Bee Soup: Silent on the P and P for Promenade

Thanks to the Promenade and other developments within the commercial center, Greenhills is once again a-buzzing with activity. On the weekend night I dropped by, it was a veritable beehive, with the bling-bling of cash registers taking the place of the steady drone of worker bees (could have said the ‘drone of drones’, but how many of us would remember our High School biology classes, that the male bees, whose raison d’etre is nothing more than to service the queen bee, are called drones).

The cinemas, a Fully Booked, Teriyaki Boy, Cibo, the list goes on and on; a plethora of stores and food outlets that make the Promenade a truly viable alternative for those who live in the area and are looking for something a bit more up-market, and used to make the trek to Rockwell’s Power Plant or the Podium. It’s right at their doorstep; and we now have patrons from outlying areas, once again making a beeline for the Greenhills area.

On the night in question, one amazing thing was the very broad demographics of the crowd assembled. The expected twenty-somethings and teenagers out for a night of gimik (is that term still in favor?) were very much in evidence; but I also saw a good number of children with their parents coming out of the moviehouses and looking for a place to eat, elderly couples who would rendezvous with other couples and three-generation family groupings. To find such a wide cross-section augurs well for the Promenade, as well as the converted Greenhills theater and the Music Museum.

I was especially pleased to find that one of my favorite eateries, Bizu, has also found a home at the Promenade. I laughingly refer to Bizu as that ‘special project of Annie Tanco’. Who else but Annie would travel to Europe – Paris specifically – take a monthly sabbatical once a year and head to a Sidddha Yoga ashram in India, and think of putting up a French patisserie chain in Metro Manila – and make it a point to never compromise on the ingredients, whipping up only the very best and richest of dishes?

Full-service eateries at Greenbelt 2 and the Alabang Town Center, a counter in Glorietta 4, and now a spanking new bistro at the Promenade – Bizu has perenially proven itself as one of the last bastions of true quality comfort food and ‘to die for’ French-inspired pastries. Their freshly baked bread, ensaymadas and assorted munch-ables are tops as well. They’ve even developed a catering arm that can be contacted for practically any occasion (812-6451 and 812-6027). The price points for Bizu are on the pricey side, but you never feel short-changed as one gets bountiful servings and one sees how nothing has been sacrificed ingredients-wise. The best double cream, foie gras and smoked salmon incorporated in their dishes, premium coffee (Lavazza, of course) and teas, thick stalks of asparagus, fresh arugula; they all form part of the very unique Bizu gastronomic experience.

And it still might not be common knowledge, but Bizu is so much more than merely pastries and bread. They serve full breakfasts, lunch and dinner. For breakfast, if you have a yen for pancakes, your mornings haven’t really started until you’ve tried Bizu’s Blueberry and Cream Pancakes. Thumbs up as well for their Eggs Benedict!

Among the main courses I’ve gone back for, the Lapu-lapu Shiitake is one of my favorites. Garnished with asparagus spears, Shiitake mushrooms and a calamansi caper sauce, the fish fillet is nestled on a bed of spinach pasta aglio olio, prosciutto and sundried tomatoes. For something more sinful, they serve a special hamburger with foie gras.

The Croque Monsieurs and Madames are the real thing – as are the piece d’resistance of their pastries, the scrumptious macaroons de Paris. Made of ground almonds, sugar and egg-white, the macaroons are displayed like a color palette of pastels. Chocolate, lemon, pistachio, rose, lavender, coffee and so on; the flavors of these macaroons are a delight to behold... and to chew and let melt in your mouth.

My father is a diabetic, and he was justly happy when I showed him the sugar-free desserts which are now regular features of their vitrine display. He assures me that they lack nothing in terms of flavor and taste; unlike several of the sugar-free desserts he has tried, sweet tooth victim that he is.

The Promenade is definitely happening; thanks, in large part, to the manner in which developer Precy Florentino has put together the mix of tenants. Me, am happy they found a way to get Bizu in that heady mix.

A Father’s Farewell

Years back, when both my mother-in-law and mother were stricken with terminal cancer, their spiritual adviser (and our spiritual family adviser) during those dark times was Father Tito Caluag, S.J. At that time, Fr. Tito was the principal of the Ateneo High School, and as the relationship deepened over the years, I would like to believe that a personal friendship between us was fostered. I’d see him on the television ever so often. For example, during the time of Rico Yan’s untimely death; and with more regularity, as he reached out to the youth via the Y-Speak program on Channel 2. And then recently, rumors would swirl about how he was leaving the Jesuit Order. Naturally, there were a lot of questions preying on my mind when I received a text confirming the rumor, inviting me to his farewell Mass.

Had a chance to ‘break bread’ with Fr. Tito a few days after the farewell Mass, and while there was a tinge of sadness over having closed a very integral chapter of his life, there was the overwhelming enthusiasm of looking towards the future – of moving forward to achieve life-long held dreams and aspirations.

He is still a priest, still can’t call him plain Tito, and he is ready to accept a diocese that will have him. It was the Jesuit Order specifically he bade goodbye to, and he says it stemmed from the gradual realization that his sense of vocation (Teacher Value Formation) "did not dovetail with what the Order had programmed as its priorities over the short term future."

"As high school principal, my work also had to be centered on things of an administrative nature – including things like leaking roofs, faulty toilets, canteen problems and complaints – these were all part and parcel of being a principal, and I accepted the tasks set before me. But if there was a burning issue I wished to address and felt I would be especially equipped to tackle, that would be the quality of our high school educators! And when I refer to quality, I’m referring to the values inherent in them, the kind of devotion and enthusiasm they in turn possess for their own calling as teachers – the integrity they bring with them as they enter any classroom, and how they inspire."

"You can have the best academically equipped teacher, doctorate here and there; but as a high school teacher, how sure are you that he/she is successfully doing his/her part in helping mold his/her students into the right kind of people. We often refer to the dearth of values among our political or business leaders; that while they may be highly successful, when crisis points arise, we can discern how this lack of strong values lead them to make wrong decision – and the formation of the right kind of values is an ongoing process, starting from when they were children. And so this is where our Teacher Formation Program comes into play."

Briefly, it’s a two-year program that high school teachers can enroll in. They meet for three straight days (the live-in seminar) once every six months over the two years; and this is supplemented by one day on a weekend every month. Teachers who are accepted into the program are sometimes subsidized by the school where they teach. The other option is for interested teachers to make arrangements with the program and if accepted, only pay a nominal fee.

This is Fr. Tito’s new calling, his vocation. And its pursuit meant taking a reluctant, and what seems to be permanent, leave from the Jesuit order. Given the noble intentions of the program, I can only wish him success, and hope he finds the necessary financial and logistical support to give it a nationwide application.

(Interested parties can call Karla at 6348545.)