Freehand at Modan
Food lovers celebrate as M?dan recently unveiled its newest and sixth tasting menu since its inception. M?dan means “Modern” in Japanese and they serve a progressive Japanese degustation menu focused on local and Japan-flown ingredients with the use of neo-traditional Japanese techniques cultivated by the talented chef, Jorge Mendez. M?dan has an intimate (14-seater) omakase-style set-up.
The new Freehand is described on their website as not “just a process — it’s an invitation. Each dish becomes a reflection of our team’s shared perspective — a journey expressed through flavor, texture, and soul.”
It is a re-telling of a story with some of their best dishes re-imagined and new ones that make this menu one of my favorites of their six menus.
The meal starts with Soup — roasted Eggplant drizzle of Mayu oil and radish. This was followed by two appetizers, which I savored yet devoured — Tamago (egg) — tamagoyaki with squeeze of kombu (kelp) honey, wrapped in Hitachi A5 Wagyu with Nomad caviar and nori sarada and Hotate — Hokkaido scallop seasoned with fermented apple and dill oil, and ube crackers with tamanegi (onion). Another to-die-for starter was the Ebi (shrimp) — Gambero rosso or red shrimp (usually Italian) dressed with citrus vinaigrette and finger lime leaves, local uni (sea urchin) mousse, diced nasu (miso glazed eggplant), vinegar jelly, on a beet cracker.
A perennial favorite that has been part of all six of their menus is the Tebasaki — chicken wing served two ways — one on the drumstick side are takwan (pickled radish), egg yolk sauce, negi toro (minced tuna and spring onions), and Nomad caviar and the second half of the chicken wing with a spread of wasabi, egg yolk sauce, and a fresh slice of chutoro (fatty bluefin tuna). Each appearance of this chicken wing is different and this, for me, has been the best. The Bread course followed, one of the things I look forward to. This is no ordinary bread. It is Jorge’s house made Japanese style focaccia with local dried fish furikake (rice topping mixed with seaweed and sesame seeds). His take on the Italian bread is light and fluffy inside and crisp on the outside and served with ankimo (monkfish liver) butter.
Then came the main course. I loved them all and couldn?t decide which I liked best. There was Amberjack 28-day aged Then came the main course. I loved them all and couldn’t decide which I liked best. There was Amberjack — 28-day aged hamachi, on a shiso leaf with dulce and wasabi aioli, pineapple sauce, and micro green salad; King crab meat tossed with aromatics, paired with corn and katsuboshi (bonito flakes) milk foam with dill oil; house made corn soup paired with house made buckwheat soba, and drizzle of ebi (shrimp) oil, and the Nabe (short for nabemono or a Japanese one-pot dish), another dish that has been part of the menu since M?dan started. This time the pot contained Wagyu steak rice, with thin slices of Wagyu strips. Scattered are king oyster mushrooms, ikura (salmon roe), sukiyaki lotus root, and a shoyuzuke (soy sauce pickling) egg yolk.Three desserts are served for this spectacular new tasting menu: Temaki (hand roll) raspberry sorbet, Three desserts are served for this spectacular new tasting menu: Temaki (hand roll) — raspberry sorbet, kyuri (cucumber) jelly, and nori coulis (thin sauce made from seaweed); Shokupan (Japanese milk bread) ice cream with olive oil, brown butter and a mushroom cracker (which really tastes like mushrooms); and Zenzai (red bean soup) — adzuki (red bean) mochi coated with matcha (green tea) powder, and macadamia milk blended with red bean.
Restaurants with tasting menus are expected to maintain the standards of the food they serve and I am glad Manila has several restaurants that have continued to serve excellent tasting menus and come out with new ones.
Jorge has consistently come out with his new menus and his sixth menu, along with his last tasting menu called “Hit and Missed,”are two of my favorites. Visit them in Quezon City and see what the hype is all about. *
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