At Mireia, Home Is Where The Food Is 

Chef Mark Dee goes borderless to give Filipino diners a taste of the world through the lens of home.

On a Saturday evening in 2023, Filipino foodies in the know were enjoying a taste of the unexpected. Inside his family residence, Mark Dee, a home cook with no formal training, was serving a full six-course tasting menu straight out of his kitchen. With the support of his wife, Kissel, and their household staff, the meal felt personal and refined, the lack of formal culinary credentials behind the counter an inconsequential detail.

The dinner opened with a delicate scallop tartalette topped with all the good stuff (caviar, corn, and truffle), before ending on a sweet note of a chunky chocolate chip cookie served with a shot of horchata. This was Mireia: a private dining concept driven by a passion for serving good food.

Three years and many mouths fed later, Mireia has found a new home at the Levanto Building on Jupiter Street in Makati. Served on its tables are those same tarts and cookies, and then some, though the markedly larger space allows its chef even more room for invention. Here, Mark is set on sharing his cooking with a wider circle of diners, still sprinkled with those touches of home and crowned with a dollop of global influences.

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The Borderless Cuisine Of Mireia 

As of late, a new culinary trend has been occupying the minds of many young chefs who refuse to be boxed into a single category. It’s called “borderless cuisine,” where techniques, ingredients, and influences from across the globe come together to create a menu that feels inventively varied yet cohesive. For Mark, however, this way of cooking came naturally long before it became a buzzword in 2025.

“I get inspiration from my travels,” he shares when asked about his culinary philosophy and eclectic menu, “as well as what I like to cook for my family and friends, especially for my wife and my kids: my son Maxwell and my daughter Mireia.” 

Food was always a part of Mark’s life. He grew up in a family of food entrepreneurs, his parents often preparing large family meals for the entire Dee clan, from seafood paella and Spanish cochinillo to roast beef and whole fish dishes. He traces his love for all things culinary to these gatherings, where a good meal was the locus of connection, rather than a supplement or afterthought.

More than a decade ago, Mark also tried building a food delivery business of his own, though that chapter came to a close during the pandemic. For a time, he thought about stepping away from food entirely. But his stubbornness, obsession with great-tasting meals, and fascination with how chefs create dishes kept pulling him back in. 

Over the years, he built a reputation among friends for hosting boozy lunches and dinners at his family home in Urdaneta Village. But when the pandemic brought those gatherings to a halt, he found himself cooking mostly for his wife. As a way to feed both his stomach and his wanderlust, Mark decided to bring the flavors of the world into their kitchen, recreating dishes he had encountered abroad. When the lockdown restrictions eased and more friends saw the delicious food he shared on Instagram, requests poured in from those eager to experience his cooking for themselves.

Despite holding a day job, Mark began moonlighting as a chef, turning the first floor of his home into a private dining space that operated strictly by reservation. So began the story of Mireia’s first iteration, its tables laden with the borderless flavors of Mark’s memories, from the great meals of a family who loves food to the gustatory encounters of a global traveler. With the steady support of his wife Kissel, who also contributed the sweet treats served at dessert, and his household staff working tirelessly alongside him in the kitchen, the private dining concept quickly found success; many discerning foodies considered the “amateur” tasting menu to be one of the best in town.

Out Of The Village

Like its original home within a Makati Subdivision, Mireia’s new space is also set in an unexpected location. From the outside, the imposing black structure of the Levanto Building—with its look and feel evoking the spirit of Brutalism—doesn’t seem like the kind of place that would house an upscale restaurant. But explore the spaces within its solid walls, and you’ll quickly realize this building on Jupiter Street holds its own set of luxurious treasures.

On the lower floors are the showrooms of Donn Ang, the designer and owner of the building, which feature an impressive collection of furniture pieces, from large marble tables to couches made with the most premium of materials. Then there’s the top floor, which is shaping up to be a haven for food lovers, with six high-end concepts in the works or currently open. Among them are a Filipino tasting menu, an Australian steak house, a Japanese omakase, a wine bar, and of course, Mireia.

For Mark, partnering with Donn Ang and the Penscott Corporation to bring Mireia into Levanto was a strategic decision from the very beginning. In today’s dining landscape, he acknowledges that concepts like these are far more difficult to build without the right partners and shared vision. The collaboration allowed Mireia to expand its reach while still maintaining the distinct identity first forged by its private dining set up. Mark signed on immediately, ready to take Mireia out of the village and into the CBD, with Donn’s design sensibilities naturally complementing the restaurant’s warm approach to hospitality.

The interiors of the restaurant strike a balance between homey and sleek. The predominantly red and orange palette feels modern, yet inviting. Adjacent to the main dining area are two private rooms for guests seeking a more intimate experience, both enclaves anchored by large, retro-futuristic light fixtures that double as art installations. The best part of it all, according to Mark, is the view: a sweeping panorama of the lush greenery that encloses Urdaneta Village. For a guest, it’s a picturesque view of the city—but for Mark, it carries another layer of meaning, serving as a constant reminder of the food-filled gatherings that took place there, and continues to inform his practice.

The staff keeps the restaurant running smoothly. The team isn’t just composed of new, talented additions, but also the same household staff who were with Mark from the very beginning. They’ve now grown into the eatery’s unofficial sous chefs, knowing the concept like the back of their hand. Then there’s Kissel, who helps oversee Mireia’s front-of-house operations while balancing motherhood and raising their two children.

Mark Dee Gives His Personal Perspectives On Global Cuisine

“Today, we’re making our Duck Frites,” Mark tells Lifestyle Asia as he welcomes the team into Mireia’s kitchen. We ask which dish best captures his idea of borderless cuisine, and he answers without hesitation.

“I’ve always wanted to put duck on the menu,” he shares, “but I don’t think a lot of Filipinos eat it for whatever reason. So my goal here is to make them experience it in a familiar and comforting way that will open up their palates. I want them to say to themselves: ‘Wow, I actually really enjoy eating this ingredient.’”

The finished plate consists of a high-quality duck breast from France, sous vide to achieve the perfect medium rare. It’s then seared to get that beautiful crispy skin, before it’s served with a generous portion of duck fat fries, fresh thyme, and green peppercorn sauce.

The Seafood Risotto is a must-try as well, influenced by two people who hail from very different culinary cultures. The first is Mark’s late grandfather, who would often eat buro ng talangka during his visits to Bulacan. He recalls the way he’d quickly blanch the crab, before squeezing out all its fat over steaming white rice. That extremely flavorful taba ng talangka becomes a key component for the new dish. The decision to layer that richness over risotto cooked in black squid ink draws from the dish’s second influence: the late Margarita Forés, whose work in bringing Italian cuisine to the Philippines Mark deeply admires. As he puts it, “If I had the chance to feed her, this is what I’d cook.”

Another highlight on the menu is the Miso Cod, his take on the now-iconic dish popularized by Nobu Matsuhisa and his global restaurant empire. The delicate fish sits on top of a fluffy potato puree and is served with eel tare and crispy capers. Then there’s a dish inspired by the varied shores of the Mediterranean: Lamb Shank with Spinach Pappardelle, finished with pistachio, thyme leaves, and lemon zest for a bright, aromatic lift.

These are just some of the many standout dishes across Mireia’s menu, each exploring different culinary cultures while carrying Mark’s distinct perspective. The restaurant’s new iteration is no longer just a tasting menu experience: while the original format remains for those seeking a more curated journey, the concept has introduced an à la carte selection featuring new dishes and the many favorites that first defined its identity.

It’s this steadfast conversation with the past that makes Mireia what it is. Its borderless cuisine gives it space to breathe and innovate, but that freedom only finds meaning in Mark’s many definitions of home, which live in both memory and the present: shared laughter over platefuls of delicious food; the care, support, and efforts of many, many hands; and of course, the doors of opportunity that open to those curious and passionate enough to explore the world beyond their plates.

“It may sound cliché, but it’s so difficult to cook if you don’t love it,” Mark admits, a candidly vulnerable statement that rings true in any craft. “There will be days when you hate it. But if you love it, you’ll always come back to it. Ultimately, cooking should come from a place of love and happiness, and I think that’s what Mireia is all about.”

Even when adventure calls, there has to be a place you can return to. Fortunately for Mark, that place was never distant or hidden, but something he has always carried with him, and will continue to as he sets out once more, ready to take diners on a journey around the world and back.

Explore more of the new Mireia below.

Photography by JV Rabano