My Switzerland: An Experience of a Lifetime

CEBU, Philippines - As a young budding Filipino Chef, one could only imagine working in a four-star hotel and to top it off, a Swiss hotel. Now a dream has become a reality. Through the efforts of Marco Polo Plaza Cebu’s General Manager Hans Hauri, a cooking team was sent to Zurich Switzerland to be part of Marco Polo’s culinary team tasked to promote the Flavors of the Philippines at the Swissotel Zurich. The team was composed of Chef Leo Montemayor, Chef Carlos Dingding, Chef Lyndon Kong for Pastry, Zenas Joy Romeo for Service, and myself.

This experience of a lifetime began in Singapore for our first ever ride on the famous Airbus A380 of Singapore Airlines, the largest airliner in the world. It’s notable to mention Singapore Air’s excellent food, service and entertainment onboard the A380. We arrived in Zurich very excited and raring to go to work and start promoting Filipino cuisine.

From June 2 to 12, we prepared food for the lunch and dinner buffet daily. We had Fresh Lumpia, Lechon, Pusit Relleno, Bicol Express, Adobo, Kare-Kare, Binagoongan Baboy and a lot more. For dessert, our Pastry Chef prepared Ube Ensaymada, Banana Cake, Puto Cheese, Maja Blanca and Halo-Halo. It was mind blowing how the Filipinos living in Zurich would go to Swissotel and eat there everyday. It made me think that they must really miss Filipino food.

The food promotion, in general, was a success. Aside from promoting Filipino food, Ambassador to the Philippines Maria Theresa Lazaro also showcased the beautiful islands of the Philippines with the help of the Department of Tourism. Finally after the food promo was over, we had the time to experience Switzerland. The Executive Sous Chef of Swissotel Chef Michael Batt toured us around St. Galen, Appenzeller, Santis and Lucerne.

En route to the Alps of Santis, we rode the train for two hours from Zurich to St. Galen, a very old and beautiful city in Switzerland. Just walking around St. Galen’s cobbled streets took my breath away. It was simply beautiful. A few more train rides then we stopped at Appenzeller. I remember in Culinary School we were taught that appenzeller is a type of Swiss cheese. During our visit at Appenzeller, I realized that the cheese got its name from the northern part of Switzerland, which produces cheese. From Appenzeller we rode a bus and a cable car to Mount Santis. We were 2,502 meters above sea level and you can see the gorgeous view of the Swiss Alps.

The next day, we toured around the magnificent Lucerne. We crossed the wooden Chapel Bridge, a bridge first built in the 14th century. We took a ferry boat and toured around Lake Lucerne and saw the many five-star hotels by the lake. The next day, we went on a walking tour around Zurich City. Shopping around Banhofstrasse was amazing since brands like Louis Vuitton, Chanel, Gucci, Bvlgari, and Cartier can be found there.

Before heading back to the Philippines, we had the opportunity to visit the Principality of Liechtenstein. It is known to be the smallest but richest country in the world. We saw the Vaduz Castle, the official residence of the Prince of Liechtenstein. We also had the chance of cooking in the Prince’s vineyard for the Philippine Ambassador’s cocktails.

The next day we headed for home. Indeed it was an honor promoting and showcasing the Philippines through our native food. It was truly an experience of a lifetime. Thanks to the Culinary Team of Swissotel especially to Executive Chef Thorsten Gissel for his warm welcome, to Marco Polo Cebu for giving me this opportunity and to Singapore Airlines for bringing the Marco Polo Team to Switzerland.