New Mandaluyong Gem Pluck Raises the Bar for Rotisserie Chicken

(SPOT.ph) Pioneer Street, rife with cars thanks to its connection to Boni Avenue, is not the kind of place you'd like to be in at rush hour. But look through the area enough and you'll find it has its share of quieter pockets, and low-key yet really good dining spots in them. There’s NBS Park, for one, a burgeoning hub and home to a new joint folks from both in and out of the neighborhood have been flocking to: Pluck. Its facade may offer nothing much but inside, it's a complete 180 with its vivid, almost electric orange lighting that gleams but never quite blinds the eyes. There's a bar just when you enter and an open kitchen toward the back, while steel chairs, octagon-dotted tiles and a low ceiling make for a casual, intimate, effortless vibe.

The name Pluck alludes to the restaurant’s core offerings: roast chicken done their way, marinated in koji and slow-roasted for supreme tenderness; and natural wine, the low-intervention category of wines, the more fermented ones of which would make a “pop!” sound as a bottle is opened.

The venture is a collaboration among chefs Patrick Curitana (Los Tacos) and Ralph Sy (Goods from Scratch), who take charge of the food side of things; and Butz Tenchavez of Toka Wine, who leads Pluck's wine program. They’ve all known each other for a while, and although their individual expertise traverses different arenas, the three are united by a love of roast chicken among other things. “[Roast chicken] is comfort food for us, but we couldn’t find [the version we want in] a restaurant setting. It's more of a take out, to-go item ‘di ba?,” Butz tells SPOT.ph. “We wanted something you can consume [on the spot, served] fresh.”

Humble as a roasted bird might sound on paper, it’s raised to elegant but ultimately comforting heights in Pluck’s Rotisserie Chicken with Charred Cabbage, Chimichurri and Jus (P790/half, P1,500/whole). Here, the bird is given a koji marinade using their own rice koji inoculated in-house; they got the idea to go this route after encountering koji-marinated chicken at a trade show and being blown away by the Japanese fermented product’s tenderizing powers (even for a traditionally dry part like the chicken breast). In Pluck’s case, it keeps the bird soft and juicy, and imparts a subtle umami that heightens the natural taste of the meat. Whole chickens are cooked low and slow on a rotating spit, rendering the skin golden and glossy and the meat fall-off-the-bone juicy. Cuts of the chicken are served on a platter over wedges of cabbage, which turn sweet and meltingly tender from being soaked in the chicken's juices. Finally, a drizzling of zesty chimichurri brings a welcome zip to the party.

The subtle savoriness of the koji-tinged chicken, Butz explains, is fantastic with orange wine. That’s skin-contact wine, made with white grapes that have the skin left the way red grapes would for red wine, which generally makes for dry, citrusy sips and a slightly acidic finish—just the thing to even out the chicken’s richness without overpowering its milder poultry flavor. Pluck carries a whopping 10 orange wine options for your perusal, along with other vino variants—whites, rosés, reds, and sparkling bottles.

The charm of Pluck extends to the other dishes on the menu, which are designed to build anticipation for the chicken but also hold very well on their own. There’s the Pickled Mussels on the Half Shell (P290), cloaked in a silky pimenton aioli with a good amount of creaminess and tang. Chef Ralph’s strong pastry game is evident in the Onion Tart With Blue Cheese and Greens (P350)—think tarte tatin but with onions that turn sweet and earthy as they caramelize; and a blue cheese sauce underneath for sharp, pungent contrast. There are Lamb Skewers (P250), given a potent spice rub that stands up to the strong taste of the meat; be sure to give it a dip into the labneh served along side. Try the Iberico Pork Collar (P1,400) as well, glazed in the style of char siu with a touch of heat from Mexican chili—so buttery soft you can cut it effortlessly with a spoon.

The adventurous are in for a treat in Pluck’s Burnt Honey Panna Cotta, Apple Cider Granita, Kaffir Lime dessert (P320), which weaves together sweet, creamy, tangy, fruity, and floral profiles. Excellent, too, are the cocktails—easy-sipping aperitivo type tipples which include the cointreau-spiked Manila Sling (P470) and the funky Pineapple Sour (P450).

In spite of the place's small size, compact menu, and relative distance from the typical food hotspots (Poblacion and BGC for example), Pluck has well won the local food community over, for good reason. It's one of those gems that knows how to bring out the best of simple dishes, by adding embellishments and refinements that are subtle yet strategic. And it does so without losing sight of the goal: to serve good, reliable food and drinks in a space you can feel right at home in.

Photos by Hans Fausto