The Japanese chef trained in classic French cooking and worked in various Michelin-starred restaurants.
Let’s count the stars.
Chef Hiroyuki Meno was executive chef of Tokyo’s one Michelin-starred Maison Paul Bocuse (a tie-up restaurant of 3-starred Paul Bocuse in Lyon, France) and Brasserie Paul Bocuse.
He worked at Domaine Les Hautes Roches in Loire, France (1 star); Le Pont de Ciel in Osaka, Japan (a tie-up of 3-starred Grand Vefour in Paris) and Restaurant Hiramatsu in Fukuoka; and L’Auberge de L’ill in Tokyo (a tie-up of 3-starred L’Auberge de L’ill in Alsace, France).
After cooking around the world—from France to Japan and Indonesia—Chef Meno came to the Philippines with his Michelin experience and now serves as executive chef of Prologue restaurant in Rockwell’s Aruga Apartments (it also has branches in Greenhills, Tomas Morato and Mitsukoshi Mall).
The Rockwell branch was one of the neighborhood’s best kept secrets in the first few months after it opened early this year but has now become a favorite spot for lunch and dinner and weekend brunch. It’s now known as the “fine neighborhood kitchen” not just of the community but outside as well for its delicious food and cozy interiors filled with art prints.
Prologue owner Alyanna Uy says, “We’re proud to bring fine dining expertise and techniques to a casual everyday dining setting, and serve familiar flavors from different parts of the world by our amazing chef, Hiroyuki Meno.”
She explains that the branches of Prologue have separate culinary identities except for a few signature dishes on their menus.
“Everything we offer at each branch is created with the best and freshest produce on the spot, so you can savor each bite and share the joy of excellent food with your loved ones. What we offer are familiar favorites from different cuisines that are all developed and elevated with fine dining standards and techniques for an unforgettable luxe but casual culinary experience.”
From investment banking to restaurants
You’d think Alyanna started in the business very young, but she actually had a different career before becoming a restaurateur. She was an investment banker before going into the food and dining business. Why? Food is her passion. She travels around the world for food—it’s not a huge step that she’d give up a career in finance for food too.
Alyanna has a degree in Computer Science and Mathematics from the University of British Columbia in Vancouver, Canada and graduated with the highest GPA in the program, being awarded six scholarships over three years.
She continued her studies at the Sauder School of Business in UBC, ranking 1st in class in Master of Management. She then went to the London School of Economics and Political Science in London, England, where she finished her Master of Science in Finance and Private Equity degree with Distinction.
But, of course, her background in finance and investment is being put to good use since she took on the management of several restaurants in her family’s portfolio. Plus, she started her own specialty grocery called Dough & Grocer, an online premium grocery, which became so popular during the pandemic.
Global flavors
With Alyanna’s passion for food and Chef Meno’s classic French cooking techniques, global flavors find a home at Prologue’s Rockwell branch. During our tasting lunch, the chef served us Italian, French and Asian dishes—letting our palates visit our some of our favorite places in the world.
From Italy, he whipped up risotto with Iberico cabecero, button, enoki and shimeji mushrooms, asparagus, semi-dried cherry tomato and arugula. The Italians might wring their hands over the bounty of ingredients given the sparsen
ess of the classic risotto, but put mushrooms on my dish any time and I’m in (he has another version with shiitake mushroom).
Then there was the carbonara topped with poached egg. The Italians will undoubtedly disapprove of this but that’s the beauty of fusion cuisine—it’s the merging of ingredients and culinary traditions from different cultures and regions that makes every dish a surprise. Plus, there’s just something so satisfying about poking a hole on a poached egg and seeing the yolk ooze out and over the pasta.
Chef Meno also took us to east-central France for a plate of beef burgundy, a region famous for its burgundy and beaujolais wines. The dish brought me back to a post-birthday trip I took to this region several years ago when our wine tasting started at 9 a.m. (by 10 a.m. I was happily buzzing—and needed a nap).
For his beef bourguignon, the chef used wagyu cheek with a side of mashed potato carrots, French beans, mushroom and bacon. C’est tres bien!
Next up was Asia by way of beef rendang using Australian wagyu brisket—so tender and tasty from all the spices! Then Africa through Moroccan lamb with bulgur and Mediterranean vegetables.
For flavors of home, Chef Meno has perfected his pork adobo. There’s something different about it but it’s adobo-ness is enough to make it taste like your mother’s adobo.
It wasn’t all meat dishes though. We also had the farmer’s salad with candied walnuts and burrata caprese. For more Asian dishes, there are Japanese gyudon, nasi goreng prawn, and pad Thai, and even arroz caldo.
For dessert, there was soufflé pancakes and different flavors of cheesecake—the best epilogue for a lunch around the globe.
Prologue has branches in Rockwell, Tomas Morato, Greenhills, and Mitsukoshi Mall in BGC. For more information and reservations, visit prologue.ph or its pages on Facebook and Instagram.
