It continues to shine and sit in its stately site right in the middle of the Queen City of the South, Cebu City. After all, Waterfront Cebu City Hotel & Casino — the flagship property of Waterfront Hotels & Casinos, the Philippine’s largest Filipino-owned and managed hotel chain — remains to be an inviting destination on its own. The 560-room hotel is just a 30-minute drive from Mactan Cebu International Airport, and is within easy range of Cebu’s key commercial and corporate districts.
The hotel, located on Salinas Drive in Lahug, boasts of 299 newly renovated guest rooms and suites and a 24-hour gym. It also has one of the biggest convention spaces in the city, consisting of two ballrooms and 10 function rooms, as well as a 24-hour casino. But another impressive highlight is its 10 wining and dining options. The restaurant row at the hotel is referred to as “The Gourmet Walk.” The cobblestone strip, flanked with handpainted, scenic walls, teems with specialty restaurants, including: UNO, the hotel coffee shop that boasts of an enticing and interactive buffet; Tin Gow, a Chinese restaurant specializing in Szechuan and Cantonese cuisine; Mizu, a sophisticated, Zen-luxe Japanese restaurant; La Gondola, an elegant Italian restaurant; Treff, a chic, glass-enclosed sensation and a favourite lounge of the city’s well-heeled set; and Madeleine, a French-inspired bread and pastry shop.
At the helm of the culinary flurry is Waterfront Cebu City Hotel & Casino’s latest “ingredient” for good food, the new leader of its culinary team, executive chef Joerg Walter. Born and raised in Germany, he has since undertaken remarkable culinary adventures in various destinations such as Hong Kong as the executive sous chef of Conrad International Hotel; in Cairo, Egypt as executive chef of the Raffles International-managed Swissotel; the Millennium Hotel in Abu Dhabi, UAE; and the Laguna Beach Resort Hotel in the Maldives.
Chef Joerg’s prowess and love of the culinary arts led him into becoming part of the academe at the Woosong University in South Korea. Being quite the traveler that he has been helped mold his proficiency in the kitchen, enhanced his know-how experience in collaborating with different cooks and refined his wisdom in adapting to different styles of titillating the palates of people from all walks of life. When asked if he has observed glimpses of Filipino culture in his previous stints abroad, he breaks into a smile and answers with a definitive “Yes!” He feels at home with the bits of knowledge that he has gained about the Filipinos. “Filipinos are warm and friendly people who know how to put quality in life,” he explains.
Chef Joerg’s culinary philosophy reflects his personal beliefs: that there should be no pretensions. His dishes are clean, simple and sincere –– in visual appeal, in aroma and in flavor. A firm believer in not changing the main ingredients’ flavor or over-embellishing dishes, he revisits his grandmother’s Mediterranean roots when describing his style of cooking: down-to-earth, sincere dishes made with the freshest meat, produce and garden-fresh herbs. A doer rather than a talker, Chef Joerg has grand plans for the hotel, but he’d prefer you let his food do the talking.
(For inquiries, please call (+6332) 232-6888 or e-mail wcch@waterfronthotels.net. You may also contact the Manila sales and reservations office at (+632) 687-0888 and msro@waterfronthotels.net)