Makilala, turns the spotlight on the other half of the family: Jeff and his Filipino roots.

Related: Tha Phae Tavern, chef Nuit Regular’s new Thai bar, has karaoke rooms and a claw machine

The seeds of Makilala were planted two decades ago, when Nuit first began learning Filipino recipes from her mother-in-law. Over the years, she also picked up techniques during family trips to the Philippines, gradually building a deep fluency in the cuisine.

“Filipino food is such a beautiful mix between Asian and Western cuisines,” says Nuit. “The flavours are so comforting and unique.”

Makilala means “recognize” or “get to know” in Tagalog, and the name references Nuit becoming familiar with Filipino culture—and, now, Toronto diners doing the same. Jeff’s brother, Joel, is also a big part of the project, making this a true family affair.

Related: Where chef Marvin Palomo eats Chinese, Japanese and Filipino food in Markham and Scarborough

Like at the Regulars’ other restaurants, the experience at Makilala is about more than just food: the soundtrack includes the crow of roosters (a familiar sound in many backyards in the Philippines), and the decor takes inspiration from Jeff and Joel’s childhood home. There’s even a built-in karaoke stage for late-night singalongs, a cornerstone of Filipino social life.

“I want diners to feel like they’ve just literally stepped into the Philippines through the service, smells, sounds and flavours,” says Jeff. “Everything is meant to subtly nudge people into thinking that they’re somewhere else completely.”

The Food

The menu pulls from Jeff and Joel’s family recipes and reworks them through the lens of Nuit’s culinary background. Some dishes stick close to tradition while others are remixes. There’s also a kamayan-style feast—a communal spread served on banana leaves and eaten by hand—available by pre-order. It includes greatest hits from Makilala’s à la carte menu along with a few dishes created just for the feast.

As with all of Nuit’s restaurants, sourcing is a core part of her cooking philosophy. Most dishes make use of local ingredients, a choice that keeps the flavours fresh and the supply chain close. “I want to bring in what we have available to us in Canada to showcase the flavours and traditions of Filipino dishes,” says Nuit. “It’s about quality—local ingredients haven’t travelled far, and we know where they come from.”

The Drinks

The cocktails lean in to Southeast Asian flavours like ube, calamansi and coconut, with Filipino rums like Don Papa and Tanduay anchoring the lineup.

Beer drinkers can opt for San Miguel or the higher-proof Red Horse. The café program gets equal billing, with beans flown in from Batangas. And for a hit of nostalgia, there’s Milo, the beloved chocolate malt drink found in pantries across the Philippines.

The Space

At Makilala, the room is just as personal as the food. Jeff and Joel approached the design as a tribute to the everyday scenes of Filipino life: there are laundry lines, retro Filipino movie posters and references to the national obsession with basketball.

“Every neighbourhood in the Philippines, whether you’re on an island or in the city, will have a basketball court,” says Joel. “Not only do they play basketball on the courts, but they use them to play other sports and host beauty pageants and festivals and big celebrations—they’re essentially the town halls.”