Peking and I

Having dined in countless Chinese restaurants, I have cracked open many a fortune cookie to cap a meal, revealing a tiny piece of rolled paper on which was written my so-called fortune (or misfortune). Nope, I never got a fortune cookie that said I would have the good fortune to go to Peking (Beijing) someday. But off to Peking I went, one cold and grey November many moons ago. There I discovered the most opulent palaces and temples, the most colossal stone walls and gates, some of the most priceless ancient art treasures, and a most hardy and hardworking people. There I discovered food, glorious Chinese food that delighted my heart and belly, and warmed my soul. There I had my first taste of honest-to-goodness Peking duck, which we ate at a restaurant that served nothing but Peking duck — believe it or not, from soup to dessert! Our most generous Chinese hosts heard only shrills and quacks of satisfaction from our all-Pinoy party.

Something to quack about: Peking Garden’s famous Peking duck

Of course, you don’t have to fly all the way to Beijing for an authentic taste of northern Chinese cooking. Because Peking has come to the Philippines, thanks to two businessmen who came from the same part of China and shared a consummate passion for good food — make that good Chinese food: our own Henry Ng and ST Wu and James Wu of Hong Kong’s Maxim’s, the biggest and most famous chain of restaurants in HK. Thirty years ago, Ng brought a gem of a resto called Jade Garden to the Philippines. Fifteen years ago, he brought in Peking Garden via Maxim’s. And as they say, the rest is (gastronomic) history. The late Henry Ng passed on the torch to his son Peter Ng.

Northern Comfort Food

So, here I am in Peking — I mean Peking Garden, which opened barely two years ago in Greenbelt 5, Makati — savoring the best that northern Chinese cuisine has to offer. “It’s the only northern Chinese restaurant in the Philippines,” says Peking Garden manager Archie Au with a hint of pride.

Shrimply delicious: Prawns in sweet and sour sauce

 Be it ever so humble, Archie’s home was brimming with good food. “I don’t know how my mom, who had to take care of all of us six children, did it, but every day, we had different dishes on the table. She would make my favorite steamed fish, sotanghon with dried scallops, and so much more.”

So much more northern Chinese favorites you’ll find in Peking Garden’s blooming food paradise. Such delicious picks as the healthy sea whelk (snails) and spicy dishes that and tickle and rev up lethargic taste buds on dreary rainy days.

Open sesame: Deep-fried shredded beef with sesame puff

“Hopefully, we’ll continue to offer the same good food — outstanding northern cuisine — our customers have come to love, more new dishes, and good service,” says Joy Ng, Peking Garden’s business development manager. “Obviously, we want to keep people excited, keep them coming back. While we’re offering traditional dishes, we want to keep offering new things. And we try to maintain our consistency in terms of quality.”

Being devout Peking Garden fans, we can only agree with a hearty burp. We can’t have enough of Peking Garden’s most famous Peking duck, probably the best in town. When it comes to this priceless delicacy, Peking Garden has a lot to quack about. “Our Peking duck has really crispy skin, the meat is really juicy, and it’s got less fat,” says Archie. “Our duck is bigger than the one in Hong Kong. What’s our secret? Our duck is roasted for 40 minutes in a big oven, which can cook 12 to 15 ducks at a time. It is 80-percent roasted and 20-percent deep-fried so the skin comes out very crispy with reduced fat. Also, every part of our duck can be eaten because even the skin of the back is roasted, unlike that in Hong Kong.”

Soup-er attraction: Shark’s fin and chicken soup

When you eat your duck at Peking Garden, you gingerly wrap it in wafer-thin pancake that’s made of a special kind of flour. We’ve tried the Peking Garden’s good old Peking duck many times before so now, we opted to feast on its other prized offerings: cold chicken in rice wine sauce; crispy vegetable, conpoy with bamboo shoots, and candied cashew nuts; deep-fried shredded beef with sesame puff; pan-fried stuffed fresh scallops; and deep-fried silver fish with golden mushroom.

To complement the delicious food, Peking Garden’s new interiors are more than eye candy. To keep up with the times, it has adopted modern interiors with a touch of chinoiserie. Architect Nicky Magcase came up with the place that’s a lot cozier and brighter with chic chandeliers to complement northern Chinese cuisine.

Eggs-tra special: Scrambled egg white with minced fish and dried scallop

A Family Tradition

When you dine at Peking Garden with family or friends, you’ll probably see a lot of Chinese and Filipino families eating there, too.

“Peking Garden has been part of every family’s tradition for such a long time now, that’s why we said they should be part of the Citi Dining Privileges,” shares Alma Gruenberg, VP, Citibank head of Usage & Merchants. “And if you think of authentic Chinese restos, top of mind is Peking Garden. The Citi Dining Privileges program is really for families. We want to be able to get families together so when they dine out on Sundays, they have a family restaurant to go to. It’s a basic feature of the Citibank credit card. Basically, our cardholders enjoy really good dining privileges in the Philippines as well as when they go to other countries. Peking Garden is part of that entire Citi Dining Privileges program. And the offers vary depending on the restaurant. For Peking Garden, the offer is until Oct. 1, 2011; it’s a long-term program because we want to encourage our cardholders to go to select restos all the time, even if there’s no occasion.”

Dining With Citi

Four for the feast: Joy Ng, Peking Garden’s business development manager; Archie Au, Peking Garden manager; Alma Gruenberg, VP, Citibank head of Usage & Merchants; and Lynden Catapang, program manager, Cards Business Group.

With the Citi Dining Privileges, families can enjoy a lot more for a lot less at Peking Garden. On Nov. 15-19 and Nov. 22-26, Peking Garden offers two special set menus at 20-percent off for Citibank cardholders. One of these set menus includes: crispy vegetable, conpoy with bamboo shoots and candied cashews; assorted seafood in clear soup; deep-fried shredded beef with sesame puff; golden prawns with salted egg; scrambled egg white with minced fish and dried scallop; Peking Garden fried rice; steamed supreme soup and pork dumpling; chilled mango shake with sago for dessert. That filling menu regularly costs P4,300+ for six persons. With the Citi Dining Privileges, you get a sumptuous price slash of 20 percent, bringing the price of the set menu down to P3,440+ for six persons.

The other set menu — consisting of crispy golden mushroom, silver fish, and Sakura shrimp; seafood potage; prawns with sweet and spicy sauce; poached mustard green in supreme soup; seared US beef fillet salad; fried hand-made noodles with shredded pork; steamed supreme soup and pork dumpling; and chilled almond jelly with fruit cocktail for dessert — is now down to P3,360/six persons, from P4,200/six persons after the 20-percent discount.

Something old, something new: Peking Garden’s cozy interiors are modern with touches of chinoiserie./b>

And there are the regular freebies. For a minimum bill of P4,000, diners using their Citibank card get a free dish of crispy vegetable, conpoy and candied cashew nuts that costs P400.

Alma adds, “We also have weekend specials. It’s like a food sale, you get something on top of what you get normally for Citi Dining Privileges. The rest of the year, you’ll be enjoying free dishes.”

Surely, this delicious partnership between Peking Garden and Citi Dining Privileges is abloom with lots of surprises.

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For a taste of good old northern Chinese cuisine and to enjoy the discounts/freebies offered by the Citi Dining Privileges program, visit Peking Garden at the fourth level, Greenbelt 5, phase 2, Ayala Center, Makati, 729-0567,729-0719 or fax 729-0820. Peking Garden TriNoma is at the third level TriNoma Park, Edsa corner North Avenue, Quezon City, 910-0502, 910-0507 or fax 901-0531