Staying Grounded

In 2023, a group of open-minded foreigners left their respective cities to embrace the rusticity of Surigao del Norte and work on their long-held dream. Angelo Comsti explores the allure of this Mindanao island, as revealed by the founders of Roots

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The world was their oyster. Having spent ample time working in Central in Lima, Peru, hailed as the world's best restaurant in 2023, alongside revolutionary chef Virgilio Martinez and his formidable team, Ines Castañeda, Filippo Turrini, Marina Castañeda, Daan Overgaag and Diogo Miranda (the latter being the lone one still associated with the brand). They could have gone to the most prestigious food establishments in the world, given their enviable credentials and experience. Instead, they packed their bags and booked a one-way ticket to Siargao to set up their collective dream restaurant despite looming challenges, including access to consistent and fresh produce.

The lure and promise of the rustic island was just too alluring for them to resist, something their business partner Ricardo Miranda de Sousa acknowledged from the get-go. In July 2022, he and his Filipino wife visited Surigao's famous surfing spot for a vacation. He fell in love with the place in an instant and saw the many possibilities it possesses. That's why when he heard from his cousin Diogo about the culinary concept they had been working on for years, he produced and sent them a PowerPoint presentation proving how Siargao could be the perfect venue.

"We didn't even know where it was," says Turrini, who was then finishing a pop-up in Bali, Indonesia. "We googled it and looked for pictures. Marina then said, 'I have always wanted to live there. We have been to so many countries, but of the places we have lived in, it never happened that we would always smile on the way to work until we got to Siargao. We appreciate what we have around us, surrounded by coconut trees and carabaos while driving on our scooters. In other places, we would go on the metro or a bus and get stuck in traffic. I don't know if we can go back to city life."