Café by the bay

I recently found myself at Rizal Park (or Luneta to the more mature Manileños) recently for a meeting with its new director, Jett Villegas. It was an unusual day because there was no traffic to Manila from central Ortigas in Pasig City. I found myself an hour early for the 4:30 p.m. appointment. I decided to swing by the Manila Hotel and its Ilang-Ilang café for merienda and to log onto the Net to check my e-mail.

I was pleasantly surprised to see that the management had just refurbished the aging café. I liked the old café because of its famed merienda fare of bibingka and pancit, aside from the fact that there was a view of the pool and Manila Bay beyond.

That pool and sea view had always been the attraction of the café. I had many permutations of this fresco facility in its close to a hundred years of existence (the hotel will celebrate its centennial next year).

The location of the café by the newly renovated tropical modern pool is retained, but gone is the ’70s-era café; that was great for its time, but was looking a little worn at the edges in recent years.

If I win the lotto I’ll build one of this in our new manor.

The new Café Ilang Ilang is now a modern international café, which still serves bibingka and pancit but now also boasts cuisine from Malaysia, Singapore, China, India and Thailand, as well as traditional European dishes. I saw an Italian corner with its own pizza oven. I promised myself I’d try that next time as I ordered my pancit canton. It was good as it always used to be, by the way.

After merienda I toured around the new café and noted they had increased the old area about twice, and added new nooks for the Asian kitchen — a chef’s table, and a wine and cheese table (in its own climate-controlled room). Next to this was a dessert corner with a sugar-free section and an ice-cream counter.

I was attracted to the interior design that introduced a very Daniel Burnham-like coffered ceiling, while the furniture selection and trimmings were very current without being over the top. The seats and tables seemed eclectic but that seems to be in vogue and most sections had views of the garden and pool outside (where two old trees were conserved to frame the pool and a second floor deck dining area was being built).

A restaurant has to be good if it has its own brick oven.

One of the staff members told me that people have been coming in droves since the press launch last December. The attraction seems to be the dinner buffet and the host of offerings that include a good wine selection and a coffee corner (that smelled really good).

Alas, I only had time for a quick bite. But I made a note to come back for dinner with the family. Our youngest will go nuts over the pizza and pasta selection, while my wife will go gaga in the Western grill section. I want to sample all the yummies from their Asian kitchen (and a Japanese teppanyaki room that will open soon.)

Before I left, the staff told me about their spa collection (fat-free, sugar-free and other healthy stuff) that would complement their seaside spa beside the new pool. Maybe we’ll check in for a spa and food treat!

In the meanwhile, all this improvement should complement the renovations at the Rizal Park that director Jett Villegas and DOT head honcho Bertie Lim are implementing. The old central fountain has been repaired fully, and attracts thousands on weekends, just like the old days. The children’s playground near Taft Avenue has also been repaired and reopened.

The dessert bar is spread under a curved and coffered ceiling, very Daniel Burnham.

I hope to help out with other areas of the park, which hopefully will bring it back to its ’70s glory. God knows we need to conserve all our green, open spaces and cultivate a more active outdoor lifestyle for our kids (they now spend most of their leisure time playing video games or surfing the Net). Rizal Park and its bayside location are ideal for leisure.

The sea air and stunning Manila sunset are amenities that no shopping mall or theme park can match. If the whole district, including Rizal Park, historic Intramuros, the Manila Hotel and bustling Malate can be fixed up and made people-friendly, it should be the cornerstone of the capital’s tourism renaissance.

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Feedback is welcome. Please e-mail the writer at paulo.alcazaren@gmail.com.