A warm & delightful welcome

The recently concluded Madrid Fusion Manila brought together the most acclaimed avant-garde chefs from across the globe. The Asian edition of Madrid Fusion, the most important international gastronomy congress in the world, is celebrated annually in Madrid since 2003.

On the first day of Madrid Fusion Manila 2016, the event’s world-renowned chefs, delegates and officials from the Department of Tourism (DOT) and Madrid Fusion were feted at a welcome party held at the scenic SM by the Bay at the SM Mall of Asia complex. The event highlighted the continuing collaboration between SM and Madrid Fusion Manila, which began last year.

DOT officials, led by Verna Buensuceso, and SM executives, led by SVP for marketing Jon Jon San Agustin and AVP for operations Perkin So, welcomed guests to the night of great food and fun vibe.

Guests were treated to a Filipino fiesta party with a spread of local cuisine from Café Adriatico and Vikings, as well as special showcase of different kinds of lechon and local drinks from Tanduay, San Miguel and Don Papa Rum of Kultura.

Seen enjoying at the party were director of Arum Estrategias Internacionalization Iñigo Cañego and Floro de Debate’s Lourdes Plana, along with Michelin-star chefs from Spain Joan Roca, Fernando Perez Arellano and Ricard Camarena.

SM Supermalls senior vice president Steven Tan said, “SM, through its partnership with Madrid Fusion Manila and the DOT, through Flavors of the Philippines, is simply fulfilling its mission to bring families and friends together in one fun place to enjoy everything flavorful.”

Bridging cultures through food

Cross Cultures, the events platform founded by my fellow foodie and writer Cheryl Tiu, presented back-to-back nights of multi-course dinners cooked by some of the best chefs in the world. Cheryl worked together with Gallery Vask — which was recently awarded the 39th best restaurant in Asia by the Asia’s 50 Best Restaurants list — for two Six Hands collaboration dinners with the intention of bridging cultures through food.

For the first collaboration dinner, Yoshihiro Narisawa of Asia’s No. 2 restaurant, Narisawa in Tokyo, cooked alongside Virgilio Martinez of Latin America’s No. 1 restaurant, Central in Lima, and host chef Chele Gonzalez.

Narisawa brought in sakura (cherry blossom), which was then in season in Japan, and created dishes like Sakura Sushi and Sakura and Rice dessert served on lacquer plates specially brought by Narisawa from Tokyo. The seafood ceviche with yuzu (a Japanese citrus) and konbu (Japanese kelp) was to-die-for! Narisawa also made Baby Pork and Fruits where he cooked the local suckling pig by putting it in and out of the oven repeatedly to achieve tenderness — a technique he thought of just that day!

Martinez served dishes from his Lima outpost like Spiders on the Rock (crab, sargassum and cadena de amor) and Harvest and Collection (scallops, tree tomato and sweet potato leaves). He also served Green Highlands — the crowd favorite — which used edible clay mixed with white chocolate from the highlands of Peru, served with native cacao, dragon fruit and lucuma, a subtropical fruit from the Andean valleys.

The following day, Jorge Vallejo of Latin America’s No. 6 restaurant, Quintonil in Mexico City, cooked with Jungsik Yim of Asia’s No. 22 restaurant Jungsik in Seoul, and once again with the talented Gonzalez.

Vallejo worked with local seafood but brought in ingredients from Mexico like tortilla and habanero mayonnaise for his Crab Tostada (one of my favorites of the night). The one that drew the most curiosity and excitement was a dish with ant eggs or escamoles, a delicacy in Mexico, which he cooked in butter and garlic and served with torched avocado and chili.

Jungsik infused seaweed or gim in all his dishes, beginning with a crispy gim cone stuffed with beef tartare; as a topping on sea urchin and tuna dish and likewise with his parrot fish dish.

On both nights, Gonzalez served dishes from the latest Gallery Vask menu, which, many said, was his best one yet. Standout dishes included Tiradito (tuna loin enveloped in coconut milk), 5.6 (Bicol Express on Aklan oysters), Teardrop (“cheeks,” served with adlai — translated as “tears” in English) and Pandan Éclair (sticky rice puff filled with pandan mousse and served with sweet monggo and rice crisps).

All four guest chefs were also in town for Madrid Fusion Manila 2016.

(For more information on Cross Cultures and upcoming events, visit cheryltiu.com/crosscultures or e-mail [email protected].)

‘Beauty begins here’

Flawless Face and Body Clinic is seeking ways to deliver the best beauty experience to its clients.

At a lunch event dubbed “Our New Flawless Journey,” the beauty company’s luminaries, business partners, medical doctors and celebrity clients were all in attendance to witness the unveiling of Flawless’ new look — a revamped logo and contemporary clinic design.

FM radio jock DJ Chacha hosted the affair adorned with pretty-in-pink accents and hexagon details to represent the shape of the skin cell — a symbol of the brand’s medical knowledge and passion for skincare.

Maxene Magalona, a brand endorser, joined Flawless’ owner and CEO Rubby Sy-Coyiuto onstage to reveal the company’s new logo and tagline — Beauty begins here.

Sy-Coyiuto said, “This makeover started internally in our organization and operations to give what our clients deserve. This is how we see beauty — it begins inside and now we’re putting the word out that Flawless makes beauty easier and more comprehensive with years of medical expertise and an exciting new look.”

Sy-Coyiuto also announced that the brand re-launch was only the beginning of more beautiful breakthroughs to arrive at Flawless. All of its 45 clinics nationwide will undergo a makeover and operations have also been improved to enhance each client’s beauty journey.

(Follow me on Instagram @pepperteehankee.)