Men and a woman in black

These kitchen personalities with black uniforms and white hats were featured in the latest version of Culinary Journeys of Marco Polo Cebu Plaza called Chefs United. Under the supervision of culinary consultant Jessica Avila, sous-chefs prepared their favorites dishes that they have mastered through the years from various experiences in school, home or working places. This is an update at the Café Marco, very similar to the Great Media Cookout where select media personalities were asked to prepare their favorite dishes.

Rare are the times that we know the people who cook the food we order in a restaurant. At most, we do remember the name of the restaurant, its owner or owners and the location where the place is found but we never meet the people in the kitchen. Unless, the dividing partition between the dining area and the kitchen is a glass panel and we can take a look into how our food is prepared.

In the Western hemisphere, the Chef is awarded a superstar status like French legend Auguste Escoffier, and we acknowledge him to have tweaked French cuisine and ushered it into the modern era. In the East, it took television to bring the kitchen staff into the limelight and this is exemplified in Japan with the cooking show, Iron Chef, which premiered in 1993. In olden China, the head chef of a rich family prefers to remain hidden in the kitchen rather than be promoted to the kitchen of the Emperor. If he commits a mistake in the palace, his head, excuse me, is literally on the chopping board!

Back to Chefs United, it was a most difficult task to taste all the ten dishes of these chefs and your favorite food columnist has to give an accurate culinary account to his beloved readers so I had to taste all these dishes shown here. We had a most delicious obstacle to our jobs because my good friend Marco Polo GM Hans Hauri was as usual over generous and we had a wonderful sushi platter at our table as appetizer.

There were three dishes that were most memorable: the Chicken Tikka Masala of Chef Juanito Abangan, Baked Pasta by Chef Riz Degamo and finally, the best dish that night, the Beef Rendang by Chef Rosseler Camomot. This is my personal opinion and with the Ricotta Cheese Strudel with Macapuno Ube Ice Cream by Chef Rodelio Galvez as closing remark, you could not ask for anything more.

Only problem is that I have a difficulty in describing how delicious the Beef Rendang was, so I will quote actress Gwyneth Paltrow when she gave a comment in the 2008 food and travel series, Spain… on the road Again during a dinner at Inopia, a tapas bar of Ferran Adrià of El Bulli fame.

"That is insane". [email protected]