Napa’s first Filipino restaurant is a draw
Opened last June by French Laundry alumni Jade and Mathew Cunningham, Carabao, Napa’s first Filipino restaurant, has become a thriving culinary destination.
Carabao was named after the Filipino buffalo, a draft animal used in the rice paddies. It is a symbol of hard work, said chef Jade Cunningham, 27, who is originally from Bulacan, north of Manila.
For the first two months after Carabao opened, the restaurant served more than 4,500 guests, said Eric Gonzales, the Cunninghams’ business partner. Another 5,000 people could not get into the south Napa restaurant, which seats about 50 people in a 1,700-square foot space.
At first, 95 percent of the customers were Filipino, Gonzales said. Now, 75 percent of the clientele is Filipino.
Reservations are highly recommended, especially on weekends, said Mathew Cunningham, 30. “We feel terrible about disappointing people.”
Chef Jade oversees all that’s food related. Mathew Cunningham, 30, her husband, originally from Detroit, Mich., manages the front of the house, the wine list and everything else at the restaurant. Carabao, open five days a week, employs about 20 employees..
The restaurant’s menu offers classic dishes such as sisig (pork belly); crispy kare-kare (a peanut-based stew); pancit palabok (a noodle dish); and lumpia, as well as new creations.
Filipino cuisine reflects its Chinese and Spanish historical influences. “It’s like a melting pot,” Jade Cunningham said.
In March, Carabao hosted a lunch for 40 Justin-Siena parents and supporters for a five-course luncheon paired with wines. The group had donated money to the school’s annual CRAB Fest, a fundraiser that raised more than $280,000 in January for the students’ co-curricular programs. The luncheon, a featured live auction lot, raised $12,000.
Dishes at the March 11 luncheon included halibut with sun-dried tomato and calamansi hollandaise, slow-roasted pork belly with garlic fried rice and beef tenderloin, followed by a Manila mango-based dessert.
To highlight women’s contribution to the wine industry, female winemakers and vintners with ties to Justin-Siena were invited to introduce their wines. The group included three Justin-Siena alumnae, Angelina Mondavi, Hailey Trefethen and Jenny Wagner and a Justin-Siena parent, Harvest Duhig.
“It’s a wonderful opportunity to try Filipino cuisine,” said Andrea Flores, vice president for advancement at Justin-Siena as waiters served the first course, winter chicories with goat cheese and a black garlic balsamic dressing, paired with a 2024 Emmolo Sauvignon blanc.
“I hope you guys truly enjoy our cuisine, our culture, our food,” Eric Gonzales, a former Justin-Siena trustee and parent, who helped organize the luncheon, told the guests.
He and his wife, Amparo, met the Cunninghams about two years ago when the couple hosted pop-ups at various locations. The Gonzales, who thought Napa needed a good Filipino restaurant 20 years ago, fell in love with Jade Cunningham’s cooking.
Eric Gonzales, who grew up in Vallejo in a Filipino-American family, even brought his mom, Lyn, to taste the food at the Cunningham’s pop-up. His mom said, “‘She’s legit, Eric. She’s an incredible chef,’” Gonzales recalled.
Gonzales,impressed by the young couple’s entrepreneurial spirit and professionalism, decided to partner with the Cunninghams to launch Carabao. “It’s been good,” he said.
“It’s amazing food,” said Kate Smith, a Justin-Siena parent. “Every dish was exceptional.”
The restaurant is open five days, Tuesday through Saturday. Reservations are highly recommended, though walk-ins are welcome as space allows.
