Baken 1104 launches with top chefs Johanne Siy and Jordy Navarra

This merging of talent brings worlds together, all while celebrating global Filipino talent. These two showstopping chefs explored Baken in all its forms, pushing themselves creatively and finding meaningful ways to integrate its crisps, jam and cookies into their fine dining menu. From Baken’s final snack products to even utilising ingredients used in their manufacturing process, Siy and Navarra unpacked the possibilities of Baken. What they developed was a playful, bold and fearless menu that embraced its versatility. 

“We took inspiration from not just the actual product, but the processes they used to make the product. In the menu, you’ll see elements that we use that are their raw bacon before cooking the crisp, the actual crisp bacon product itself, the seasoning mix they use too,” Navarra elaborates, dissecting their process. 

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The concept behind this dinner by chefs Siy and Navarra is modern nostalgia. “Everything is all about a taste of home. In this menu, you will see a bunch of Filipino classics as well, and you'll also see some of my childhood favourites in the menu,” Carrasco explains. While paying homage to nostalgic flavours, nothing was traditional—everything was reimagined and modernised. 

“This pushed the limits of creativity for us because it’s a product that’s already made, you know? So, we had to think, how do we incorporate that? Usually, we start from scratch, do our own sauces, all our own stuff, right? But to incorporate a product that has its own flavour profile into something that you’re doing was very challenging. It was a fun creative challenge for us,” Siy recounts. 

This immersive experience began with a street food-inspired presentation in the Alley outside Toyo, along with a stall sharing two cocktails: a lambanog slushie with coconut and mango, topped with Bacon Cookies, and lambanog on the rocks paired with Real Bacon Crisps. The street-food bites featured savoury fish balls which mimicked sausage, paired with a gooey Bacon Jam sawsawan. A smoked bacon and fermented pork empanada with pechay and a crispy exterior of Panaderya’s signature sourdough starter was up next, and the last bite was a soft piaya with Real Bacon Crisps and a zingy sambal.

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We moved into Toyo’s main dining room to indulge in a kamayan feast. From a kueh pie tie popper with kesong puti and Bacon Jam, to crispy fried oysters topped with Real Bacon Crisps and keso, the main feast kicked off with a tasty bang, even dropping a baconsilog bite. 

A piping-hot serving of pandan rice wrapped in banana leaf was presented. Tableside, servers detailed the dish and carefully topped the steaming fragrant rice with crunchy artisanal dried fish, glazed fish jerky and Real Bacon Crisps, all paired with suka infused with bacon fat. 

A refreshing sinuglaw with tuna and inihaw na Real Bacon Crisps with a splash of calamansi brightened the palate before we dug into a briney and oceanic crab relleno with cous cous, aligue and Bacon Jam. “I love the jam, because for me, it’s so versatile—the sweet and sour. There’s a lot of umami in it, which goes really well with a lot of the dishes that I always like to cook, so it was very natural for me to incorporate it in my cooking,” Siy shares. 

Their crispy bisugo with pickled wild garlic was complemented with Bacon Jam and chilli-garlic, while a bowl of hot hinalabos na hipon was served after being cooked in bacon water. Another intriguing bite that met the table was the delightfully chewy yet soft, grilled squid with etag and bacon patis. Earlier, the Toyo team carefully roasted a crispy Cebu-inspired lechon, marinated in Baken’s new and improved original flavour seasoning (launching in 2026). At dinner, it was chopped up, served glistening and full of character. 

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All guests then traversed the stairs to meet in the upstairs private dining room, which featured an impressive DIY dessert buffet, complete with a varied selection of kakanin and halo-halo (all made with Baken, of course). 

As the first-ever Baken 1104 concluded, guests relished in the memory of each flavour-forward dish, impressed at this celebration of local craftsmanship and creativity. Navarra and Siy successfully reimagined the possibilities of Baken through each elevated application. Through Baken 1104, Carrasco steadfastly continues to build immersive touchpoints, further connecting with Baken’s audience.

Stay tuned and expect more epicurean events and storytelling moments that bring Baken to life. 

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