How Swiss it is

Where do you go for the meatiest home­cooked sausages, the most succulent prime ribs, the beefiest corned beef, the creamiest Swiss cheeses, and the richest chocolate fondue that people have become insanely fond of? There’s just one name on everyone’s lips, make that contented lips: Old Swiss Inn.

When Old Swiss Inn opened in 1946, lovers of good old Swiss food were queuing up at the door of this quaint restaurant with warm wooden interiors that felt so much like home. Swiss national Emil Landert welcomed the first guests to his restaurant and instantly pampered them with good personalized service and food so good diners would keep coming back in the many years that followed.

Back then, a mouthwatering prime rib cost a pricey P35, already a prince’s ransom at the time. Rib and let rib!  An ample serving of peppersteak cost P23 while sausages were at P11.

Those were the days! Now, you know why people like living in the past — it’s cheap! But you can’t bring back the past, can you? Of course, you can! For its valued customers, Old Swiss Inn is bringing back the glorious ’40s with its Special Price Rollback promo on Monday, August 25 (mark that on your eating calendar). The first time Old Swiss Inn’s old faithfuls were treated to a blast from the past was on August 28, 2006, when the restaurant blew 60 candles on its giant cake to mark its diamond anniversary.  The diners had their cake and ate it, too: They gorged on good old Swiss faves at their good old prices!

And now, Old Swiss Inn again rolls its prices back to 1946 with its 2008 rollback, which will be held in two batches on Aug. 25: 6 p.m. and 9 p.m.  But for this year’s rollback night, Old Swiss Inn has come up with new mechanics to better serve its discriminating — and certainly very excited — customers. Now, there’s the Gruzi (Swiss for thank you) card, which will automatically be given to diners when they order P1,500 worth of food items. Every additional P1,500 worth of purchased food items entitles a Gruzi cardholder to one stamp. To complete a card, a cardholder needs to fill up 12 stamps. This entitles the cardholder to a gift certificate worth P500. Where does the rollback night come in? Only the first 60 people, 20 per branch (Paco, Makati, and Alabang), to fill up their Gruzi cards (the last box should have been stamped before Aug. 25) will get a reservation for four people at Old Swiss Inn’s Rollback Night.

“On the first year of our rollback promo, we were fully booked in our three outlets,” the vivacious, just-married Katrina Limcaoco-Alcuaz says with a big smile. “We did two seatings so it was more controlled. And it was for the evening only and by reservations only.”

Katrina is quick to add, “There are no limits. You can eat as many steaks as you want. In our first promo, a table of six ate 10 steaks and spent only over P200. The only thing we ask is you finish the first plate so you don’t order 10 plates and have leftovers.”

And yes, for the rollback promo, only cash payment is accepted.“Remember, there was no credit card yet back in 1946,” Katrina reminds us.

And then she heaves a long sigh and says, “The food for our rollback promo is much cheaper than gas. What we’re trying to do is to show everyone that we have an old name, we’re proud of our history, and we’re proud of the fact that our name is still alive after 62 years.”

The food is as good as Old Swiss Inn habitues remember it back in the 1940s. Like Felix and Pinky Limcaoco who had their first date at Old Swiss Inn. The place holds delicious and amorous memories for the couple who later bought the Swiss Inn property from its Swiss owner.

“My parents had sentimental reasons for buying Old Swiss Inn,” relates Katrina. “I guess they saw it was also an investment.”

Then there are Manuel and Cecille Marañon who made a sentimental journey back to Old Swiss Inn in August, 2006 with their children. The couple got married and had their reception at Old Swiss Inn’s Paco branch in 1972.

Through the decades, Old Swiss Inn has drawn assorted foodies. “A lot of people who come here don’t even look at the menu,” Katrina notes. “They sit down and say, ‘One corned beef, please.’”

Of course, while the food has been the main magnet, people also come because they like the very cozy ambience at Old Swiss Inn. Katrina will not have it any other way: “I like people being comfortable here. We’re not stiff, we’re not a formal place. You don’t have to dress up to come here. Yes, you can wear slippers. A lot of the Somerset residents come to our Makati outlet to eat in their most comfortable clothes. Our Makati branch is open 24 hours.”

While the food has remained top-notch, Old Swiss Inn has changed with the times. Katrina gingerly points out, “A lot of people are very health-conscious now so our new menu has other things, aside from our signature meat dishes (like the prime rib tenderloin encrusted with cracked peppercorn and served with green peppercorn sauce, corned beef brisket served with cabbage and potatoes, and the supersized, knockout baked pork knuckles served with sauerkraut and potatoes, etc.), like our fish dishes (think darne of salmon and grilled black seabass) and vegetarian fare.”

But at Old Swiss Inn, some things just never change. “To this day, we still cure our own corned beef and pork knuckles,” Katrina tells us over lunch.

So, what’s new at the Old Swiss Inn? “When we say new, we mean something that’s not on the 1946 menu,” Katrina explains. “Back in 1946, we didn’t have fondue. When my family reopened the restaurant after we bought it from its Swiss owner in the late 1980s, we had a Swiss executive chef and he started putting in fondues. Fondue is very Swiss, but it’s from the Swiss-French region and a lot of people like fondues. It’s very interactive, very social, and it’s cute on a date. Our diners know how to eat fondue. Fondues have become very popular and I think now, we’re more known for fondues as well as our signature dishes. When people think of fondue, they think of us. Like our cheese fondue is fantastic. We don’t scrimp on the ingredients.”

Today, Old Swiss Inn has more fondues than you can imagine: Waatlander Fondue (the classic cheese fondue made of melted Gruyere and Emmenthal cheese and laced with kirsch for that extra kick); Fondue Bourguignonne (prime beef tenderloin cubes dipped in hot oil, with a carousel of sauces and served with french fries); Neptune Fondue (a wealth of seafoods on your table, dipped in a saffron broth-flavored stock, with a carousel of sauces and garlic rice); Walliser Fondue (made with Swiss wine, Gruyere, Emmenthal, and raclette cheeses and fresh tomatoes, and served with baby potatoes, vegetables, and crunchy bread); Fondue L’Agneau (cubes of tender Australian lamb dipped in hot oil and served with a carousel of fruity and mint-flavored sauces.

But when in Old Swiss Inn, our chocolate-loving hearts will always look for the Toblerone chocolate fondue, a timeless favorite. Katrina shares the sweetest news: “Now, we also have Toblerone chocolate fondue dark, Toblerone chocolate fondue white, etc. And our Toblerone chocolate fondue goes best with coffee, which intensifies the chocolate flavor.”

Of course, you can share with your friends all these Swiss treats via Old Swiss Inn gift baskets, which can also be ordered online. But certainly, you can get one for yourself, as most people who are allergic to cooking do.

Old Swiss Inn also has packages for kiddie parties, debuts, and weddings. Its function room in all its branches can be booked for meetings, seminars, and birthday parties.

There are only two days in the year when Old Swiss Inn closes: One evening in December (but not Christmas) for the company Christmas party and on May 1 for the employees’ annual outing or day-off.

Yes, it’s open for breakfast all through dinner. You can bet Old Swiss Inn will continue its delicious tradition of serving the best the Swiss kitchen can offer.

Now, isn’t that Swiss!

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Old Swiss Inn has branches at The Garden Plaza Hotel and Suites, 1030 Belen St., Paco Manila (telephone numbers 521-3002, 526-2739, 522-4835 local 115); at the ground floor, Somerset Olympia, Makati Avenue corner Sto. Tomas St., Makati City (818-8251, 818-0098, 812-1010 local 511 to 512); and at the second floor, BMW Autozentrum Lounge, Commerce Avenue corner Madrigal Avenue, Ayala Alabang (809-2326).