Somerville Filipino Restaurant Tanám Has Closed Its Doors

SOMERVILLE, MA — Tanám, a Filipino restaurant located in Somerville's Bow Market, has closed its doors.

Worker-owner and chef Ellie Tiglao announced the decision to close the restaurant in a January 2 post on Tanám's Facebook page. Tiglao said the restaurant would shutter on Jan. 14, which has happened, according to Boston.com.

"There's no easy way to say this, so it's important to begin with the reason for this post: Tanám is closing," Tiglao wrote on Facebook. "It is no exaggeration to say that Tanám has been my raison d'être these past four years. Resiliency and joy in abundance, wild growth that I nourished and was nourished by in turn. I've been immensely proud of this little food and art space that's challenged the 'it is what it is' narrative of hospitality."

Tiglao said the pandemic was a major factor in the closing of Tanám, which featured one communal table and offered customers storytelling through food in what it called "narrative cuisine."

According to Boston.com, Tanám launched in 2019 as a pop-up called Pamangan.

The restaurant, which was located at 1 Bow Market Way, Suite 17, was a worker cooperative. Any staff member could become an owner if they had worked at the restaurant for six months, went through training and invested in the business.

This meant the restaurant could justify paying employees better wages because all members of staff oversaw different elements of the restaurant's operations, Boston.com wrote.

One of Tanám's signature dining experiences was Kamayan, which means "with your hands," in Tagalog.

"Kamayan is used in the U.S. to describe lavish eat-with-your-hands spreads served on banana leaf," the restaurant wrote on its website. "For Filipinxs at home and in the diaspora, this meal conjures up nostalgia of eating together from one plate with loved ones and new friends and serves a prime example of our culture of hospitality."

In her message announcing the closing of Tanám, Tiglao offered a few thoughts about the restaurant industry.

"Consider labor when you think about sustainability. People who work in hospitality deserve a living wage (hint: it is not $15 an hour). Ask where your vegetables came from AND how much the staff is being paid," Tiglao wrote.

Tiglao added: "If there are restaurants you love and want to see thrive, make a reservation now. Tip generously. Tell the world you love them."

Tiglao then concluded: "Cooperation is our heritage and our future. Support BIPOC (black, Indigenous and people of color) cooperatives and the efforts to sustain them."