A sym-Peony of flavors

MANILA, Philippines -  It’s a Peony story that has spread by word of mouth — make that contented mouths. Surely, dining at Manila Pavilion’s Peony Garden is like having a whole symphony orchestra serenading your taste buds. Like a thousand brass, percussion, and string instruments coming together to dish out a most melodious symphony of flavors.

Today, executive Chinese chef Lee Yan Feng hits a high note as he introduces the restaurant’s newly designed menu. Manila Pavilion’s GM Christopher Park can only sing praises for chef Lee’s cooking as he tells us, “We are very excited and proud to present our newest selection of Malaysian-Cantonese fine cuisine. This menu revamp not only enhances our dining service; it also gives us the excellent opportunity to present another dimension to our concept of grand Oriental dining.”

Fin dining: Braised shark’s fin bamboo pit with fish lips and sea cucumber

We commence our musical, er, culinary tryst in the key of C — as in chicken. To be more specific, roast chicken, barbecue pork, jelly fish, and century egg combination served with hoisin sauce. The happy mix of something fishy and something meaty still lingers in the palate as attendants carrying bracing bowls of braised shark’s fin bamboo pit with fish lips and sea cucumber appear from the kitchen. Media guests merrily swoop down on their soup and the ensuing slurps and burps are music to everyone’s ears.

With our taste buds now attuned to Malaysian-Cantonese cooking, chef Lee regales us with his simply superb repertoire we can’t help asking for an encore: braised whole chicken with Chinese herb; deep-fried fish fillet with butter, egg, and crispy oatmeal (my personal favorite — I

Main man: Peony Garden’s executive Chinese chef Lee Yan Feng

wouldn’t mind polishing off a whole platter of it); deep-fried prawn (mixed with garlic, shallot, bean sauce, and Chinese bagoong) with the chef’s special prawn sauce; cold bean curd with minced pork, century egg, and pickled lettuce (this cold dish is an easy hot favorite); steamed Chinese cabbage, carrot, and radish in oyster sauce; white egg noodle with soya and oyster sauce topped with shredded pork, chicken, and black mushroom, served with egg and vegetables on the side.

For this lunch’s finale, our eyeballs roll at the sight of the deep-fried sesame balls (your good-old buchi). On a sweeter note, we cap our lunch with cold sweetened black jelly mixed with fruits in season.

Lean and mean: Cold bean curd with minced pork, century egg, and pickled lettuce

This is but a sneak preview of the scintillating performance we can expect from chef Lee. We can only expect a clamor for repeat performance, too, from Peony Garden’s Chinese master chefs who have fashioned stylish menu entrees like, take note: deep-fried taro suckling pig and roasted duck; dried scallop with winter melon and spinach in thick soup; baked chicken with shark’s fin and dried scallop in bread dough; Calmex abalone with Szechuan plum sauce; braised roasted duck and black mushroom with fried garlic in oyster sauce; stir-fried shredded beef with walnut and cashew nut served with vegetables; braised garoupa fish fillet with sate sauce and bean curd in clay pot; deep-fried Chinese pancake with ice cream; and cold mango tapioca.

“We are privileged to contribute towards creating an exceptional dining experience for both Chinese and non-Chinese gourmands,” gushes Luther Lapuz, Manila Pavilion Hotel’s food and beverage director.

Fried and tested: Deep-fried boneless chicken legs with sweet and spicy sauce

In addition to the a la carte selection, the new menu also has chef Lee’s monthly special recommendations; four grand lauriat set menus (good for 10 persons, it can cost from as low as P6,000 to as pricey as P15,000); a new dim sum menu (18 new sumptuous, homemade choices, like pork dumplings with black mushroom, steamed barbecue pork buns, deep-fried salad prawns, pan-fried radish cake, steamed spareribs with plum sauce, steamed fried fish balls); and a live seafood selection (at the entrance walkway, guests are greeted by a huge aquarium with the freshest lapu-lapu, crabs, lobsters, etc., which can be cooked a la minute just the way you like it).

And here’s more delicious news: To enjoy Peony Garden’s awesome offerings amid Oriental grandeur even more, a 15-percent discount on a la carte and a 10-percent discount on set menus are offered daily until August 31.

Hot dessert: Cold mango tapioca

    Play it again, chef Lee!

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Peony Garden serves lunch from Monday to Sunday, 11:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. and dinner, 6:30 p.m. to 10:30 p.m. For inquiries, call 526-1212 local 2419; fax 523-2114; visit www.waterfronthotels.com.ph.