Rubbing elbows at Elbow Room

I’ve said this once and I’ll say it again: my schedule nowadays is so crazy that most of the time, I feel like an overbooked geisha rushing from one teahouse to another to meet waiting, high-paying (and hopefully satisfied) daihatsus to avail of my services. But seriously, I’m having a ball. I love my job. God has been so kind! My cup runneth over even if I’m now bordering on insanity!!! I need more space, more time to smell the flowers... more elbow room, so to speak.

So when Sunny Ku invited me to the opening of Elbow Room, where he is vice-president for marketing, I readily abandoned my noh make-up accessories and glided majestically to the party.

Located at the fifth level of the Podium, Elbow Room is a billiard hall-bar-restaurant-karaoke bar rolled into one. It boasts of fabulous Zen-like interiors adorned with green bamboo foliage. The videoke rooms are done in stylish minimalism. Lighting is very innovative. All in all, it has a very calming, soothing ambience. President and Sunny’s brother Aldwin Ku, who has successfully run the Nine Ball chain of billiard halls says, "I wanted Elbow Room to be different from other billiard halls. It’s about time we have one where the upmarket crowd can have enough space and move around freely."

Not to be missed is Elbow Room’s exciting menu, which is decidedly fusion. "We use Asian spices but our presentation is American," says Aldwin. Its appetizer selections, for example, range from Middle Eastern Hummus – soft pureed peas with Kalamata olives and uncut romain lettuce; Thai Pesto Chicken, chicken breast marinated with Thai pesto and stuffed with soft vermicelli; and Indian-inspired Chicken Tandoori, marinated chicken breasts grilled and served with cucumber sauce.

Among its specialties are Beijing Beef, tenderloin with Beijing blast and served with hoisin butter sauce and garnished with fried canton noodles; Coco Salmon, grilled Norwegian salmon with basil and cilantro in spicy coconut; and Miso Gindara, gindara marinated in miso glaze.

Also worth trying out are Lemon Grass Fish, catch of the day grilled with dill leaves and served with lemon grass sauce; Pork Egg Pouch, fried pork spareribs wrapped in onion crepe drizzled with oyster sauce and Chili Tofu, tofu cubes deep fried and then stir fried in crabmeat, carrots and bell pepper in sweet chili sauce.

Even the sandwiches and desserts have that fusion touch. Falafel Sandwich consists of a deep-fried pureed chic pea patty served on sourdough bread and drizzled with tahini sauce; and Crabcake Sandwich, a fresh crab mix filling that is slightly breaded, pan-fried and served on sour-dough bread.

Tongue sweeteners include Grape and Wine Custard, fresh red and green grapes covered with marsala wine-flavored custard; Profiteroles, puff pastries filled with ice-cream and drizzled with a coconut-choco fudge; and Zeppoles, deep fried pastry batter served with fruit compote.

Elbow Room’s Bamboo Bar also boasts of a wide selection of drinks and will soon introduce its signature mood drinks.

The opening of Elbow Room was made even grander by the staging of Avel Bacudio’s 2003 Style Collection. The best live mannequins sashayed all over the place and I was awed by Avel’s fashion flair of fusing wearability and creativity.

Directed by Robby Carmona and managed by Masterminds Asia, the fashion show featured colorful modern-Oriental inspired clothes and an ensemble filled with fabulous funnel necks, pointed shoulders and sharp edges. The mens wear was equally fabulous with loose shirts transformed to Japanese-inspired tops and pant legs sewed with sashes. The latest watch collections of DKNY, Emporio Armani and Diesel were also shown.

Also in the launch rubbing elbows with the owners of Elbow Room headed by Aldwin and Sunny with Cindy Ku (VP Operations) and Jerry Lim (Chief Finance Officer) were Hans Sy of SM Prime Holdings, Podium Mall Manager Rizza Lopez, coach of Sta. Lucia Realty basketball team Al Francis Chua, Valenzuela Congressman Sherwin Gatchalian, Lucerne Watches’ Emerson Yao, CEO of Splash Rolando Hortaleza, Senior VP SM-LCI Ric Camaligan, COO Asia Brewery Mike Tan, VP of SM Shoemart Harley Sy, Gwen and Kenneth Ku of Fiesta World Mall and celebrities Daisy Reyes, Angela Velez and John Estrada.

Visit Elbow Room and know exactly what I am talking about. For reservations call Elbow Room at tel. no. 6341404.