HINDI nagustuhan ng kilalang Filipino director, screenwriter, at film producer na si Erik Matti ang pagtatampok sa Cebu sa Street Food series ng Netflix.

Inilahad ni Direk Erik sa Facebook nitong Lunes ang kanyang pagkadismaya dahil ang nasabing feature “borders on poverty porn.”

Aniya, ang mga pagkaing itinampok sa Cebu episode ng dokumentaryo, maliban sa lechon, ay hindi naman talaga ang mga kilalang pagkaing Pinoy.

“All the other Asian countries had their classic world-renowned street food while we had…bizarre. Bad research,” ani Direk Erik.“There are hundreds of original Filipino street food and they chose to show an esoteric eel dish and a goddamn Chinese fried vegetable lumpia!”

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Nilinaw naman ni Direk Erik sa Twitter ang kanyang pahayag tungkol sa eel dish.

“Twitter world. Pls don’t put words in my mouth. I am not saying eel bakasi is not good. I am not saying Cebu food is not good. I love Cebu food. The eel bakasi is just not IDENTIFIABLY regarded as a quintessential Filipino street food that can represent our food to the world,” tweet ng direktor.

“Given all street food in Cebu and the entire Philippines, is the eel bakasi the best and most important street food to showcase from our country to the world?”

Tinukoy niyang halimbawa ang empanada ng Ilocos bilang “much more truly Filipino” kumpara sa isa sa mga itinampok na street food, ang Chinese lumpia.

Umaasa siyang pagkain na mas “widely regarded by most Filipinos and Cebuanos” ang dapat na itinampok sa nasabing dokumentaryo “[that] can represent us.”

“Di ko pinapaglaban na Manila food ang i-showcase. Ilonggo ako. Kahit saan galing ok lang ‘yan. Cebu lechon is one of the best in the country. But I don’t think it would hurt to choose a generally regarded Filipino street food to best represent our country to the rest of the world,” katwiran ng direktor.

Nitong Martes, nag-post si Direk Erik ng apology sa Facebook, makaraang umani ng batikos ng netizens ang mga nauna niyang posts.

“I apologize if I hit a nerve regarding my opinions on the Cebu, Philippines episode on the Netflix series Street Food,” ani Direk Erik.

“The sad part about this is that in the end no one would really know what I meant to say about my thoughts on the episode because social media was already too quick to call out nasty judgment on me and my post.”