Samira Restaurant of Anya Resort Tagaytay recently joined select restaurants worldwide in celebrating Goût de France.

For the fourth consecutive year, this worldwide culinary event has united thousands of chefs from over five continents, in celebrating the taste of French gastronomy. Eighteen chefs and restaurants from the Philippines participated in the fourth edition of Goût de France/Good France.

This year, the event was dedicated to the renowned chef Paul Bocuse, who led the great evolution of French nouvelle cuisine.

Samira Restaurant in Anya Resort Tagaytay was selected to serve a Goût de France dinner. The restaurant is one of Anya Resort’s most prominent features. Elegant and restrained in a modern way, Samira (“gust of wind” in Sanskrit) has European and Mediterranean entrées on the menu. But it also has its own style, one that is based on locally grown, available and seasonal ingredients, allowing it to stay true to its primacy of simplicity and freshness.

Endemic ingredients

Hence, you will find tawilis, endemic to the region, as well as pineapple, from the surrounding plantations, creatively incorporated into the menu. Breads, jams, preserves, salad dressings are all made in the resto’s kitchens.

Samira highlights modern-day food values of sustainability and provenance. It was a clear winning choice for a Goût de France dinner.

The exclusive dinner, hosted by Santi and Marilen Elizalde, had an exquisite gourmet menu that included an elegant and refined wine pairing, which highlighted classic French appellations handled by Anya’s director of operations Mikel Arriet and general manager Peter D’ Souza. Also in attendance was Alfredo Roca of the Anya Hospitality Group.

Goût de France zeroes in on the palate and the pleasurable experience of dining that goes with knowing that everything good about a country is in every prepared dish.

The evening started with a round of kir royale served in the airy, breathtaking lobby of Anya Resort, after which dinner followed in Samira Restaurant. The first course was a foie gras terrine served with roasted pear, onion, chutney and baked-in-Samira’s-kitchen brioche, paired with Cadet d’Oc Baron Philippe Rothschild IGP, 2015 chardonnay.

This was followed by pan-fried scallops with green asparagus, crunchy beetroot and foam topped with black caviar and Britanny sauce, paired with Cadet d’Oc Baron Philippe Rothschild, 2015 chardonnay.

The main course was a duck breast sous vide and an orange sauce paired with Chateau la Paige Bordeaux Superieur, 2014 cabernet sauvignon.

Of course, true to the aphorism of French philosopher Jean Anthelme Brillat-Savarin on dessert and cheese—“dessert without cheese is like a pretty woman with one eye”—a formidable selection of French cheeses paired with Cadet d’Oc Baron Philippe Rothschild IGP, 2015 pinot noir, preceded dessert.

The apple tarte tatin, a tribute to Bocuse, was a dark, caramelized apple and crisp shortbread pastry plated with homemade salted caramel ice cream. To end the dinner on a high note, fine French Hennessy VSOP brandy was served. —CONTRIBUTED