Chikahan gives a tasting menu stuffed with Filipino dishes.
Filipino meals has been on the rise in Houston—and far of America—due to cooks exploring their tradition, diners increasing their horizons, and social media platforms, the place the colourful delicacies shines. This rising reputation has prompted native Filipino cooks to pursue new ventures to focus on the meals they grew up consuming. And Andrew Musico is not any exception.
His first restaurant, Chikahan, situated within the former Dumpling Haus in Sawyer Yards, opened in early January. Named for a Tagalog phrase which means “chitchat,” it serves fine-dining Filipino meals by means of a seven-course tasting menu, priced at $150 per particular person.
“From a tasting menu, I get the chance to showcase one thing that you just may not order on a menu—simply since you may not know what it’s, so that you would possibly stray away from it,” Musico says. “I’m making an attempt to teach somebody about all of what Filipino delicacies is about.”
Though Musico needs to supply dishes that keep true to his tradition, he additionally incorporates regionally sourced components. For instance, the laing dish is made with bok choy, coconut koji, ginger, coconut milk, and chiles, however at Chikahan, he makes use of beet greens as a substitute of taro leaves. Equally, the sinigang is made with tomatillo as its souring agent, slightly than tamarind, in addition to arborio rice, scallop, beets, trout roe, mustard, and parmesan.

Andrew Musico is able to educate Houstonians extra about his tradition by means of meals.
Sustainability is one other aim. The menu’s “hen 4 methods” makes use of your complete hen, together with Hainanese poached breast, hen tinola made with broth from the carcass, inasal rillette constituted of the wings and legs, and rice fried with hen fats rendered from the pores and skin.
Chikahan will provide three seasonal menus a yr, and in between every change, the restaurant might be closed for a two-week interval—the primary week to provide his employees a break, and the second for coaching. The restaurant is BYOB for now, however Musico is engaged on acquiring a liquor license.
Being a chef, not to mention a restaurant proprietor, was not what Musico initially thought he was going to do together with his life. In highschool, his two greatest pursuits had been violin and physics. However on the finish of the day, he didn’t wish to be a violinist, and as a high-energy particular person, he couldn’t fathom sitting at a desk all day for analysis and such. He discovered his true calling when he determined to take a culinary course his college district provided.
Though he referred to as it a “glorified dwelling ec class,” there was a business kitchen arrange for college kids to make use of and a cooperative-education possibility obtainable, which led him to start working at a rustic membership. Right here, Musico shortly fell in love with the culinary business and realized it was what he needed to do for a profession, however his mother and father inspired him to nonetheless get a four-year diploma. He studied restaurant administration on the College of Houston, the place he realized entrance of home duties and gained cooking expertise by means of Disney’s culinary internship program, in addition to a stint in Mexico.
He ended up not ending college, however Musico didn’t let that cease him from pursuing his dream of working in a restaurant, particularly in fine-dining. After sporadic gigs and numerous job functions, the now-closed Houston restaurant Feast took an opportunity on him. He labored there as an apprentice at no cost for about six months, and though it ran his financial savings dry, Musico says it was how he obtained his foot within the door. He later had the possibility to work at beloved native eating places like Tiny’s No. 5, now-closed institutions Oxheart and Aqui, and most just lately, Squable.
When the pandemic hit, Musico was out of a restaurant job and had free time galore. He channeled his power into creating new menus, which led him to create his first enterprise, the Fattest Cow, a catering and pop-up idea. Musico had hoped to show the Fattest Cow right into a fast-casual brick-and-mortar, however after a four-month search in 2021 and at last discovering a spot, the lease fell by means of. So, he took a while to cater extra, work another odd jobs, and educate a culinary course at Houston Group School, however he by no means gave up hope.
Through the summer season of 2023, he obtained phrase from his realtor that the homeowners of Dumpling Haus had been looking for somebody to sublease their area to, and he jumped on the alternative. After doing analysis on the area and the neighborhood, he determined the Fattest Cow wasn’t a match, and as a substitute pulled out his plans for a fine-dining idea.
Sadly, within the midst of bringing Chikahan to life, he hit a significant bump within the street: His greatest investor pulled out. After some panic and scrambling for extra buyers—which landed him some assist—Musico took issues into his personal palms. The extra time he took to open, the extra money he was dropping. And imagine it or not, Musico ended up doing the complete inside design of the area.
“At that time, I used to be like ‘I don’t know if I’m going to get one other alternative within the subsequent…nonetheless lengthy,’” Musico says. “So, I went to Dwelling Depot, rented a bunch of instruments, purchased a bunch of wooden, and simply began constructing. I already had some concepts of what I needed.”

Chikahan’s inside is all due to its chef-owner Andrew Musico.
The Chikahan area meshes midcentury trendy with the jungle. Above a comfy sofa he constructed hangs paintings he commissioned from a buddy. A bookshelf is stuffed with knickknacks donated from his household, together with some automobiles his dad painted to replicate the buses again dwelling. The restaurant additionally has a collection of fantastically crafted banquettes. You’ll by no means guess that Musico constructed all of it himself.
“I study in a short time,” Musico says. “I ripped out the wall, did the plumbing, and [used] a 3D rendering program. So, roughly, it turned out form of how I needed it to.”
He labored nonstop in 2024 to make all of it occur. In November, he obtained one other investor, which allowed him to place some ending touches on the place and do a tough push to rent everybody. Musico looks like Chikahan remains to be a piece in progress, however he’s proud to lastly introduce his restaurant to Houstonians. Transferring ahead, his focus is just not solely on retaining his prospects joyful but in addition creating an awesome surroundings for his employees.
“I wish to be the employer that I at all times needed,” Musico says. “I need folks to be joyful that they’re working right here.”