Miss Universe Pia Wurtzbach on her Favorite Dishes & Experience as Food Entrepreneur
Pia Wurtzbach first claimed international fame after winning the revered Miss Universe Crown in 2015. But aside from being a beauty queen, Wurtzbach has also taken multiple paths throughout her career, including acting, writing, and now, food entrepreneurship. After all, the Miss Universe finished Culinary Arts at the Center for Asian Culinary Studies, so her background in food is rooted deeper than just being a foodie!
For Wurtzbach’s business venture, she had collaborated with the cloud restaurant group CloudEats to bring to life Pia’s Kitchen. This cloud kitchen combines Wurtzbach’s love for food and travel, with the brand wittingly incorporating flight and travel emblems in their packaging. But what really makes Pia’s Kitchen stand out is its traveling menu, which changes cuisines every few months. For instance, Pia’s Kitchen currently has a curated Japanese lineup, soon to be switched for a Southeast Asian cuisine roster.
If you’re curious about Pia Wurtzbach’s love for food and her experience in conceptualizing and running her own food business, check out our foodie Q&A below:
You’ve been to different parts of the world and now you have your own brand serving different cuisines. Personally, what are your top 3 favorite cuisines?
Pia Wurtzbach: I really love Asian cuisine, so, in no particular order , I love Thai, I also love Japanese, and nothing beats home, soI also love Filipino food.
How did you get the idea of having a travelling menu, each offering a different cuisine, for Pia’s Kitchen?
PW: We just wanted to do something different because there are a few brands under Cloudeats already. So I was thinking of how I can set myself apart and how I can offer something new and different. I know for a fact that Filipinos love to try new things all the time. We love mixing it up and jumping from one flavor to another, and I am the same. So I was thinking, why don’t we change the menu every 3 months? Because I did not want to stick to just one particular cuisine where we do Japanese forever. I would eventually want to try Thai, Filipino, South American, Mediterranean, and I don’t think this has been done before so that is why I wanted to do that.
For you, what is the best part of being the owner of Pia’s Kitchen?
PW: The best part is that I get to do all these food tastings and real talk with the dishes, these are really my go-to dishes when I want to reward myself. My family and friends know that I love a bowl of chicken katsu curry after a day of shooting. It makes me happy. These are dishes that I handpicked myself. And I also have culinary training so it’s been a while since I tapped into that side of me. So it’s nice to bring the foodie back.
Among all your recent travels, what are the meals that have stood out?
PW: Oh, there are so many! I love rice. So anything with rice. I cant wait until we eventually do Middle Eastern cuisine because I have been spending a lot of time there. We’re actually kind of based there now, even if I still fly to Manila a lot. I’m looking forward to having Middle Eastern as part of the menu.
What is your favorite Filipino food?
PW: Tinola, sinigang, bola bola na may misua. I love rice drowning in soup! That’s the best!
What is your go-to comfort food?
PW: Carbs, for sure. Let’s be honest, that’s the food that makes everyone happy. Rice, pasta, I also really enjoy. I don’t really restrict myself when it comes to flavor, I love tasting everything.
What’s your favorite drink?
PW: Yes, I do love milk tea. I think milk tea is a dessert in itself, depending how sweet you want it. If not milk tea, I’m really going to admit I love drinking soda. How can you eat rice without a soda beside you? Mag-partner yan!
Do you also have any unusual food combinations that you actually enjoy eating?
PW: I enjoy mixing salty and sweet food. I think most Filipinos love sauces. Not even just one sauce, sometimes two sauces. Sometimes they even have calamansi. So I love having a variety of sauces with my meals. That’s why when we were doing this menu, I was particular about the sauces because that’s what makes the dish. An unusual food combination I’ve tried is apples in soy sauce before. It was just a craving where I wanted something sweet and fresh while having something savory. It was weird but it really hit the spot!
If you can host a dinner with meals from Pia’s Kitchen, who do you want to feed and what would you serve them?
PW: I would choose my family, because they haven’t been to Manila since the start of the pandemic because although they know about the brand, they can’t order it in the UK. So I would like to have them over and try what we’ve been working on these months. Let’s keep it in the family! I would serve them everything! Personally, whenever I order Pia’s kitchen at home, I would order everything on the menu so that I can test and try everything. So, when my family is here, I would want to make them try everything.
Order now at Pia’s Kitchen in just a few taps! Their dishes are available 24/7 via GrabFood with prices ranging from P150 to P300. For more information, visit the social media pages of Pia’s Kitchen on Facebook and Instagram. You can also visit the CloudEats website.
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