More savory tale of the US potato

CEBU, Philippines - My burgeoning appreciation of the versatility of the US Frozen Potato was further validated on the second day of the Potato Safari when we crossed over to Bluewater Resort in Maribago for a hearty seafood lunch. The resort owners are passionately espousing Filipino cuisine, inviting topnotch Filipino chefs from Manila to showcase their world class dishes to discriminating diners in Cebu. So it was with a level of anticipation when I lunched at Bluewater's The Cove.

Meeting youthful Chef Dennis Uy - who looked not a day over 20! - was a pleasant happenstance as he is a true-blue Cebuano.  Honing his skills from the very best hotel, restaurant and cruise line (Royal Carribean Cruises), Chef Dennis has certainly earned his title as the resort's executive sous-chef. And he made full advantage of the bounty of the sea by making a grill station, offering Miso-mirin chicken, lobster, prawns, sukiyaki beef rolled in US crinkle cut potato.

We had fusion cuisine starting with an East Asian US Potato curry pan and a US twist of the Pinoy empanada:  hash brown with beef filling. A winner, for my taste buds, is the US Potato and Crab Chawanmushi (a spin- off of the Japanese traditional seafood custard); others include the interesting side dishes of US Potato mashed guguma (Korean for "potato"), crunchy hash brown potato kimchi and the 3-flavored potato sushi. Special mention:  3K Ice Cream (kamias-kasuy-kalamansi mango) made with the US Potato. Such appealing flavors to the Filipino palate!

Ramon Taguchi went solo to the wine pairing dinner at Anzani New Mediterranean Restaurant. He shared that the evening's theme, Creative Menu with US Frozen Potato, showcased Chef Marco Anzani's skills through "creations with a certain flair that's subtle but formidable."  The dinner's "First Bite" is spinach flat bread stuffed with US Skin-On Fries, Fontina cheese and crisp Parma hamstring; "Colorful Introduction" is grilled veggies in various hues with US Potato and purple beet paste. Main course is seared ostrich scaloppini wrapped with US Potato Wedges on stewed tomato, with mushroom ragout. Paired with Gran Reserva Beringer Cabernet Sauvignon.  Dessert is a unique custard of US Crinkle Cut Potato matched with avocado ice cream.

Finale showcase lunch at the Marco Polo Plaza, the host hotel of this year's US Potato Safari, featured the US Potato Board consultant Chef Sau del Rosario.  Internationally appreciated in the culinary world for his ingenious ways of putting the best of Filipino cuisine to world standards, he is also commended for his creative surprises with any edible item sent to his kitchen.

His Creamy Potato Onion & Garlic Soup is so delicately flavored with green herbal oils, while his salmon takes on a Gaelic crunch partnered with the potato brioche. Main courses of Pan Roasted Sea Bass and my all-time favorite, Confit de Canard (duck breast) with apple and onion marmalade, are cooked just so, preserving the natural juices of the meat cuts, enhanced by interesting sidings. The dessert plate was duly autographed by the chef, but of course!  The Potato Butter Pudding has a caramel punch that I love, while the Potato Orange Ice Cream is refreshing to the taste buds. Bravo, Chef Sau! Merveilleux! Enchanteur!

The US Frozen Potato Special Menu is available at Café Marco of Marco Polo Plaza, The Cove of Bluewater Resort Maribago , Café Laguna at the Terraces and Anzani New Mediterranean Restaurant at Nivel Hills, until the end of May, 2014. (FREEMAN)