Australian food-hopping at Diamond Hotel
MANILA, Philippines - Care for kangaroo carpaccio, braised crocodile and chorizo jambalaya, grilled ostrich with balsamic honey jus, among other to-hop-for Australian dishes?
All ye adventurous souls are invited to go food-hopping and explore the many flavors of the Land Down Under at Diamond Hotel’s Corniche restaurant on Roxas Boulevard.
But first, let’s meet the guy who made all these hop-pen. Why it’s Aussie chef Steve Shrimski, seasoned taste master, whom I first met at his Canvas Bistro Bar Gallery at the Terraces Ayala Center Cebu, where he cooked up a melange of flavors for the Philippine STAR-Ayala Malls’ Eat event!
“There’s an abundance of different types of ingredients in Australia — seafood, spices, herbs, fruits, vegetables,” says Steve. “It’s so easy for a chef to go to the market and get anything he needs.”
He adds, “Yes, we’re flying in all these native herbs, the different meats, like kangaroo, crocodile, and ostrich, from Australia for the fest.”
FYI, kangaroo meat is high in protein and low in fat. It’s got a high concentration of conjugated linoleic acid, which is anti-carcinogenic and anti-diabetes. Its harvesting is supported by the Ecological Society of Australia and the Australasian Wildlife Management Society. Many supermarkets in Australia stock up on various cuts of kangaroo meat.
Likewise, crocodile meat is low in fat and cholesterol. Exceptionally juicy and tender, it tastes a lot like chicken and turkey.
Steve, who’s married to a Filipina who was once his boss, is having fun stirring up the Filipino palate. He’ll happily share with anyone the secret to a nice and chewy fillet mignon cooked medium rare.
Aussie does it — Steve surely makes it look so easy! For this food fest, Steve is working with 30 Pinoy chefs. “The boys are very quick to learn,” says a beaming Steve. “I make my own recipes, menus, and they’re all printed. With no disrespect for anybody, I call my recipes idiot-proof. I can give my recipe to any chef and as long as he reads through it, he can cook it; as long as he follows the procedures, the right time to cook things, he’ll be fine.”
So, what’s on Steve’s menu for Flavors of the Land Down Under?
“I’m doing three different menus — Buffet Menu Cycles 1, 2, and 3,” Steve shares. “The dishes are rotated and there are special items on different days as well. So every day, it’s like a different menu.”
For this Aussie food fest, Steve is doing bush food that not even some Australians have tried. For instance, there’s the akadjura parsnip and bush tomato soup. “It originated from the aborigines and not everybody can do it,” Steve elaborates.
Among the main attractions are the crispy crocodile swag bags (like the Chinese fried wonton with croc meat inside), grilled ostrich with balsamic honey jus, roo ragu with fusilli pasta, char-grilled kangaroo with Davidson plum and chilli sauce, macadamia and lemon myrtle encrusted barramundi (Asian seabass) fillet with Bush Tomato Sauce, Aussie baked meatloaf with tomato pepperberry jus and garlic mash, pepperberry encrusted Aussie beef medallions, oysters with Warrigal greens (like spinach) and macadamia nut pesto, and from the carvery, roast leg of lamb fillet with native thyme, mint, and garlic, and slow-roasted Meltique Beef striploin served with a selection of Australian mustards and Merlot Jus.
Beef up your Aussie food trip with a lot of greens, too, as the salad station beckons with its enticing cheesy, nutty, fruity, and veggie offerings.
After loading up on all that meat, hopefully, there’s room left for a dessert or two (or three or more). As this is always my favorite part of the meal (in fact, dessert always comes first for me), I surely have room — lots of it — for Steve’s sinful selection of desserts: To name some, sticky date pudding with butterscotch sauce, praline Pavlova (a meringue-based dessert named after Russian ballerina Anna Pavlova) with strawberries and cream (other days, it’s mango and cream or passionfruit and cream), Illawarra (a coastal region south of Sydney, Australia) plum cheesecake with rhubarb sauce, chocolate and coconut lamingtons (little sponge cakes), and steamed macadamia and banana pudding.
So, what are you waiting for, mate?
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Hop over to the “Flavors of the Land Down Under” ongoing at Diamond Hotel’s Corniche restaurant until Aug. 10. The buffet feast is priced at P2,050 per person. Guests spending a minimum of P5,000 on the Australian lunch or dinner buffet get a chance to win two roundtrip tickets to Sydney, Australia via Philippine Airlines. The event is in partnership with the Australian Trade Commission, Australia Unlimited, Canvas restaurant, Artisan Cellars, and Philippines Airlines. For inquiries, call 528-3000 or e-mail bizcenter@diamondhotel.com. Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/diamondhotelphilippines.], Twitter: http://twitter.com/DiamondHotelPh.
