San Miguel unravels Cavite’s best-kept dining secrets

Joining a guerilla food tour is like opening a box of chocolates — you never know what you’re gonna get.

This was how San Miguel Pure Foods Company Inc. positioned a recent culinary adventure it hosted for food writers and food lovers.

Inspired by guerilla dinners that are gaining popularity among food enthusiasts in many parts of the world, San Miguel Pure Foods Guerilla Food Tour tickled not just our taste buds but our imagination as well, simply because in lieu of an itinerary, we were only given the date, time, and the meeting place of the event. We had no idea where we were going, who we were having dinner with, or what kind of dishes we were going to indulge in. But just like dutiful soldiers, we followed where our “masters” took us — Cavite, where we discovered some of its best-kept dining secrets.

Livin’ the Tuscan life


A two-hour drive from Manila brought us to this quaint, Tuscan-style restaurant surrounded by a lush garden in Alfonso, Cavite. It’s got walls made of stone, floors made of bricks, ceilings made of old hard wood, and interesting furniture pieces and accessories that give the whole place a homey, yes, Tuscan feel. Every corner of Marcia Adams’s Restaurant is picture-perfect.

The food is a different story. In keeping with the place’s Mediterranean architecture, resto owners — couple Neil and Marcia Adams — decided to serve French, Mediterranean, and Italian food. Neil is a retired British engineer while Marcia is a Filipina who’s into horticulture and happens to be as passionate about food as she is about plants.

For starters, we had Galician broth, a clear soup loaded with diced smoked ham, sausage, diced potatoes, and shredded greens; Amalfi prawns, crispy prawns marinated in salt, pepper, olive, and parsley, and served on a thick and crispy wafer; and provolone, melon and arugula salad that oozes with freshness.

For the mains, we indulged in chicken kebab and fish souvlaki served with rice and roasted tomatoes. The kebabs were light and oh, so flavorful, leaving our tummy with enough room for dessert: a choice of grilled orange with vanilla ice cream; panna cotta with lemon sauce; fried bananas with chocolate dip, banana split with chocolate ice cream, orange creme caramel; lavender creme brulee, lemon sponge pudding; and sauteed cherries on chocolate ice cream. I enjoyed my (roasted) banana split, but Daily Tribune’s Roel Manipon’s grilled orange with vanilla ice cream was equally tempting.

Marcia Adams’s Restaurant is so worth the two-hour drive. Here, all five senses come into play as soon as you step into its cobbled walkway.

Feed your mind and body


“A place far removed from the urban,” was the only clue given to us by San Miguel Food Corporation’s Francene Callueng when we asked her where our next stop would be.

But when we made the right turn towards one of the side streets from the main highway of Tagaytay City, I knew we were in for more surprises.

Set amid a tropical forest, Nurture Spa Village in Tagaytay City is the perfect place for the group to unwind and have a relaxing body massage, facial treatment, and foot spa.

While all that pampering would have been enough to keep everyone’s spirits up, more important business was at hand — dinner! And so off we went to a private house in Silang, Cavite, owned by Emily Campos (who did the garden landscapes in Amanpulo, Palawan) where a Moroccan feast awaited all of us.

Emily’s niece Sabrina Artadi, host of Lifestyle Network’s Sabrina’s Kitchen, whipped up a delectable spread, which consisted of eggplant, zucchini, and tomato stuffed with beef, chorizo, and couscous; Magnolia brown eggs over asparagus topped with Purefoods jamon in balsamic virgin olive oil vinaigrette; tabouleh salad, Moroccan spiced Magnolia Jumbo Chicken; and cinnamon spiced osso buco served with parsley rice risotto.

The hearty meal was capped off by create-your-own Magnolia cream cheesecake topped with fruit preserves and mint.

The guerilla tour culiminated with a sumptuous breakfast at Nurture Spa, prepared by the chefs of the San Miguel Pure Foods Culinary Center using SMPFC products. The spread included Tagaytay staples such as crispy tawilis, Nurture Spa’s salad greens, homemade breads, and healthy juices extracted from malunggay (moringa), celery stalks, ampalaya, and other green, leafy veggies grown in Nurture Spa’s own garden.

There were also different cooking stations, which showcased San Miguel Pure Foods new products like Magnolia brown eggs, Purefoods chicken breast nuggets, Magnolia mayonnaise, Purefoods bacon bits; Purefoods sausages such as bockwurst, Hungarian cheese, and schublig.

“The idea for the Guerilla Food Tour was born out of our desire to offer something more exciting to our partners in the food industry. For the past years, we’ve been doing the expected — choosing a province, presenting the itinerary, and going to the places according to order. This year, we wanted to give everyone a sense of mystery, thrill, and anticipation,” says Helene Pontejos, VP and general manager of Great Food Solutions.

This was the first time I’ve joined a guerilla food tour and San Miguel Pure Foods’ version didn’t disappoint.

Food mission accomplished!

* * *

To know more about San Miguel Pure Foods and its recipes, visit www.mygreatfood.com.