MANILA, Philippines — Looking for something to munch on your way to your adventures this coming long weekend?
Check out these new foodie escapades and prepare for a wild ride!
New dining and entertainment haven in Pasay
Combining delectable dining and quality entertainment: That’s the idea of the newest destination in the metro that combines Chinese-Filipino cuisines and KTV entertainment that will surely make food lovers and singer wannabes go gaga.
Located on the 2nd Floor of Golden Phoenix Hotel at the MOA Complex in Pasay City, Ashark Club occupies 1,600 square meters of floor space divided into an expansive dining hall, four KTV rooms with modern sound systems and larger than life screens as well as seven VIP and Conference Rooms.
“Ashark Club is a combination of dining and entertainment,” said Ashark brand manager Amy Peng, adding “Chinese people, as well as Filipino people, love KTVs but in KTVs it’s hard to order food so we come up with the idea to combine the delectable dining and quality entertainment. So guests can dine and sing. It’s a perfect combination.”
The club is perfect as an event venue, company meetings, press conference, family gatherings and anyone who wants to relax, unwind and enjoy the company of friends for a full leisure experience. For its cuisine, all food ingredients came from China. Dining here is truly gastronomic experience as guests go on to discover China’s interesting variety of regional dishes with their own distinct flavours and origins like Szechuan, Cantonese and Hunan.
“In China there are eight main food groups, we have three here – Szechuan, Cantonese and Hunan. Hunan and Szechuan are spicy food, Cantonese is all about seafood and healthy soups. The chef is from China also. All together we have five Chinese and two Filipino chefs,” Peng said.
Must try dishes include Marinated O.X Shank, Deep-fried Juglans Resia, Assorted Vegetables with Salad, Abalone with Mixed Dry Seafood in Thick Soup, Deep-fried Pigeon, Steamed Red Grouper with Peanut Oil, Marinated Jelly Fish with Black Vinegar, Pan-fried Lamb Chop, Fried Rice with Salmon, among others. The club puts a five-star touch to the KTV experience with well-appointed rooms furnished with first class, state-of-the-art audio and video equipment including a touchscreen menu of songs and some massive flat screen TVs.
Ashark Club KTV room
Savor Palawan's exotic food amid stunning views
You do not have to leave your hotel to look for a place to eat especially when you have glorious beaches and sun-drenched landscapes enticing you to stay. Good thing you do not have to at Two Seasons Coron Bayside Hotel, the newest Two Seasons Resorts property and the only five-star accommodation in this scenic town in Palawan.
The third property to open after Two Seasons Boracay and Two Seasons Island Resort and Spa in Malaroyroy, the Bayside Hotel’s upscale facilities and spacious rooms are not the only thing that are making an impression on travelers. Its fantastic food is also worth making the trip for with dishes cooked up by chefs who work with locally sourced and fresh ingredients.
Most of the magic happens at the Baya Resto Lounge, the hotel’s signature restaurant and bar where dining is quite an experience. Just like the dining spots of barLO at Two Seasons Boracay and Sulu of Two Seasons Island Resort, Baya showcases beautifully designed interiors. Its ceilings are embellished with colorful jellyfish lamps that seem to sway softly as the light changes color. The lamps appear more enchanting at night when the whole place is fully lit up. Wooden seats bring the tropical island theme together, while the expansive dining area provide an airy and comfortable place to enjoy the restaurant’s culinary creations including a sumptuous, all-day breakfast fare.
Baya shares an almost identical menu with barLO and Sulu including the house specialty that has foodies buzzing with compliments. Albeit its popularity, the much talked about Four Cheese Pizza is surprisingly simple with only a few ingredients – a medley of blue cheese, cheddar, mozzarella, and parmesan layered on an Italian-style crust served straight from the oven. Sisig, with all the global attention it’s been getting lately, also makes an appearance on the menu. Boracay’s barLO serves oyster sisig while Baya is mighty proud of its lengua sisig. Enjoy it with a bottle of cold beer or a glass of mojito. Aside from pizza and sisig, Baya’s seafood offering is the freshest you can have in the island next to casting your own net into the sea. Choices include Crispy Fried Squid Tentacles, Fish & Chips, and Spicy Garlic Prawns.
For something exotic, order the Spicy Pugita, a native octopus that’s thinly sliced and cooked in coconut milk and spices. They also have seasonal lobster dishes cooked steamed, grilled or Thermidor while Filipino staples include the comforting Sinampalukang Manok, sinful Crispy Pata and Lechon Kawali served with bagoong fried rice. Dining at Two Seasons – whether at barLO, Sulu or Baya restaurant – comes with some serious bragging rights especially if you have the guts (and appetite) to try some of its croc meat dishes.
Chefs make creative use of this farm-grown meat source with such delicious creations like Crocodile Barbecue, Crocodile in coconut milk, or the Stir-fried Crocodile strips. And while it’s tempting to just hole up in the hotel and bask in the view and flavors of the island, there activities you can include in your itinerary. Just ask the front desk officer for guided tours within the island and they will gladly arrange a day trip for you and your companions to Culion, Kayangan Lake, Sangat Wreck, Siete Pecados, and Banol beach.