Old Manila’s New Recipe for Success

Unlike most chefs whose passion for cooking was developed from idyllic childhood experiences in the family kitchen, Old Manila Chef de Cuisine Adrian Mellor only thought of becoming a chef at the ripe old age of 14.

The son of an engineer, Chef Mellor grew up in Oldham, an industrial area of England, and decided early on that this was not the life he wanted for himself. When he turned 16, he decided to leave his hometown to pursue a culinary career if only because he felt that it was the kind of profession that would give him the opportunity to move around.

And move around he did. Now 34, he has found his way to the Philippines after spending six years in Singapore. The British chef was recently given the plum position of chef de cuisine at The Peninsula Manila’s signature restaurant, Old Manila.

But it hasn‘t been a smooth culinary journey for him. After graduating from the Thames Side Technical College in England, he admits to have made several bad choices. But he was at the same time climbing up the career ladder, having had valuable training under top chefs Michael Croft and Nico Ladenis, who earned three stars from the esteemed Guide Michelin in London.

Looking back, however, he says there had been many good times as well. "Not every day was a nightmare. It evens out in the end," he says.

"There are two types of people in this profession. There are those who really want to cook inspite of the long and the brutal environment. And there are those who are just in it for the pay and they don’t really care about what they’re doing," he explains.

Patience and hard work paid off when he got to Singapore in 1997. Chef Mellor says he didn’t plan on coming to Asia but when the opportunity came up, he didn’t hesitate or think twice.

"There are always opportunities in this job," he says. "If you want to work, there should be no unemployed chefs. The demand is there; you just have to want to do it though."

His first three years in Singapore was spent at Qhue, a brasserie that served up "fun food." After spending years in fine dining restaurants, Qhue was just the break he needed. "I was quite happy doing brasserie food," he says. "I really enjoyed myself and I thought maybe I should stay in this side of the restaurant business."

His enjoyable stint at Qhue nevertheless prepared him for his next assignment, which brought him back to the fine dining kitchen. At the end of 1999, he was offered a job at Les Amis, which is considered Singapore’s most internationally acclaimed restaurant. But as he was already committed to helping out a friend in New York, he managed to stall and joined Les Amis in October 2000.

Les Amis, headed by Singaporean chef Justin Quek, is easily the top restaurant in the Lion City, with its impeccable French menu, award-winning wine list and luxurious surroundings. Located in Shaw Centre, off busy Scotts Road, Les Amis is known for such signature dishes as pan-fried foie gras, braised veal cheek and Kobe beef carpaccio.

Despite his fond memories of Qhue, he quickly realized that he really preferred to work in fine dining. "You work with more professional people, the products are a lot better and the budget of the customers is higher," he notes. "At Les Amis, I never worked with so much white truffle and caviar!

"I was really delighted," he continues. "It was a very, very good move for me."

He quickly earned the trust of Quek, whom he describes as "a very relaxed guy with good taste and great ideas," and eventually moved up to resident chef of Les Amis.

After a little more than two and a half years and despite his lofty position, Chef Mellor decided to look at other options. One of these was The Peninsula Manila, which invited him over to try out for the chef de cuisine position at Old Manila. For his test, he created a plate of grilled watermelon, which was inspired by a dish at the renowned Spanish restaurant El Buli. And it was just the kind of world-class culinary panache that the hotel was looking for.

Although this is his first time in Manila, he says he is familiar with The Peninsula Group’s Hong Kong flagship and its fine dining outlet, Gaddi’s. That alone, he says, suggests that the hotel group "must be something special."

Chef Mellor is all praises for the restaurant’s staff and says that in no time at all they’ll "be doing lots of very exciting things the likes of which–I’d like to think–this city hasn’t seen in a very long time . . . They have got great enthusiasm and that alone makes my job easy."

In terms of menu, he praises Old Manila for retaining traditional dishes favored by long-time regulars. He says he will keep the classical section to maintain that trust with the restaurant’s customers.

But the main thrust will be "Modern European" cuisine, which is basically French in technique but with added twists to make it more flavorful and, more importantly, lighter. "Because of the weather here, heavy food will make you feel lethargic," he points out.

The description "Modern European" cuisine encompasses a wide gamut of themes and associations that have shaped this particular gastronomical style. Europe forms one of the greatest culinary canvases in the world–France and Italy are the leading lights, Spain and Portugal are gaining recognition, and Britain and the rest of the continent slowly making their presence felt in everyone’s gastronomic consciousness.

Chef Mellor is an avid proponent of this new discipline. For example, his signature dishes will include a rosace of scallops and salmon, fresh asparagus salad, coriander dressing and tomato jelly; duo of foie gras with sweet and sour apples, French beans and creamy walnut dressing; pan-roasted saddle of French venison, lightly pickled red cabbage, potato galette and madeira sauce; mushroom capuccino; pan-roasted fillet of barramundi, eggplant and pepper compote, chorizo oil and aged balsamic; carpaccio of marinated pineapple with cracked black pepper, mini rum baba and coconut sorbet; and baked apple tart with pine nuts, chantilly and caramel sauce.

He is also thinking of offering customized menus, something new every day as this helps keep the interest not only of the regulars, but also of the kitchen staff. "Every day should be different," he says.

Adrian Mellor is confident that he will succeed with his plans for Old Manila. "At the end of the day, people always go back to quality," he declares. "I’m sure we’re going to be successful."