The best seat in the house

The Shangri-La's Mactan Island Resort & Spa, when you wish to dine on Italian cuisine, your destination would be Acqua restaurant. If your desire is Chinese cuisine, it is the Tea of Spring. If you want to eat in a pleasant beachside location, then it is the Cowrie Cove. For a buffet of international dishes, Tides is accessible.

There are other locations in this five-star resort available for your dining experience. For an intimate gathering for 10 to 12 people, it is the Paradise Island for you. If it is a banquet for 400 or 600 people, then you have to book the Mactan Ballroom or The Marquee, respectively. And when my beloved readers want to get married again, the Ocean Pavilion is always ready.

For nearly a decade, your favorite food columnist has been invited to all these locations mentioned above and I thought that this was all this hotel could offer. Then a pleasant surprise came from Director of Communications Mildred Amon – an invitation to the Chef's Table for a special dinner hosted by Shangri-La's Executive Chef Joris Rycken.

I came early for the event and I had two glasses of Martini and I do not mind whether the mixture of gin and vermouth (5:1 ratio) was merely shaken and not stirred. It is the quality of the ice that counts since calcium deposits in your drink are unthinkable.

Everybody who is somebody in Shangri-La were there to welcome us including, excuse me, General Manager Joachim Schutte and he showed me a machine which stores a sample of all the dishes prepared in the kitchen. Any complaint from a customer about biological agents or unwanted chemicals and there is always a sample of that particular dish for laboratory test. Nice precaution!

In the Cold Kitchen or the garde manger, aperitifs were served and we had the choices of various cold cuts, cheeses and fruits or a selection of sushi and sashimi prepared by Chef Seung Joon Lee. Then onwards to the Chef's Table. Then, the special dinner began.

Appetizer was a visual delight: Tropical Fruit Parcel, Seared Tuna with Apple & Wasabi Aioli and Lobster Salad Dumpling (prepared by Chef Gypsy Amores). I ate the dumpling, followed by the tuna and washed it with the fruit parcel and that was wonderful.

Pan-roasted Sea Bass served on Mushroom Risotto with Green Asparagus and Balsamic Shallots was served next, prepared by Chef Mark Bascones of Cowrie Cove. Every time I see risotto, I remember the video of Chef Heston Blumenthal (The Fat Duck Restaurant) searching for the perfect risotto.

I always thought the better rice is the rice that is freshly harvested and then milled because the volatile oil that gives rice its fragrance disappears quickly. In that video, I saw rice stored for two years before milling to maximize its absorbent qualities. So many things to learn to better understand the complexities of food!

Main dish was the Pistachio-crusted Lamb served with Rosemary Jus, Green Beans and Potato Gratin, prepared by Chef Arnold Perez of In-Room Dining. In the summer of 2009, at the Paradise Island during the Artichoke Festival, we had Lamb with Foie Gras and Pistachio Nut Crust and for me that was a more delicious version of this dish.

Dessert was superb: Oriental Baklava served with Marinated Apricots and Lychee Don Dorma, prepared by Chef Jan Marie Sepulveda of Pastry. This lady chef is destined for excellence.

And that seat at the Chef's Table was really the best seat at the Shangri-La's Mactan Resort & Spa.