I first heard of Romy Dorotan in 1970 when I was in 2nd year college at the U.P. Diliman. He was mentioned often during conversations by members of the U.P. College of Law Alpha Phi Beta fraternity. It was part of the ritual during initiation for edgy neophytes to know the names of the senior frat members by heart. Just like me, Romy came from Bicol, just like me, and so he was more distinctively named by a senior frat member to me. “Remember that name and don’t you forget.”, was the ominous warning I got from a senior brod.
I didn’t finish my undergraduate studies in U.P and left before I could meet brod Romy in campus. But I came back to the university after I graduated college from another school. That lapse of more than five years from the Diliman campus, caused many changes, and many fraternity brothers had come and gone from the university, including Romy.
The next time his name came up in another conversation where I was present happened in New York, about ten years after I left school and had already practiced law in Manila. Romy was in the Big City, so I learned. This was in 2006. The topic of conversation among the U.S. East Coast fraternity alumni members was where to treat out a visiting brod from Manila. I would later know from my group that day, that Romy owned a restaurant in downtown Manhattan, at Mercer Street.
I was new and uninitiated in the big city. I had no idea what it meant to have a presence in Mercer Street, in the so-called SoHo district at the TRIBECA. Across two bridges from downtown Manhattan is the DUMBO.
So, what on earth do these letter groupings mean? Only in NY, right? Well, not quite.. There is a SoHo in London, England, but SoHo in New York is simply south of Houston, the street near Greenwich Village. Houston (pronounced House-tin) is found in lower Manhattan, downtown New York. Houston, same exact spelling as the city in Texas. But mind you, if its New York, it’s House-tin, If it’s Texas, it’s Hyuos-tin. Strange, yes, but that’s how it is in American lingo. TRIBECA is “triangle below Canal”. Canal is the name of the street that intersects with Broome Street near the end of which you find Chinatown in NYC. DUMBO is the acronym for “down under the Manhattan Bridge Overpass”, a Brooklyn neighborhood.
What’s the big deal about all these New York Lower Manhattan places? Well, to maintain a place there, is big deal – nothing less than significant. Consider this: TRIBECA is one of the most sought after, trendy and creative areas in New York City for both office space and chic places to live. It is home to the Tribeca Film Festival, as well as premiere artists the likes of Robert DeNiro and Justin Timberlake. Tribeca has long been known as an extremely expensive NYC neighborhood that is popular amongst celebrities and techies.” (ctto). Like the TRIBECA, DUMBO (down under the Manhattan Bridge overpass) is considered one of the most desirable and expensive neighborhoods in NYC to live in. It has sweeping waterfront views of the Manhattan and NYC skyline.
And…SoHo? Mercer Street? Ah, Romy Dorotan and wife Amy Besa ran their famous restaurant named Cendrillion right there for over a decade, thirteen and a half years, to be exact. There, Romy and Amy put their imprint deeply in the New York City’s restaurant scene. They gained a following from a large patronage coming from the multiracial, multiethnic NYC residents, and never-ending visitors at the Empire State. To obtain a lease there, maintain it for a dozen years or so, keep the business rolling, and create a following from people of diverse ethnicity and origins, speak for all the right things a business owner could effectively do, to operate a business there for a large amount of time. Romy and Amy did as much.
In time however, unscalable rising rental rates forced many businesses to move out of the profitable SoHo location. Before long, Cendrillon faced the same prospect of having to move out due to an expensive lease. Hard as it was to make the decision, the inevitability of reality was inescapable. It was a difficult move to make. As Amy jokingly puts it, (written in another article) she had to “drag Romy out of the SoHo location kicking and screaming”.
Back in his school days in U.P., Romy took up Accountancy. After finishing, he worked for the Chamber of Industries in Manila. Within a short time, he went back to school to earn a degree in Economics. After graduation, he pursued graduate studies in Economics in Pennsylvania, U.S.A.
Romy and Amy met while organizing anti-martial law activities in Philadelphia and he became part of Amy’s group, the Katipunan ng mga Demokratikong Pilipino (KDP). At the time, though Romy had siblings in Pennsylvania, he wanted to be independent and so he worked in a restaurant called the Frog, starting out as dishwasher. It had a sister restaurant called the Commissary. Romy was able to successfully connect Amy to the Head Baker there where she got a job as a pastry cook during her summer breaks from teaching at Temple University. After Amy graduated from Temple University with a master’s in mass communications, the University hired her as a Lecturer to teach Mass Comm 101 for two years. It was during that time, while on summer breaks that she worked as a baker at the Commissary.
Meanwhile Romy stayed on the job long enough to learn the culinary art. Luck played a part too, because the chef and the entire kitchen crew were hired by the owner of a new restaurant that opened up in the area. Romy was offered the Chef job left vacant by the Chef who took off, and that’s when he started his new career in the kitchen. Eventually, an offer to run a restaurant in Key West, Florida came his way. He grabbed the opportunity and brought Amy along. They became partners in running the restaurant. In that Key West experience, he elevated his culinary talent. Key West, Florida, being a tropical place, gave him new ideas about cooking. His menus were based on his mother’s recipes, his recollection of Filipino food back home, and his use of tropical ingredients. His style of cooking was inspired by all these ingredients to his patron’s delights. When the Key West work ended, he and Amy went back to New York. It was time to run their own restaurant.
At Mercer Street, in the SoHo district, Cendrillion was born. There Amy learned the ropes of running the resto business. As she puts it, “it was a trial by fire”.
Cendrillon thrived. Wrote Frank Bruni of the New York Times: “[Cendrillon is] daring, different and a sure remedy for the malady, too widespread these days, of dining déjà vu.” There, the couple also made a book project called, “Memories of Philippine Kitchens.” Rated five stars in Amazon, it documents “Filipino dishes and culinary techniques that are fast disappearing.”
In the new location in Brooklyn, Cendrillion became Purple Yam, a bold move – the relocation and the name change. Purple yam, the food, is the couple’s version of a light purple ice cream made from yam, a delightful dessert concocted by Romy. Unsurprisingly today, at its current spot in Courtelyou Road, Brooklyn, Purple Yam, has undeniably taken root.
Brooklyn is much farther away from the buzzing NYC Manhattan scene. Their patrons either take the long Q train ride or drive the distance to Cortelyou Road. But it is hardly a hindrance. In its website, Josh Weiss, sums it up with this statement: “Purple Yam is a gem. It’s everything you could want in a neighborhood restaurant. Romy, the owner/chef, is a true master. Every dish is bursting with flavor. The food, ambiance, and service are all exquisite. Purple Yam is my entire family’s favorite spot. Make sure to leave room for dessert. They are equally amazing as the meal”.
Amy though, has a more personal, if truly warm, take about it. Her message, “having both Cendrillon and Purple Yam gave us the essence of what it means to have a life worth living and that is having the dearest and truest friends who support and love you. Without this treasured network of friends, life would indeed be a very lonely place.”
(Editors’ Note: Purple Yam is also thriving in Manila, located in the old, unassuming ancestral home of Amy Besa in Malate)
About the author: ALENN NIDEA lives in New York City, NY. He is a Philippine attorney registered with the Office of Court Administration, New York State. He works as a financial professional and pursues an advocacy providing legal consulting services to the Filipino community in Queens, New York City.