In a conversation with Vogue Philippines, Abi Balingit, the 29-year old baker and recent James Beard award winner for the Emerging Voice Award 2024 demonstrated that she wears a lot of hats. Sometimes, it’s literal: on the night she won the prestigious James Beard award, Abi Balingit wore an octopus hat by artist Rae Swon . “That was the main conversation piece, honestly, besides the little medal,” she humorously recalls.
Albeit a little subtler than her tentacled fascinator, she also wore the colors of her book, Mayumu : Filipino American Desserts Remixed , glowing in hues of green and fuchsia for the event. Balingit’s joyful, creative, and passionate personality shines through best as she expresses herself through both fashion and food. “It’s just fun,” the baker and author says about her style.
“I have so much fun with both food and with fashion and my personal style. It’s an opportunity to express myself in creative ways: what I look like and what I make speaks for myself.” In her speech, the winner of the 2024 James Beard Emerging Voice Award says, “As a member of the diaspora, yes, I am American, but first and foremost I am proud to be Filipino.
” Abi Balingit’s road to the James Beard Awards started during the summer of 2020 when she launched her baking blog, The Dusky Kitchen . Initially a home baker, Balingit has now expanded her reach through pop-up events and online interactions. “I’ve been doing more pop-ups because I’m a self-taught.