Discovering Pizza in Manila ...

In 1976, my family set off for a year long holiday. Our first stop out of Sydney was in Manilla. We spent 1 or 2 nights there. It was to be my first taste of a 3rd world country. It was also our family’s first taste of eating out. Apart from sharing meals with of our South Asian family friends at each other’s homes, we’d rarely eaten out in Australia.

My mother insisted she wanted to eat Indian food in Manilla. Dad sat us all in a taxi, and the driver took us around the entire city. After 2 hours, we couldn’t find a single Indian restaurant. My father therefore convinced mum to try this new Italian dish called pizza.

Mum was averse to Italian food. After I was born, my parents and family moved to Australia by ship. It was an Italian ship, and my mother couldn’t stand the food which she felt was too bland. She couldn’t live without her spices and chilli. Now, here in the heart of the 3rd world, my father was asking mum to eat Italian food!

Still, we were all extremely hungry. Dad asked the pizzeria to use chilli sauce on the pizza. The pizza arrived piping hot, and my mother took a taste test. She liked what she was munching on, and my dad spoiled us all that night with plenty of this strange new delicacy.

We enjoyed our pizza feast two nights in a row. No doubt the pizzeria owner also enjoyed our presence.

Words © 2008 Irfan Yusuf

(first published Tuesday, August 12, 2008)