A superb all-American dinner

Katherine Yao Santos of Happy Living Wines invited guests, mostly from the US Embassy and hotels, for a dinner at The Tasting Room in City of Dreams Manila. As I have said in the past, I will never turn down a dinner invite in this favorite restaurant of mine.

Chef William Mahi outdid himself again when he prepared wonderful dishes for the late Thanksgiving dinner of sorts.

We started with a hot-and-cold dish of lobster consommés, ponzu sherbet, carpaccio with basil, nori and edamame paired with a wonderful 2014 sauvignon blanc by Cakebread Cellars of Napa Valley. Chef Mahi’s trademark 52-degree egg with potato mousse, black truffle, onions and cep powder followed paired with a 2013 chardonnay “Luminus” by Beringer, also of Napa Valley.

Pan-fried US scallops with cauliflower cream, black shrimp, imperial caviar and winter black truffle oil was the first main course served with a 2012 Dieberg pinot noir from the Santa Maria Valley. The second main was a US beef tenderloin cooked for 24 hours with charcoal leeks and red wine sauce served with one of my favorites, the Cakebread cabernet sauvignon. The last wine served  during the dinner was a Sbragia zinfandel “La Promessa” from Sonoma county, which went perfectly well with the chocolate-covered saffron ice cream with passion fruit and orange marmalade.

I had to leave right after dinner to attend another function but I heard that an impromptu champagne party was held as guests went inside the kitchen to applaud Chef Mahi. I’ll make sure to go back to The Tasting Room and join the next impromptu champagne party in the kitchen!

(Visit Happy Living Fine Wine on Facebook.)

‘Once Citi, Always Citi’

It was a delightful reunion that former colleagues at Citi Philippines had at the fourth annual Citi Alumni Network event dubbed “Once Citi, Always Citi.” Over 200 Citi alumni and guests were feted during the affair held at the New World Makati Hotel.

Aftab Ahmed, Citi Philippines CEO, said, “Citi today remains the largest foreign bank in the Philippines. We owe that to the wealth of talent in the company — then and now — that has helped us to go from strength to strength. This is an excellent venue for you to reconnect with former colleagues and tap into the unmatched global strength of the Citi network.”

The event brought together captains of the industry, who began their careers under the red arc, including UnionBank chairman and CEO Tito Ortiz with his appointed president Edwin Bautista, PSBank president Bliz Cuna, Security Bank president and CEO Yogi Salcedo, incoming Insular Life Assurance chairman Vic Valdepeñas, MasterCard Philippines country head Poch Villa-Real, ePLDT president and CEO Eric Alberto, Ayala Land treasurer Toti Bengzon, SMIC Group treasurer Arcus Fernando, and Cabinet Secretary Jose Rene Almendras, last year’s Citi Distinguished Alumni awardee.

Guests were treated to sounds by the Henry Katindig Jazz Band. The alumni also got a preview of Citi Prestige, the bank’s first global credit card designed to offer uniform global benefits to affluent clients. Alumni guests were invited to be among the first to sign up for this unique product.  

One of the evening’s highlights was the awarding of the Citi Distinguished Alumni 2015. This year’s awardee for the Philippines was Rose Montenegro, who once held the role of service quality director and CitiPhone head.

Masters of design

The spotlight was recently on world-renowned designers Matt Carr of Umbra, Arno Ruijzenaars of Leff Amsterdam and our very own Kenneth Cobonpue at the Contemporary Design Showcase that featured their masterpieces.

The three esteemed designers, who represent their globally-recognized brands in contemporary home furnishing, took basic home furniture and everyday items and gave those a fresh and modern look.

Carr of Toronto-based design company Umbra is known for his designs distinguished by subtle detail and the reinvention of traditional objects. Ruijzenaars of clock master Leff Amsterdam pushes boundaries to create a timepiece that exposes elements of construction such as the Tube Clock.

Cobonpue, the official creative director for the recent APEC Leaders’ Welcome Reception at the Mall of Asia Arena, is known for his masterpieces made from natural materials such as rattan, bamboo, abaca and buri palm.

These men show the sensibility of the artists that is always at the core of their every masterpiece. And in these modern times, the perfect marriage of beauty and function is the common principle shared by designers across the globe — or the force that binds Umbra, Leff Amsterdam and Kenneth Cobonpue.

(To view the works of these designers, visit the Kenneth Cobonpue showroom at The Residences, San Lorenzo Tower, Greenbelt, Makati City.)

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

(Follow me on Instagram @pepperteehankee.)