THE term “halal,” says executive chef Godfrey M. Laforteza III of Tempo in Crimson Resort and Spa, is translated as “what is allowed.” In the Moslem religion, he continues, “it is a diet, a term for all the food that is good for everybody. It is basically the same as the Jewish term ‘kosher.’ It is food that cannot hurt any human being. No pork, no alcoholic drinks are allowed.”
Tempo serves halal food from its halal kitchen. The kitchen, to be halal, has to follow certain guidelines. All the instruments used in the kitchen must be halal, meaning they have not been contaminated by non-halal food. Serving plates, glasses, utensils must all be certified halal and there is an “H” mark that separates them from the other cutlery, glasses and plates used in the resort. There’s a certain ceremony before any equipment is deemed halal and whenever a halal plate or glass or cutlery gets “contaminated,” the object is placed in a quarantine area “waiting” for other objects which may have gotten contaminated that day. They are washed, before the day is over, with halal detergent imported from Malaysia, by Jamal, the Moslem chairperson of the halal committee of Crimson.
It is not just what is used in preparing halal food that must be halal. The ingredients—the meats, fishes, condiments, vegetables—must all come from a halal-certified supplier. And when they arrive at the resort, they are handled separately, with their own trolley, from the supplies of the other food outlets in the hotel.
Chef Laforteza says he is not a halal chef per se but that he worked in Indonesia, a predominantly Moslem country, for five years, which gave him the opportunity to study halal food and to follow the halal guidelines.
The halal kitchen of Crimson is the first to be ISO certified among the Central Visayas hotels and resorts. To go with this certification, the hotel changes the amenities of rooms that may be occupied by Moslems: no alcohol in the mini-bar, the Koran is in place instead of the Bible, a prayer mat is placed in the room, a “kivlat,” which shows the direction of Mecca and a “halal” directory for other halal establishments in the area that indicates as well the location of Moslem mosques.
Chef Laforteza says they are evaluated every three months and that random inspection takes place at any time. If three infractions are committed, the halal certification is revoked. Aside from this certification, Crimson also has a Crescent certification for its halal kitchen, the top rating is seven and Crimson has five because it has other outlets that serve non-halal food.
So what are available dishes from the halal kitchen? Its list of cold and warm appetizers are all seafood based except for its Caesar salad. Among the appetizer items are house smoked salmon, grilled octopus salad, seafood bouillabaisse, Tempo mixed seafood plate, Chilean mussels and Australian Pacific Oyster. The Boston seafood chowder and the particularly beautiful and delicious Spanner Crab salad—beautifully set on a large plate which Chef Laforteza considers his blank canvas that brings out the artist in him, are fantastic eats.
The main course menu is also mostly seafood based: fish and chips, roasted snapper fillet, spaghetti with pan-fried prawns, porcini mushroom risotto, fisherman’s paella and Tempo seafood hot and cold platter. The medium roasted salmon was perfect, with none of the salmon’s fishy taste. It was served with sauteed lettuce heart, potato confit and grain mustard beurre blanc. The grain-fed Australian tenderloin was perfectly tender with siding of mashed potatoes, baby vegetables and beef jus. To top that delicious meal, there was soft-centered chocolate dom with diced tropical fruits on a bed of raspberry sauce.
Tempo is open from 7 to 10:30 a.m. for a halal buffet breakfast. It does not serve lunch. Dinner a la carte is from 6:30 to 10:30 p.m. Non-halal food from other Tempo outlets can also be served in this restaurant.