Portland, OR
BIO
Carlo Lamagna is the Executive Chef at Clyde Common and Twisted Filipino Dinner Series where he leads the kitchens in preparing simple yet exquisitely executed food from a menu that has no boundaries or borders. Lamagna was born in the Philippines, and lived in Canada and Michigan until he was a teenager when he returned to the Philippines. Starting out as a psychology major in college, it wasn’t long until he discovered his passion for cooking and moved back to Michigan at 20 to begin his culinary career.
Lamagna cooked at several restaurants in Detroit before attending culinary school at the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, New York. After graduating, he moved to Chicago and worked with Bruce Sherman at North Pond where he learned the importance of seasonality and supporting local farmers and purveyors. From here, Lamagna went to Europe, traveling to Germany, France and Spain to gather more culinary perspective. From the anchovy and Serrano ham pinxtos in San Sebastian, to a classic duck casserole in Lyon, France, to liver cheese and bologna in a bread pan with mustard and rustic bread in the Black Forest in Germany, each destination has helped shape his cooking style today.
Returning to Chicago, Lamagna started working with Paul Virant, whose vast knowledge of preserving and pickling opened Lamagna’s eyes to a different way of cooking. At the core of Lamagna’s cooking is his family and his Filipino heritage, both of which played significant roles in his career. The food he ate while growing up, from his mom’s potatoes and beef on rice, his brother’s chili, his dad’s pork adobo, and his sister’s baking, all hold a special place in his heart and have been large influences in his cooking today. At Clyde Common and his Twisted Filipino Dinners, Lamagna’s dishes are a glimpse into his life: where he’s come from and where he’s been, coming together to make something new. He uses classic techniques with modern, beautiful plating, and his food is old school flavor, with new school style.
Lamagna cooked at several restaurants in Detroit before attending culinary school at the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, New York. After graduating, he moved to Chicago and worked with Bruce Sherman at North Pond where he learned the importance of seasonality and supporting local farmers and purveyors. From here, Lamagna went to Europe, traveling to Germany, France and Spain to gather more culinary perspective. From the anchovy and Serrano ham pinxtos in San Sebastian, to a classic duck casserole in Lyon, France, to liver cheese and bologna in a bread pan with mustard and rustic bread in the Black Forest in Germany, each destination has helped shape his cooking style today.
Returning to Chicago, Lamagna started working with Paul Virant, whose vast knowledge of preserving and pickling opened Lamagna’s eyes to a different way of cooking. At the core of Lamagna’s cooking is his family and his Filipino heritage, both of which played significant roles in his career. The food he ate while growing up, from his mom’s potatoes and beef on rice, his brother’s chili, his dad’s pork adobo, and his sister’s baking, all hold a special place in his heart and have been large influences in his cooking today. At Clyde Common and his Twisted Filipino Dinners, Lamagna’s dishes are a glimpse into his life: where he’s come from and where he’s been, coming together to make something new. He uses classic techniques with modern, beautiful plating, and his food is old school flavor, with new school style.