Just before 2014 ended, Solaire Resort and Casino opened the Oasis Garden Café and Waterside Restobar—two dining destinations in its posh Sky Tower leisure complex.

Oasis Garden Café is an ideal venue for a relaxing afternoon tea. It has a genially “airier” open setup with verdant flora and tall trees all over.

The transparent roof glass, plush couches, subdued lighting and the calming sound of water flowing from the man-made falls in one corner of the room combine to create a soothing dining experience.

The elaborate bird’s nest interiors of this whimsical hideaway give diners an illusion of having their own cocoon space in the midst of everything.

“That’s what people love about Oasis,” says Solaire food and beverage director Patricia Ghamami. “They have their own little space here to enjoy their food, matched by the sound of waterfalls or live piano music. It completes their entire sensory experience. It doesn’t feel like a casino at all. You can see the pool outside or the bay.”

At night, Oasis transforms into a chic lounge; those coming from Solaire’s state-of-the-art The Theatre can hang around and grab a bite before heading home.

Light to heavy meals

Oasis serves light to heavy meals with a wide selection of coffee, tea, traditional snacks, and artisanal finger sandwiches. From dim sum and noodles to salads and burgers and cakes, Oasis has a broad array of comfort dishes.

Bestsellers include the Classic Shrimp Cocktail, Bulgogi Sliders (prime beef with kimchi), Inasal Burger (served with pickle relish on the side), Pad Thai, Lobster Mac N Cheese and Beef Steak Tagalog.

All dishes are for-sharing portions.

“We respect the dining culture in the Philippines where everything is for sharing, whether in sandwich form or platter style,” says Ghamami.

Afternoon Tea finger food, served on a charming multilayered tray, consists of cucumber sandwiches, ham and cheese, fruit tartlets, mini cheesecakes, macarons and junior cakes of different flavors.

Tea flavors are aplenty and custom-blended especially for Oasis by Filipino tea master Renee Sebastian of Da.U.De.

“We spent a long time searching for the right tea partner and we are proud to have found Da.U.De,” says Ghamami.

Black teas are lusciously blended with herbs, flowers and fruits, served either hot or cold. Also available are the full-bodied African Oolong, light Lychee Red, fruity Passion Green and the minty Seffarine. About 10 loose-leaf flavors are carefully selected to complement the afternoon confection.

Traditionally, Afternoon Tea happens from 2 to 6 p.m. However, because of its popularity and the high demand to make it available outside its fixed hours, diners can now have the afternoon tea even at midnight.

“Let diners define what time their meals should be,” says Ghamami. “For us, the tradition is in the afternoon but, in life, there is no limit to how we want to enjoy things. We are happy that the market understands the menu and is comfortable ordering even late at night. We are that flexible.”

Broad menu

Meanwhile, the Waterside Restobar is a chic, comfortable space with good acoustics and ambient lighting, plus a prime selection of Mediterranean dishes.

Ensconced beside the hotel’s pool with a magnificent view of Manila Bay’s sunset, the restobar offers diners a casual atmosphere to go with the fresh and stimulating dishes of Spanish, Mexican, Argentine, Greek, Italian and Brazilian provenance.

The menu is broad and touches base with all departments of classic Mediterranean fare—Grilled Taouk (yoghurt marinated chicken and charcoal peppers), Chermoula Garoupa (sweet and spicy Moroccan fish), Basque Cerveza Mussels (with pepperonata, garlic and sundried tomato), Moussaka (layered eggplant, cumin lamb and béchamel) baked Sicilian Tetrazzini (shredded chicken and mushroom cream cheese) and Spanakopita (baked feta cheese and spinach pie with watercress).

It also has a dizzying array of tapas: Salpicon de Marisco (chilled seafood salad), Chorizo, Manchego, Jabugo, Bruschetta, Tuna, Ceviche, Adobo and Escabeche.

If one has difficulty with the selections, a waiter will always be on hand to help and describe the food, and will even recommend the appropriate wine to go with what one desires.

“Most of our ingredients are sourced internationally, like the Manchego and Blue Cheese and all the cold cuts,” says Paul Barton, Solaire’s executive chef.

Waterside also boasts a live open kitchen that allows guests to view the grilling, baking and even plating of dishes.

“The open kitchen adds to the ambience of the house,” says Barton. “You see how things are prepared and done in the kitchen. If you want to come in and stand in the kitchen and cook with us, well, by all means. We will show you how to cook your favorite paella.”

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