As a young man, I longed for places offering buffets. It was more the size of the selection I was excited over rather than the quality of their spread.
But things have changed drastically. Since dieting is always in the picture nowadays, I stick to the belief that “if I am to put something in my system, it might as well be the best and most delicious.”
Two of the best hotel spreads are at Raffles’ Spectrum and Sofitel’s Spiral.
In a recent dinner at Spiral, I zeroed in on only two items the whole night: Pan-seared foie gras and the olive bread.
I had 15 servings of these tiny babies. I also had a bottle of wine with them and hummed away. Fantastic!
My favorite fine-dining place outside a hotel is Maria Luisa’s Garden at Makati Garden Club.
Here, you will find a beautiful ambiance with great French-Scandinavian cuisine. I never fail to order the Moules ala Crème (mussels with creme fraiche). Outstanding!
The steaks are also well-made.
On a recent visit, Maria Luisa’s’ had an unusual offering. It was a weekend buffet lunch and there was a spread of cold appetizers: poached salmon niçoise salad, shrimp cocktail, deviled eggs with caviar, home-made gravlax salmon, salmon croquettes, an assortment of salads, pork frikadeller or pork on gelatin, delicious house pâte, homemade mustard crusted ham, salami and an assortment of cheeses.
The place also makes its own yummy crusty bread. One can have a choice of cold or warm soup.
Included in the deal is a main course. One can select from these choices: grilled sea bass on lemon olive oil, steamed sole and smoked salmon roulade, chicken confit black currant sauce, Schweizer Schnitzel with béarnaise sauce, salmon fillet with dijon sauce, and beef salpicao.
All these for P1,000! And senior members of the Garden Club get a discount!
We at Wooden Spoon have done pretty much the same in our Pasig branch.
For a measly P375, one can dine in our weekday lunch buffet. Items are few, but they are delicious and different.
None of those we offer on the buffet is part of our regular menu.
We have humba pâte, bagoong fried rice, pandan chicken, pinangat, seafood palabok, baked spareribs, and fish with garlic sauce; and fresh fruits and buko pandan for dessert.
For only P375, how can that not be a winning deal?
I believe this spread will surprise any diner. Of course, we have the menu favorites. We also have rooms for private functions like parties or baby showers.
Today, I am in search of buffets, not necessarily with a large spread but with a selection of outstanding flavors.
Happy eating!
Makati Garden Club—Recoletos Street corner Edsa and Ayala Avenue, Urdaneta Village; tel. 522 7051
Wooden Spoon Pasig—67 West Capitol Drive; tel. 0917-8364998 and 532 1383
Sandy Daza Blog: sandydaza.blogspot.com; Twitter: @sandydaza