What’s all the raclette about?
I’ve always been a big fan of cheese. I pile on the Parmesan over spaghetti. I prefer burgers and sandwiches with cheese. When I was in my sandwich-making phase, I remember asking my classmate to bring a slice of cheese for me to school when I ran out of it. (Don’t ask how funny she looked holding it out for me when I arrived in the classroom.) I live for three-, four-, or even five-cheese pizza (and pasta, actually). I absolutely love it because it makes any of my favorite foods taste even more delicious.
Imagine the elation my taste buds went through when I discovered raclette at one of my favorite restaurants, the Old Swiss Inn. I know of their delicious cheese or chocolate fondue, but I had no idea what raclette was. While raclette is also a type of cheese, it is more popularly known as the dish featuring that type of cheese. The name raclette comes from the French verb racler, which means “to scrape.” That’s because the cheese is heated, melted and scraped off the block of cheese, traditionally over small boiled potatoes, pickled onions, gherkins, tomatoes, onions, mushrooms, pears, and even pieces of meat. It is also usually dusted with paprika and black pepper. In Medieval times in
I knew none of this when I first ordered it. When it was finally placed on the table, I found myself staring at a plate of melted cheese, accompanied by little potatoes and onions. What was so special about this plain-looking dish? When I finally swirled some of the cheese onto my fork and tasted it, I was in love. I was used to having cheese with something else. It’s always a secondary taste, something that I would sprinkle or spread on bread, crackers, pasta and all other types of carbs. This was the first time that cheese was the focus of the meal. It was absolutely delicious, and this cheese was a lot tastier and richer than any other cheese that I’ve tried.
Since that first time, my family and I have ordered it several times and we all love it. However, I still don’t know a lot about raclette, and I was only too happy to attend Raclette Night at Swiss Inn in Alabang, Old Swiss Inn’s sister in the South, with more modern interiors but exactly the same menu. I was looking forward to learning more about this delicious dish.
When I arrived, there were several cocktail tables set up in the restaurant, instead of the usual tables and chairs. The atmosphere felt a lot different and warmer than the other times I visited Swiss Inn. Different people were mingling among each other, brought together by their love of great cheese and wine. It was easy to feel right at home, especially when I was welcomed by a plethora of delicious-looking appetizers. There was also a table of fruits, nuts, crackers and slices of some other cheeses to munch on.
As I looked around for the familiar plate of cheese, I saw some mini-pizzas being put together on a hot plate. I learned that this is one way of making raclette — a tabletop grill with pans at the bottom for heating the cheese. I approached the small slices of crusty bread and vegetables, and suddenly, a small pan of cheese was pulled out from under the hot plate — the raclette! — and poured onto the bread. The mini-pizzas were complete, and incredible! I knew that raclette cheese tasted delicious on its own, but it still held its own when served with other food.
Finally, I came upon the raclette station, where I finally saw how the raclette I know is made. There is a block of raclette cheese on the raclette machine, and the top is slowly melted and then scraped off onto a plate. It was amusing and a lot of fun to see the cheese poured onto my own plate, with my personal selection of sidings. Anyone could assemble their own dish of baby potatoes, toasted bread, gherkins, pearl onions and fresh vegetables, and come right back when they’re done. It’s the beauty of Raclette Night — all the raclette you want, exactly the way you want it. The cheese was warm, soft and incredibly delicious. It tasted amazing with my little slices of potatoes and onions. There was also roast beef tenderloin carving available for those who wanted a little more protein out of Raclette Night.
Another thing that I had discovered about raclette is that it’s typically eaten with tea, wine or other warm beverages. Drinking water along with raclette is said to interfere with the digestion of cheese, although there isn’t any scientific basis for this. I had never taken raclette with a warm beverage, so I thought it was worth a try. Raclette Night featured six wonderful Philippine Wine Merchant’s wines, and I tried the Y-Series Unwooded Chardonnay and the Mawson’s Wrattonbully Cabernet Sauvignon. I finally discovered why wine and cheese are so good together. The flavors were amazing, and old wives’ tale or not, all the cheese I had eaten sat wonderfully in my stomach that night.
Whether you’re as big a fan of cheese as I am or not, I’m sure that you will love this delectable dish. My mouth waters just imagining half of a baby potato and a pickled onion wrapped with the warm, raclette cheese. You cannot allow your taste buds to remain ignorant of this particular, wonderful taste. Hope to see you at one of their three branches in
