Filipino food has been on the rise in Houston—and much of America—thanks to chefs exploring their culture, diners expanding their horizons, and social media platforms, where the colorful cuisine shines. This growing popularity has prompted local Filipino chefs to pursue new ventures to highlight the foods they grew up eating. And Andrew Musico is no exception.

His first restaurant, Chikahan, located in the former Dumpling Haus in Sawyer Yards, opened in early January. Named for a Tagalog word meaning “chitchat,” it serves fine-dining Filipino food through a seven-course tasting menu, priced at $150 per person.

“From a tasting menu, I get the opportunity to showcase something that you might not order on a menu—just because you might not know what it is, so you might stray away from it,” Musico says. “I’m trying to educate someone about all of what Filipino cuisine is about.”

Although Musico wants to offer dishes that stay true to his culture, he also incorporates locally sourced ingredients. For example, the laing dish is made with bok choy, coconut koji, ginger, coconut milk, and chiles, but at Chikahan, he uses beet greens instead of taro leaves. Similarly, the sinigang is made with tomatillo as its souring agent, rather than tamarind, as well as arborio rice, scallop, beets, trout roe, mustard, and parmesan.

Sustainability is another goal. The menu’s “chicken four ways” uses the entire bird, including Hainanese poached breast, chicken tinola made with broth from the carcass, inasal rillette made from the wings and legs, and rice fried with chicken fat rendered from the skin.

Chikahan will offer three seasonal menus a year, and in between each change, the restaurant will be closed for a two-week period—the first week to give his staff a break, and the second for training. The restaurant is BYOB for now, but Musico is working on obtaining a liquor license.

Being a chef, let alone a restaurant owner, was not what Musico originally thought he was going to do with his life. In high school, his two biggest interests were violin and physics. But at the end of the day, he didn’t want to be a violinist, and as a high-energy person, he couldn’t fathom sitting at a desk all day for research and such. He found his true calling when he decided to take a culinary course his school district offered.

Although he called it a “glorified home ec class,” there was a commercial kitchen set up for students to use and a cooperative-education option available, which led him to begin working at a country club. Here, Musico quickly fell in love with the culinary industry and realized it was what he wanted to do for a career, but his parents encouraged him to still get a four-year degree. He studied restaurant management at the University of Houston, where he learned front of house duties and gained cooking experience through Disney’s culinary internship program, as well as a stint in Mexico.

He ended up not finishing school, but Musico didn’t let that stop him from pursuing his dream of working in a restaurant, specifically in fine-dining. After sporadic gigs and countless job applications, the now-closed Houston restaurant Feast took a chance on him. He worked there as an apprentice for free for about six months, and although it ran his savings dry, Musico says it was how he got his foot in the door. He later had the chance to work at beloved local restaurants like Tiny’s No. 5, now-closed establishments Oxheart and Aqui, and most recently, Squable.

When the pandemic hit, Musico was out of a restaurant job and had free time galore. He channeled his energy into developing new menus, which led him to create his first venture, the Fattest Cow, a catering and pop-up concept. Musico had hoped to turn the Fattest Cow into a fast-casual brick-and-mortar, but after a four-month search in 2021 and finally finding a place, the lease fell through. So, he took some time to cater more, work some other odd jobs, and teach a culinary course at Houston Community College, but he never gave up hope.

During the summer of 2023, he got word from his realtor that the owners of Dumpling Haus were trying to find someone to sublease their space to, and he jumped at the opportunity. After doing research on the space and the neighborhood, he decided the Fattest Cow wasn’t a fit, and instead pulled out his plans for a fine-dining concept.

Unfortunately, in the midst of bringing Chikahan to life, he hit a major bump in the road: His biggest investor pulled out. After some panic and scrambling for more investors—which landed him some help—Musico took matters into his own hands. The more time he took to open, the more money he was losing. And believe it or not, Musico ended up doing the full interior design of the space.

“At that point, I was like ‘I don’t know if I’m going to get another opportunity in the next…however long,’” Musico says. “So, I went to Home Depot, rented a bunch of tools, bought a bunch of wood, and just started building. I already had some ideas of what I wanted.”

The Chikahan space meshes midcentury modern with the jungle. Above a cozy couch he built hangs artwork he commissioned from a friend. A bookshelf is filled with knickknacks donated from his family, including some cars his dad painted to reflect the buses back home. The restaurant also has a series of beautifully crafted banquettes. You would never guess that Musico built it all himself.

“I learn very quickly,” Musico says. “I ripped out the wall, did the plumbing, and [used] a 3D rendering program. So, more or less, it turned out kind of how I wanted it to.”

He worked nonstop in 2024 to make it all happen. In November, he got another investor, which allowed him to put some finishing touches on the place and do a hard push to hire everyone. Musico feels like Chikahan is still a work in progress, but he’s proud to finally introduce his restaurant to Houstonians. Moving forward, his focus is not only on keeping his customers happy but also creating a great environment for his staff.

“I want to be the employer that I always wanted,” Musico says. “I want people to be happy that they’re working here.”