The cuisine is tough to pin down, traversing Japanese, French, Mexican, and even North African flavours; you might begin with chunks of raw, meaty ahi tuna on a crisp wanton wafer, dressed in rich, spicy aioli and finished with tobiko and toasted sesame seeds, but end the evening with a rich vanilla bean crème brûlée garnished with fragrant lavender petals. Leading the kitchen are co-owners Neil Dy and Amanda Hao, who previously helmed private dining concept 29 Sang. 

Over two years with 29 Sang, the culinary couple held collaborations with fellow private dining ventures Idalia and Lasa Supper Club, and even joined Toka Wine’s Will Host chef series. But opening Seva, their first fully-operational restaurant proved to be a different beast entirely—one that the pair is prepared to tackle head-on.

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At 29 Sang, the self-taught chefs knew exactly what, and how much they had to cook each day, seating around 10 persons at a time. Seva seats 50-odd guests with two turns per night, offering an à la carte menu of about 20 items. Yes, you’ll see a handful of 29 Sang favourites on the menu, including their spicy vodka rigatoni: a well-made classic topped with basil, freshly cracked black pepper, and a ball of burrata for added indulgence. However, many of the items are distinctively Seva, with many new items in the works. On top of this, Dy and Hao have had to learn how to lead a kitchen and devote their focus to food operations as they were used to cooking and entertaining guests simultaneously when running their private dining concept.

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However, the Dy assures me that hospitality remains at the heart of the experience, attesting that “service has always been at the core of what we do”—in fact, that’s where the name Seva comes from. “It means selfless service in Hinduism,” explains Hao, who came across the term serendipitously when drafting up names for the restaurant. Enter, co-owner Jonah Chantong, who acts as the restaurant’s front-of-house and guest relations manager. Seva is his second F&B venture with Dy (whom he has known since his grade school years), the first being The Rooftop: a popular rooftop bar in Katipunan frequented by college students. 

It’s immediately apparent that Seva is comprised of a band of young, optimistic, and talented friends, and their essence of eager collaboration colours every dimension of the experience. In the spirit of taking risks and giving it a go, the partners took a chance on architects Kenneth Dy (cousin to Neil), Alcen Ericka Bantugan, and Gaby Asuncion to design the restaurant space, even before their graduation earlier this January. Behind the bar, you’ll find Amanda’s sister Juliana “Juju” Guzman, who recently graduated with a Bachelor’s degree in restaurant entrepreneurship, and completed an internship at modern Japanese izakaya 12/10.

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Niko Tiutan of ITO Beverage Space also lent his talents to Seva, curating the restaurant’s beverage program. Known for his innovative and sophisticated cocktails, Tiutan crafted a handful of signature cocktails for the restaurant, as well as re-engineered classics that suit Seva’s culinary philosophy. “We showed him the menu,” recounts Dy, who also grew up with Tiutan. “He customised the cocktails to pair well with our dishes,” Hao elaborates. Made with shishito pepper-infused tequila, Earl Grey syrup, vanilla tincture, all-spice, orange, and lime, the eponymous Seva cocktail was designed to pair with their prime rib-eye: a generous serving of succulent steak cooked to perfection, expertly seasoned and served with a side of delectable steak rice and grilled shishito peppers. “He wanted to be sustainable with our ingredients and repurpose whatever we already had in the kitchen,” Dy explains.

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As the lights turn dim around 10pm, guests are invited to lounge about and nurse their cocktails (there are many worth savouring, after all—the watermelon sour and mezcal ginger highball are good places to start), with DJ nights on select days of the week. Guests can also expect new additions to the Seva menu soon, including an umami-rich pasta with smoked uni, butter, ikura, pangrattato, and nori powder, and juicy lamp chops with chimichurri, crispy roasted potatoes, sweet confit tomatoes, and balsamic reduction. 

Now in its second month of operations, Seva hopes to position itself as a reliable fixture in San Juan’s burgeoning F&B scene, a cosy hangout where friends can catch up over enjoyable food and drinks, week after week. “We just want everyone here to be comfortable and relaxed—we don’t want it to feel uptight or intimidating,” Chantong relates. A space for friends, by friends, born out of a shared love for food, beverage, and selfless service, Seva may just be on the right path.

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