Saturday, December 29, 2007 Close to home By Jigs Arquiza
NEXT to Christmas, New Year’s Eve is probably the next most festive holiday of the year. It’s actually kind of a twofold celebration: to honor the passing of the year that was and to welcome the year to be. Fireworks, whistles and other kinds of noisemakers abound, to literally greet the new year with a bang. Of course, as celebrations go, food is always an important part of the New Year’s Eve celebration.
Most Filipinos take the traditional New Year’s Eve feast rather seriously, and you can say that the folks over at the Cebu City Marriott Hotel take this particular celebration as seriously as everyone else. For those who’ll be spending New Year’s Eve away from home, or who simply want to have a great New Year’s Eve dinner without going through all the hassle of preparing it, the Garden Café would be a great place to usher the new year in.
For the New Year’s Eve dinner buffet, chefs Witold Sczechura and Gina Limot prepared an international menu that would definitely please locals and tourists alike. Upon the invitation of Marriott’s PR manager Joan Danao, I was able to have the special privilege of sampling some of the dishes.
Slices of prosciutto de Parma, or smoked ham, were served as an appetizer, and as an accent, a side dish of black and green olives marinated in olive oil and sprinkled with rosemary and garlic. The tanginess of the olives and the mild sweetness of the olive oil set off the saltiness of the prosciutto, resulting in an explosion of flavors that can be likened to a New Year’s Eve fireworks display.
Another appetizer that should be on everyone’s “to taste” list is the baked salmon and tuna with radish. It’s actually a big chunk of salmon with a slice of radish wrapped in pastry, topped with a slice of tuna, and then baked.
Think “sushi,” substitute pastry for nori and cooked salmon for raw, and you’ve somehow got the idea. And like sushi, dip the whole thing in soy sauce with lemon, and you’ve got a whole new experience to talk about.
If you prefer the real thing however, sushi and sashimi will also be available, according to the menu I was shown, as well as a host of other appetizers such as pâté, cold cuts and a shrimp cocktail. The buffet will also feature several kinds of salads, like crab salad, eggplant salad and Waldorf salad in addition to the Caesar salad station.
Arroz caldo, or rice porridge, and lemon and broccoli soup will also be offered.
As a main course, the ocean sea bass with fried shredded vegetables and orange and lemon rinds are an excellent choice. Covered with a slight crust, yet soft and tender inside, with a lemony, orangey flavor, it gives new meaning to the phrase “fish fillet.” A word of warning though: this dish is probably addictive. I don’t often eat fish, and yet I found myself taking bite after bite of the ocean sea bass. I will say this about this particular dish: It’s fantastic!
Other choices for the main courses are lamb chops, pork tenderloin, salmon, chicken, and in keeping with the international theme, lengua estofado and of all things, balbacua. Seriously, it’s in the menu they showed me. The Garden Café will also have carving stations for stuffed roast turkey with cranberry sauce, lechon de Cebu, which is hands down better than Pampanga or La Loma lechon, and roast beef. Stations for pasta and side dishes such as rice, mashed potatoes and bam-i, pancit, if you will, will also be set up.
For those with a sweet tooth, the Garden Cafe’s New Year’s Eve buffet will have a variety of desserts for the taking. The ever-present fruitcake will obviously be present, together with crème brulee and buko salad. Chocolate mousse, mango mousse, chocolate truffles, blueberry cheesecake and strawberry cheesecake will also be among the selection of desserts at the Garden Cafe this New Year’s Eve.
People will say, New Year’s Eve is still best celebrated at home, with loved ones. While this is generally true, there will always be those times when you can’t go home, for reason of work or whatever. For those who find themselves in this situation, Cebu City Marriott would be a good place to stay in, where the folks and the food will make you feel closer to home.
