My host, the Robinsons Mall group, told me that we were going to break through. I remembered my last visit when I did research for the book, "Iloilo" (The Lopez Group Foundation Inc., 2007). The restaurant name seems odd for a Filipino place fronting the beach. But the "breakthrough" is how the owner introduced fish to the menu. Raymundo Robles said that managat (mangrove jack) was considered a pest because it ate bangus fingerlings. But Robles working then as a marine biologist with Seafdec (Southeast Asian Fisheries Development Center), said he liked the taste and texture of the managat and encouraged fish farms to culture it.

Fenix, M. (2009, May 14). Iloilo's prized fish and specialties. Philippine Daily Inquirer, p. C3.