Vietnamese food is not very popular among Filipinos. While Pho Hoa restaurant is definitely in the culture’s consciousness, Vietnamese food is about more than just beef-based noodle soups.Thien Duong at the Dusit Hotel is the only fine-dining Vietnamese restaurant in Manila to be located in a hotel. Last Saturday, it held a one-day buffet in celebration of the Chinese New Year. The restaurant was so booked that when we made a reservation a few days before, we had to pay a 50% deposit.Vietnamese cuisine can be divided into three distinctive regional cuisines: southern, central, and northern. The south sustains rice paddies, so there’s a wide variety of fresh herbs and complex tropical flavors. Food from the center is spicier, with an abundance of fresh produce. The north displays its Chinese influence through stir-fries and noodle-based soups. French colonization of Vietnam, which began in the 16th century and ended in the middle of the 20th century, also had a deep influence on Vietnamese cooking. The cuisine balances all these influences.The final tastes in a Vietnamese meal are determined by the diner. A table ...

I am being seduced by salt. My friend gave me a bottle of coarse crystal sea salt from France earlier this month, and since then I keep it beside me at all times. If I could insert a few precious grains into a locket and wear it close to my heart, I’d probably do that too.No one understands my fascination with salt, and frankly, neither can I. When I asked my mom to grab some tomatoes for me from the Baguio market, she couldn’t believe that I was planning to just eat them straight up sprinkled with some salt. My sister, who’s in Chicago right now, practically squawked through the phone line when I asked her if she’d bring me back some sea salt. Their unanimous response: “It’s just salt, for God’s sake!”What’s the big deal anyway? How is sea salt different, thus more ‘esteemed,’ than the usual rock salt and iodized table salt? All salt comes from the sea, therefore all salt is sea salt. Er, maybe. What I do know is that salt is the chicest thing ...

man in the middleA few nights ago as I was trying to fall asleep, I was overcome with this craving to make scones. Regular readers of this website know how driven I am by my cravings, and these late-night cravings are the worst: incessant little drumbeats in my head and a chant that can only be described as “Bake! Bake! Bake!” Then my stomach starts to growl, and it becomes, in a word, mad. Obviously, I didn’t get much sleep that night.Scones are related to pancakes, soda bread, and biscuits. They’re fairly small, plain cakes made with butter, flour, and sugar, and leavened with baking powder. Eggs and milk are added to make a firmer dough. Scones can be sweet – such as with chocolate -- or savory -- with shredded cheese and herbs. Served at high tea with jam and clotted cream, it’s a most romantic pairing. In Manila, I’ve tried the scones at Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf and at Bizu, but neither are as good as homemade.Most scones I’ve seen are round, but ...

A wheatberry is a whole, unprocessed wheat kernel. It’s the wheat that you see in high fiber cereals, (in its cracked form) and the name of a new bakeshop in Quezon City. Young baker Sonia Inducil conceptualizes it as a “natural bakery,” where only natural ingredients are used and preservatives are shunned. Open since October 2005, Wheatberry is a showcase of breads and pastries very unlike the usual desserts found in Manila. Begin with the breads, of which focaccia (P65) is one of the stars. This Italian bread is a dimpled disk, heavy in weight and depth. It has a very olive-oily bottom that makes it the perfect partner for dipping into a saucer of balsamic vinegar and parmesan cheese. Cut it neatly into wedges but I prefer to just rip into it and eat with pasta. wheat loaf (P75)Get your day’s supply of grains in the oatmeal buns that are scattered with oats, raisins, honey and wheat flour. Sonia says ...

I don’t consider myself a food stylist. I just like to make my food look pretty so that I can get a good shot. “Doh, that’s what food stylists do, Lor!” I remember my Bin telling me once. Some time ago, the owner of Wasabi approached me and asked if I’d take some photos of Singaporean chicken rice.It was my first time to shoot photos for a client. (The only client I usually have to please is myself. Ha!) Now under new management, Wasabi serves authentic chicken rice (P200) during lunch, and it’s also a staple at the restaurant’s Sunday buffet lunch (which is very good, by the way). Soon, Wasabi will have a complete Singaporean line-up in addition to its Japanese cuisine.The chicken rice comes with a bowl of hot broth, the requisite rice and vegetables, as well as two tiny receptacles – one containing dark sweet soy sauce and the other pure chicken oil, okay fat. Although the owner admonishes me to not mix the two sauces together, I do so anyway with gleeful abandon. I feel that the oil – mercilessly delicious oil – by itself is a bit bland and needed a kick in the pants ...

Good Earth Tea Room is where I go when I want Chinese cuisine that’s very different from the usual. Somehow, the food here isn’t as oily or as run-of-the-mill, both of which are not bad things because sometimes I want oily and run-of-the-mill.Good Earth also doesn’t look like a Chinese restaurant, unless you count the statue of a towering Chinese soldier situated in the corner. The place has a very Zen feel to it, very conducive to meetings and when I want to have a long, quiet lunch with a good friend.Popoy’s Delight (P350) is without a doubt, THE most popular dish at Good Earth. Everyone is drawn to it for their own reasons, but I think it’s because this steamed fish dish with ham is a more healthy choice, thus less guilt-inducing. The fish fillets are always cooked just ‘til tender, and the sauce is delicately redolent of ham.Good Earth can be counted on for their creativity. Consider this crispy chicken pao (P130): a dumpling wrapper enclosing a chicken filling and then ...

kisses in formationSoon to appear at a supermarket near you are these adorable little colored Kisses. They’re called Kissables, brought to us by the good people at Hershey’s. Think “mini-me” Hershey’s Kisses coated in a colorful candy shell. Choose your favorite from among blue, red, yellow, green, and orange. Boo eats only the blue Kissables, which explains the dearth of blue in the photos. what a kiss from the top looks likeOther candy-coated candies use compound chocolate (hard vegetable fat mixed with sugar, cocoa powder or powdered milk and flavorings) because it’s cheaper and doesn’t melt as easily. I noticed that Hershey’s Kissables uses real chocolate: sugar, cocoa butter, and chocolate lead the ingredient list.I happened to have a bag of M&M’s lying around, so I shot them together with the Kissables for fun. You make your own conclusions. face-off or kiss-off? Hershey’s Kissables 1.5 oz (42 g) P29.95 at all major supermarkets (end January)

I was at L’Opera recently for a writing assignment for a magazine. The restaurant’s been around since 1994, and it’s kept its legion of fans since its location hops from Jupiter Street, Greenbelt, and now at the Fort. Though I’ve never eaten at L’Opera, I had little tastings of each dish that was brought out for the shoot. Suffice it to say that I’m impressed. Although, from the group that also owns Caffe Maestro, I can’t say that I’m surprised. L’Opera deserves another look-see from me.Here are photos that I took during the shoot while the official photographer was fixing the lights between takes.L’Opera looks like an old-world classic Italian living room, complete with regal chandeliers. It’s hauntingly lovely yet modern at the same time with three eating rooms: the main dining room, the more casual ‘al fresco’ spot, and the mezzanine on the second floor.This is smoked and fresh salmon tartare with condiments (P380). It’s a light, cold salad that has an entire spectrum of flavors going for it, from sour to sweet. I like how ...