LIFE KUSINA LURES BACK DINERS WITH FRESH APPROACH
Hilton Manila reopens its Kusina Sea Kitchens with The Market Place 2.0, a fresh and exciting take on Filipino, Western and Asian favorites served dampa-style in a worry-free dining space
For Simon McGrath, general manager of Hilton Manila, the Philippine hotel industry continues to journey into uncharted territory. “Almost the same time last year, I remember saying that everything would be back to normal by Christmas. But look where we are now. We are looking at having another possible shutdown,” he said.
When March rolled in last year, everything stood at a standstill. Like other hotels, they incurred losses from the temporary halt in operations. By June, the economic activities slowly returned. While the dining outlets were doing okay, their business had a boast when they were granted the staycation accreditation.
“We were very confident. Right through Christmas, it almost felt normal, except for the mask and face shields. But come March this year, we had a shutdown again, which was quite sad,” McGrath shared.
Having experienced it before, Hilton Manila was prepared. Out of the box came ideas such as Vubble Pods, transparent enclosed structures located at the hotel’s common poolside where guests can dine in the comfort of the safe space. Hilton Manila also offered The Market Place, which became popular among diners for its dampa-style dining format.
This year, with the slow easing of the lockdown in the National Capital Region, Hilton Manila is reopening its Kusina Sea Kitchens with The Market Place 2.0, a fresh and exciting take on Filipino, Western and Asian favorites still served dampa-style and in a worry-free dining space.
“Our culinary team has carefully curated a special selection that guests may enjoy turo-turo style, akin to The Market Place, where you simply point to a dish from our buffet and it will be served to you, or you help yourself to single serves,” McGrath explained.
Experiencing Kusina
So, how does one start the sumptuous journey at the Kusina? You simply grab the tray at the entrance. Maximum of 15 persons are allowed at the buffet area.
With your tray in tow, move to the artisan breads and tapenade section, where you can choose freshly-baked goodies such as pan de regla, olives tapenade, among others. Next to it is the Japanese Corner, where you tell the server what you want from the selection of sushi, sashimi and rolls such as maguro nigirizushi, futo maki, salmon sashimi and California maki, among others.
The highlight of the whole dining experience is the Unlimited Paluto. In the next section, one can find the Dampa Grill, the Seafood Market and Skewers. Here, point at the fresh seafood and meat choices you want the kitchen staff to cook for you based on your preference. Specially cooked on a grill of lava rocks, enjoy the rich and smoky taste of tiger prawns, shellfish, sausages and even steaks.
Do you want it grilled plain, with butter garlic or with cheese? The chefs can do it for you. You can also order mini seafood
paella. Then, just wait for your buzzer to light up and pick your grilled fare from the small counter near the entrance.
The buffet has all-time favorites such as selection of Chinese dimsum. There’s also the Carvery, with meaty choices such as 18-hour slowcooked US beef chuck roll and roasted crispy pork belly.
Kusina will not be
“kusina” without authentic Filipino dishes. This section features regional cuisines from Pampanga, Cebu, Iloilo and Davao. Executive chef Benoit Chargy might be a foreigner, but he wants to stay true to authentic Filipino recipes. So expect
kare-kare made from scratch, the traditional way.
Asian fare comes from the Hua Yuan Brasserie Chinoise section, which showcases the best signature dishes from Hilton Manila’s Shanghainese restaurant. Next to it is the Noodle Hut, featuring Malaysian laksa,
and Vietnamese Pho.
The Sustainable Garden, the middle of the buffet, is where diners can partake of fresh and crisp salad choices and fruit slices. Parallel to it is the Dessert Station with its playfully vibrant and decadent sweets.
Don’t forget to visit the famed Samalamig
station, where guests can enjoy homemade Filipino refreshements such as sago’t gulaman, buko pan dan, halo halo, and other refreshing drinks. There’s also the ice cream cart for some sorbetes.
Candy Corner brings a certain nostalgia, especially to Filipino diners who grew up with the classic candies such as Nougat, Mik-Mik, Haw-Haw, Curly Tops, ChocNut, Butterball and other childhood treats.
On weekends, during Premium Nights, expect themed cuisine from the Signature Live station. One night you could be transported to Italy; other times, you’d be in the kitchens of Mainland China or discovering the rich spices in Mediterranean.
Confidence in dining out
Aside from providing good dining selection, the focus is bringing back the people’s confidence and feeling of comfort in dining out.
“We have many information to put together to design the way we serve food. A little bit more relaxed now, but before everything was by packaged, food were served with covers. We still have the service buffet. Utensils are used once and take away and sanitized. Most instances, the kitchen team are serving and taking orders. The focus is just try to make people comfortable that not everything is in a package. But we can’t tell that to customers; that has to be consumers decision,” McGrath said.
Hilton Manila observes stringent health and safety measures in line with the local government guidelines and Hilton’s own CleanSafety initiative. The hotel also holds the Department of Tourism’s Safety Seal.
Beginning 19 June, Kusina opens nightly from 5:30 to 9:30 p.m., serving a Premium dinner buffet at P2,350 nett per person on Saturdays and Sundays, and P2,050 nett from Mondays to Fridays.