Carlo Lamagna Announces Plans for Magna, His New Filipino Restaurant

In a phone call with Eater today, chef Carlo Lamagna said he’s stepping away from the day-to-day operations as the executive chef at Clyde Common to focus instead on his Twisted Filipino pop-up and to begin laying the groundwork for Magna, his nascent Filipino restaurant.

“We kind of just looked at each other and said, ‘It’s time to do Filipino food,’” Lamagna says of his and Tilden’s decision. “It’s exciting to be able to tell my story in my own space in Portland.”

Lamagna moved to the Philippines at the age of 11 and stayed there until he completed college. He says he plans on putting modern spins on the island’s classics, including some very obscure dishes that are specific to the region where his father grew up.

Lamagna says we should expect his mom’s noodle, his dad’s adobo, as well as “whole roasted spit-fired little piggies.”

Manga, Lamagna joked, is a play on his last name. It also happens to mean “great” in Latin. He said he doesn’t want to sound full of himself, but adds that Magna is a great name for his concept because he wants to make great Filipino food.

“We’re excited to do right by Filipino food here in Portland, and not just through the pop-up,” he said.

LaMagna also noted that a decision hasn’t been made about who will replace him at Clyde, but said that Tilden will be taking the restaurant back to its gastropub roots.

Stay tuned.

Correction: This story has been corrected to show Lamagna is opening Magna alone, not with Nate Tilden.

• Clyde Common [Official Site]
• All Previous Clyde Common Coverage [EPDX]
• All Previous Carlo Lamagna Coverage [EPDX]