The familiar faces came to bid their good friend goodbye and at the same time welcome new GM Paul Gill. Also present were the members of the board of directors of the hotel’s owning company, Maranaw Hotels and Resort Corp. led by chairman Don Ferry.
Guests and employees paid tribute to Bobby, recognized as one of the first international Filipino hoteliers, for his great contributions in making the Century Park world-class. As has become expected under Bobby’s tenure, hospitality, impeccable cuisine, delightful entertainment and excellent service were given by the hotel for its distinguished VIPs that night.
Century Park Hotel EVP Julio Tan and Don Ferry, presented the honoree with a gift and inspiring messages praising the "hands-on manager." Bobby thanked the guests and his colleagues "for giving me all the support, cooperation, honor and opportunity of working with you." New GM Paul Gill, on the other hand, was warmly welcomed by his new friends and co-workers. He promised to maintain the high quality and world-class standards set by his predecessor.
A deeply touching audio-visual presentation prepared by the hotel employees chronicled Bobby’s achievements. Voice of Asia awardee Ladine Roxas performed song numbers while guests partook of the European and Asian feast prepared by chef Rudy Velasco.
Among the VIPs present were Taipan Lucio Tan; Tourism Secretary Richard Gordon; Interior and Local Government Secretary Joey Lina; former DOTC Secretary Josie Lichauco; Togo Consul General Evie Costa; Cambodian Ambassador Ek Sereywath; musician John Lesaca; presidential sister-in-law Marilou Arroyo; Century Park Cellar Pub proprietor Bobby Joseph; PAL president Avelino Zapanta; and Michael Tan of the Tan Group of Companies.
Thank you, Bobby, for being an exceptional manager and a good friend!
Spain’s cuisine has a lot of the traditional air and romantic touches that the Spanish are known for. And this young chef‘s passion in preparing his favorite Catalan dishes echoes that temperament. Nothing but the freshest ingredients were used to bring out the flavors that sent our taste buds to gastronomic heaven.
We were given bacalao with aceitunas negras (black olives), feta salad with walnuts and aceile de piñones, croquetas de jamon y queso, mar y montana (beef meatballs with crushed garlic, squid, prawns, in a sauce of tomato and wine) and zarzuela de pescada (fish medley), all the dishes complementing each other and bringing us a piece of old-fashioned Spain.
Dessert was another story, for the crema catalana, menjar blanc de Reus and brazo de chocolate were more than enough excuse to temporarily forget about dieting. After the feast, I smacked my lips together and felt Spanish interjections and praises involuntarily slip from my mouth.
We look forward to more of Oscar’s fantastic fare and Barcelo Asia’s superb offerings.
For comments and inquiries, please e-mail me at: jjlitton@indanet.com.