A visual and culinary feast at Megaworld Lifestyle Malls
Whoever said “money can’t buy happiness†has definitely not dined well.
So the next time your palate itches to try the newest restaurants in town, forget about those food flyers handed out by the dozen. At Megaworld Lifestyle Malls (MLM) — Eastwood City, Venice Piazza at McKinley Hill, Burgos Circle at Forbes Town Center, Lucky Chinatown, and Newport Mall at Resorts World Manila — choosing a restaurant is actually a breeze.
Whether you’re craving pizza and pasta, burgers, steaks, noodles or just about any kind of dessert, there’s definitely one that will satisfy your cravings.
Well, what makes the dining scene at Megaworld Lifestyle Malls so dynamic is the presence of some of the best chef-driven restaurants in the country such as chef Florabel Co’s Crisostomo, chef Robby Goco’s Cyma, chef Pete Ayson of New Orleans, chef Mau Arjona’s Uncle Cheffy, among others; not to mention the regular food festivals and promotions it holds, which work like a magnet in attracting food lovers from all over the metro.
This summer, Megaworld Lifestyle Malls presents “Gourmet Masterpieces,†an innovative art-meets-food campaign, is probably Megaworld Lifestyle Malls’ most exciting and unique dining campaign yet. Renowned chefs from various dining establishments in the malls were invited to conceptualize limited-edition summer dishes based on their favorite artworks.
This is actually the third year that Megaworld Lifestyle Malls has come up with a summer dining campaign. The last two were so successful that MLM had to think of something that would pique the interest of its regular clients.
“We wanted to offer our customers something new and exciting to spice up their stay-cations. Megaworld Lifestyle Malls has always been known for its chef-driven restaurants; so we leveraged this and chose to highlight them for our latest dining campaign. And since we’ve always thought of cooking as something very creative, we asked renowned chefs from our restaurants to come up with a special dish inspired by their favorite art pieces,†explains Kevin L. Tan, first VP and commercial division head, Megaworld Corporation, during the launch of “Gourmet Masterpieces†at The Plaza of Newport Mall at Resorts World Manila.
Needless to say, the chefs gamely took up the challenge. The result was a gallery of artfully crafted gourmet dishes — that it seemed almost sinful not to take at least one photo of each dish — side by side the fab creations of the country’s established and up and coming fashion designers!
The dream team
Presented by Megaworld Lifestyle Malls, in partnership with the Asian Food Channel, Mega and Appetite magazines, “Gourmet Masterpieces†is definitely a feast for the senses.
One of the most photographed booths at the launch was Impressions’, which showcased chef Cyrille Soenen’s foie gras dish elegantly plated with the colors of spring.
“For this campaign, we were asked to create a dish based on our favorite artwork. I chose one of the masterpieces of Claude Monet, who was an Impressionist. Also, my restaurant’s name is Impressions so everything just jelled,†chef Cyrille enthuses.
Monet’s painting depicts springtime in Paris.
“The artist lived in a small city in Paris called ‘The City of Asparagus.’ And since it’s the season of asparagus, I incorporated it in the dish,†he explains.
Chef Cyrille presented his foie gras dish like a landscaped garden. For the soil, he used truffle and black olives; and the colorful veggies he used remind one of spring.
Eastwood Richmonde Hotel chef Patrocinio Obia created a beautiful spread of Filipino delicacies such as puto, pastillas and maja blanca in the colors and form of the Philippine flag.
The eclectic colors of Vincent Van Gogh’s “Picasso†painting is delectably reflected in chef Florabel Co’s Halo-Halo by Crisostomo, a refreshing iced concoction that will definitely cool you down on the hot days ahead.
Known for its sumptuous steaks and frittes, L’entrecote owner/chef Martin Kaspar introduced a salmon dish that’s half sashimi and half grilled.
“The dish is inspired by the artwork of Carlos Rocha, which looks fresh and vibrant. I used fresh and bold ingredients. There’s avocado and fresh tomato marinated in olive oil. It also has basil aioli with lemon,†notes chef Martin.
Chef Charlsonn Lim of Little Asia chose Kim Steinberg’s “Sunrise†as inspiration for his prawns dish in creamy buttermilk sauce, while Melo’s Carmelo Santiago turned to Ivan Acuna’s painting to come up with the succulent Wagyu steak with organic greens.
These dishes were not just so lovely to look at but taste divine as well.
At the end of the launch, guests were asked to choose which of the dishes stood out not just in terms of presentation but flavor as well. And chef Cyrille Soenen’s duck liver terrine dish got the “judges’†nod.
“This is definitely an exciting night for all of us. I started my career as an executive chef and I’ve joined various culinary competitions and I’ve never once saw something like this where Megaworld Lifestyle Malls asked the chefs to try to duplicate their fave artwork or photograph in a dish. Just by looking at the delicately crafted items on the exhibit, I’m simply in awe of the chefs’ creativity and talent,†says William Scott Sibley, chief hotel operations officer of Resorts World Manila.
This summer, you, too, can savor the chefs’ gourmet masterpieces in over 50 restaurants all over Megaworld Lifestyle Malls. Just look for the Gourmet Masterpieces seal on the windows of the participating restaurants.
Livin’ the good life
Megaworld Lifestyle Malls (MLM) encapsulates all the lifestyle malls developed and operated by Megaworld Corporation, namely, Eastwood City, Lucky Chinatown, Newport Mall at Resorts World Manila, Burgos Circle at Forbes Town Center, and Venice Piazza at McKinley Hill.
The label signifies quality and a certain class unique only to the malls under it. Each mall has its own theme and offers sophisticated and fine choices in food, shopping and entertainment.
“We want to carve out our own niche. We put all our malls into an umbrella because we have a lot of properties already and each has its own character,†notes Kevin.
It’s pretty hard to distinguish one from the other. But certain things remain the same like the attention to detail, the service and the innovations that are uniquely Megaworld.
“Our malls, which are located within an integral communities that have residential and office developments, are aimed at enhancing the quality of life for those who live and work there,†Kevin adds.
