Press
Oregonian Live
Portland’s Best New Food Carts of 2021BY MICHAEL RUSSELL
The motto at Baon Kainan -- our 2021 Cart of the Year -- is “Not Your Tita’s Cooking,” a nod to who co-owners Ethan and Geri Leung see as their fiercest critics: fellow Filipino Americans. But the menu is pitched more broadly. Even diners who don’t know their pancit from their lomi will be familiar with adobo,Photo by Vickie Connor
Portland Monthly
Portland’s Best New Food CartsBY KATHERINE CHEW HAMILTON
No offense to the aunties out there, but Baon Kainan, as their tagline states, is “not your tita’s cooking.” At newlywed couple Ethan and Geri Leung’s new cart at Metalwood Salvage next door to Vietnamese American star Matta, they give Filipino favorites modern, playful, and cheffy twists.Photo by Richard Le of Matta
Eater PDX
The Hottest New Restaurants and Food Carts in Portland, September 2021 [Heat Map]BY BROOKE JACKSON-GLIDDEN
Seattle expats Ethan and Geri Leung just opened their new Filipino cart in August, smothering fries in beefy kare kare and topping jackfruit-and-mushroom sisig with a plump soft-boiled egg. But the restaurant’s simplest dish — its chicken adobo — may be the city’s finest version of the Pinoy staple: The Leung’s tender, juicy chicken comes coated in a tamari-vinegar sauce, best paired with the cart’s garlic rice.Photo by Geri Leung
Willamette Week
Filipino Cart Baon Kainan Isn’t Auntie Authentic, but Hits All the Right Comfort NotesBY ANDREA DAMEWOOD
When they opened, Ethan and Geri Leung branded their new cart “Not your tita’s cooking.”While the tagline has since disappeared from Baon Kainan’s Instagram, the food cart’s original ethos is true: The food may not be strictly Auntie authentic, but it certainly hits all the right comfort buttons.
Photo by Henry Cromett
Oregonian Live
Food cart Baon Kainan brings Filipino American flair to PortlandBY VICKIE CONNOR
Earlier this month, Baon Kainan, meaning “to-go eatery” in Tagalog, joined Vietnamese food cart Matta, as the latest addition to the lot at Metalwood Salvage on Northeast Prescott Street.Photo by Vickie Connor
PDX Monthly
Baon Kainan, Portland’s New Filipino-American Food Cart, Is ‘Not Your Tita’s Cooking’BY KAREN BROOKS
Seattleites Ethan and Geri Leung weave traditional home cooking, cheffy twists, breakdancing philosophy, and a love of American fast food.Photo by Karen Brooks
Eater PDX
Seattle Filipino Pop-Up Baon Kainan Will Open a Portland Food Cart This SummerBY BROOKE JACKSON-GLIDDEN
Ethan and Geri Leung are moving to Portland for the same reason countless New York, San Francisco, and Seattle chefs do: to slow down. Ethan Leung, currently cooking at Seattle’s buzzy hotel restaurant Ben Paris, lives the life of a chef in a demanding market: 12, 13, 14-hour days, all with the high pressure of working in a traditional restaurant kitchen. On the side, he and Geri Leung have been running a Filipino pop-up, Baon Kainan, out of Ben Paris, making dishes like smoked salmon sinigang and ube panna cotta.
Seattle Met
Seattle’s Next Hot Chefs 2019
Kitchen culture is surging toward change—less yelling, more inclusive leadership. The restaurant realm’s notoriously grueling work, however, remains steadfast. So does the city’s culinary talent. That’s why, every year, Seattle Met profiles five rising star chefs—all of whom are younger than 40 and don’t yet run a place of their own—dedicated to creating great food in this town. While they labor mostly behind the scenes (diving into burger R&D or fermenting off-menu fresno chile hot sauce), these chefs’ skills shine through at some of the best restaurants in Seattle.
Abbio Kitchen
Chef Series
Ethan Leung never intended on becoming a chef. Instead, cooking for himself in college, and a subsequent kitchen job steered him down the culinary path. After business at Ben Paris in Seattle - where Ethan currently works - dramatically slowed, he launched his Filipino inspired pop-up Baon. We asked Ethan about his path to Baon, and launching a concept restaurant in the most difficult of times.
Eater Seattle
Where to find fantastic Filipino food around the Seattle area
There’s no shortage of great Filipino food in the Seattle region, and it’s a scene that has developed in scope over the years. The chefs and owners who serve up their own takes on classics, like chicken adobo or sinigang, also have a strong sense of community, showing support for one another in exploring the cuisine’s roots in their own creative ways. From ube cheesecakes to fine dining takes, here are some of the best Filipino restaurants around the area, listed from north to south.
The Seattle Times
4 great spots to grab a scrumptious breakfast sandwich in the Seattle area
Baon is a love letter from Ben Paris sous chef Ethan Leung and his partner Geri Leung to the Filipino food of their youth, and they’ve been popping up at Ben Paris since early August. Recently they added a weekend brunch, including a very good breakfast sandwich with an over-easy egg, cheese and longanisa sausage on a slightly sweet pandesal bun.