Arts & Culture

Experience Great-Tasting Tradition at Chikaan IL Corso

Some days, all you ask for is a comfortable place to converse with friends and families over steaming plates of Filipino cuisine. Chikaan is just that kind of place.

Some days, all you ask for is a comfortable place to converse with friends and families over steaming plates of Filipino cuisine. Chikaan is just that kind of place.

More than three decades ago, Cebuanos took the first bite of authentic Filipino cuisine right at the heart Cebu. Chikaan, as it is known today, is a Filipino restaurant that features Cebuano cuisine that let customers feel the ambiance of an old-style Filipino home.

CRISPY PATA PA MORE! The center of attraction – deep fried until golden brown with tender meat and perfectly crunchy skin! Dip in soy sauce and vinegar para extra sarap.

In the year 2005, Chikaan was acquired by the Dytian family, whose other restaurant businesses now include Creative Cuisine Catering, Big Mao, Brique Modern Kitchen, Big Daddy Truck, and Ettas. Like many other restaurants, Chikaan provides an essential component among the lives of Cebuanos. Over the years, the restaurant has become a social fabric of the city, a gathering place of families who want to taste a rich variety of authentic Filipino dishes.

GUISA DALAWA TATLO! Make your everyday meal more special
with a serving of our special Pancit Guisado.

As a Filipino restaurant, we are known for our delectable dishes such as crispy pata, sizzling squid ala pobre, baked scallops, spicy shrimp in coco cream, mongo soup, and banana and langka among others. The restaurant’s menu is quite extensive. Whether your appetite is large or small, you will find something to satisfy your cravings. The food is also fairly priced, stretching the customer’s budget.

Spicy Shrimp in Coco Cream – A little spice makes everything nice. If you want a different kind of seafood dish, try the spicy shrimp in coco cream.

However, what made the restaurant memorable beyond its food is the atmosphere which provides the customers a straightforward dining experience, as if they are in the comfort of their own home. As displayed in the interior of Chikaan which was designed by none other than Ms. Sheryl Marinas, the atmosphere of Chikaan is a clear reflection of Filipino culture where its cuisine is basically rooted.

Dinuguan – Dinuguan is a classic Filipino dish also known as Pork Blood Stew. Let not the name scare you as this dish – savory pork meat, vinegar, spices and all – is surely a satisfying treat.

In an interview with Ms. Marinas, the design is “a clean and modern translation of the old intricate Filipino style to jive along with the simplistic characters of the on the go modern day Filipino diners. Modernizing while at the same time maintaining the traditional Filipino culture.”

The deep blue hues in the interiors help elevate the natural wood tones, as well as make the geometric patterned indigenous woven plates pop in place.The color also symbolizes growth and abundance, like the infinite sky and the deep blue sea which are predominantly abundant in our archipelagic tropical country.

With our opening in IL Corso this coming January 11, 2019, this gives us a great opportunity to showcase our variety of dishes rich with our very own heritage. Coupled with a cabana located just outside our restaurant, Cebuanos will surely look forward dining in our Chikaan IL Corso as they get to see the scenic coastal area located across the restaurant.

Currently, Chikaan has 18 other branches located all over Visayas and Mindanao in which some it are franchise-owned.

Arts & Culture

Chaos and Clarity: Zen Aesthetic in Oj Hofer’s Art

by Jing Ramos |

Oj Hofer, our fashion contributing editor, is a Fine Arts graduate from the University of the Philippines. Though he began painting at the age of eight, his artistic journey took a transformative turn in 2013. While volunteering as a costume designer for Siddhartha: The Musical, he encountered Venerable Master Hsing Yun’s One-Stroke Calligraphy, sparking a deep devotion to Japanese sumi-e painting and kanji calligraphy. Over the years, he refined his craft, using his art to share the Dharma through exhibitions while supporting the Hsing Yun Educational Foundation. In 2022, his spiritual path deepened at Nan Tien University, where he embraced Zen and Humanistic Buddhism, shaping his artistic philosophy.

“Plum Blossoms in Moonlight.” Serigraphy on abaca.

In his recent works, Hofer merges traditional calligraphy with serigraphy, drawing inspiration from his friend Charles Lahti—an internationally recognized New York-based painter and printmaker. Lahti, known for his collaborations with post-war American artists like Robert Rauschenberg, Donald Judd, Andy Warhol, and LeRoy Neiman, introduced Hofer to silkscreen techniques. Through a workshop Lahti conducted in Cebu—arranged by their mutual friend Greg Urra—Hofer integrated silkscreen into his Zen artworks, particularly those on abaca.

“The Circle of Harmony” Serigraphy and Calligraphy on abaca.

Hofer’s cross-disciplinary approach challenges conventional Zen aesthetics. His layered paintings on abaca may seem far from tranquil at first glance, but closer contemplation reveals a meditative core. His serigraph of an Enso circle, for example, initially appears chaotic, filled with Tang Dynasty poetry and overlapping, repetitive forms. Yet, by focusing on a single calligraphic element, the viewer experiences a moment of clarity—a glimpse of awakening within the visual complexity.

“Monkey Mind” Serigraphy and Calligraphy on abaca.

Even more engaging is his diptych Monkey Mind. At odds with the traditional Zen emphasis on negative space, this piece is deliberately busy, reflecting the restless nature of the mind. A distracted viewer may struggle to find a focal point, but one attuned to emptiness and presence will perceive clarity amidst the seeming disarray.

Ink and intention—creating calligraphy in support of one of my advocacies.

By fusing Zen philosophy with the discipline of serigraphy, Hofer invites his audience to look beyond surface impressions and discover stillness within movement, balance within complexity. His art does not merely depict Zen—it embodies the paradoxes at its core, offering a path to mindfulness through the act of seeing and the experience of doing.

Arts & Culture

What is Sappia? The Rice Myth Goddess of Bohol Who Helped Feed the People During a Great Famine

by Emma Gomez

The story began when the people of Bohol started to experience hunger and famine. All the livestocks were inedible and the fields were dried out leaving only weeds planted on the ground. The people prayed to the goddess of mercy, Sappia, to ask for food.

Sappia, the rice myth goddess of Bohol

Sappia, from the heavens, heard the cries of the people. She saw the dense population of weeds and offered to help them. Sappia thought of nourishing the weeds to be edible and healthy for the people of Bohol. Straightaway, she sprinkled the weed with milk from her bossom. She emptied each breast until blood came out. Before she left, she whispered to the weeds that they may be nourished and be able to feed the people.

When harvest season came, the people of Bohol quickly gathered the nourished weeds. They observed that the ones sprinkled with milk were white, while the other were red. They called the new plant rice and they replanted these in honor of Sappia, and for the people to devour.

Arts & Culture

Kimsoy’s Canvas of a Lifetime in Full Display

by Diana Gillo

There is nothing more fascinating than seeing an artist’s lifetime of work in one room. Such is the experience in Jose “Kimsoy” Yap’s third solo exhibit entitled “Kimsoy: Episodes of Mastery,” at Galerie Raphael Cebu. This serves as the truest form of homage to his enduring journey, showcasing works that span over decades.

Kimsoy with his student and muse, Zhara Rivera Mercado, at the entrance of Galerie Raphael

The exhibit speaks greatly of Kimsoy’s evolution as an artist, with his shifting mediums and remarkable variety of subjects. His creations range from heartfelt portraits of individuals he encountered along his journey to detailed landscapes inspired by the different walks of his life. The room’s layout carries the weight of his years of craft with one wall lined with pastels, another with watercolors, and another with oil painting.

As the River Flows Onward by Kimsoy Yap 2020 | Oil on canvas | 82×48 inches

The exhibit transcends beyond just the commemoration of Kimsoy’s masterful periods. It wanders more into a sense of intimacy reflecting Kimsoy’s life’s journey—from his roots as a young boy in Negros Oriental, through his pursuit of greater artistic mastery in New York, to his prominence in Cebu’s art scene. All his work freehanded, created both with his left and right hand, depicts the ways in which we all leave traces of ourselves in our work and in the world.

A Friend of Mine 1979 | watercolor on paper | 24×18 inches

In a Relaxed Mood 1977 | water color on paper | 16×19.5 inches

The opening ceremony featured Ambassador Jose Mari Cariño, alongside special guests Ivy Ang Gabas, Paolo Li, Angbetic Tan, Laurie Bouquiren of the Visayas Art Fair, and Valerie Go of Galerie Raphael Cebu. The exhibit is open until March 21, 2025.