Four Michelin stars will converge around a 24-seat counter in Makati on August 25, when Josh Boutwood welcomes two-star restaurant Jaan's Kirk Westaway to Helm. Such arithmetic makes an efficient advertisement, but it is not what persuaded either chef to collaborate. Their dinner began with friendship—and with the discovery that, despite producing markedly different food, they agree on what a restaurant should do. “Kirk and I go back a few years. We first met during the Asia Culinary Exchange when he was visiting the Philippines, and we immediately got along,” Boutwood recalls. “We’ve stayed in touch ever since, and this year the opportunity to cook together finally came together.” The dinner brings together the chefs behind two of Southeast Asia’s most highly regarded restaurants. Helm became the only restaurant to debut with two stars in the inaugural Michelin Guide to Manila and Environs and Cebu. Jaan by Kirk Westaway, meanwhile,..
