a clash of temptations

It's a Beautiful Day!

So it finally happened - I saw U2 in the Melbourne gig of their Vertigo tour. A 20-year old love affair and a lifetime of dreaming what it would be like to be in a stadium with 70,000 other people singing along to their anthemic songs. I never truly appreciated the saying "be careful what you wish for" until after the concert. I realize that when you get what you wish for - there is nothing to look forward to because, in a sense, you have attained your heart's desire. But enough of the philosophical imaginings - it's a double treat as well since Kanye West starts the concert!

The crowd gets a bit antsy and does a few "waves". It's fun...until the 6th time. When the background music stops we all know that the boys are coming out in a few moments. For the Aussies, this is also a moment they have been waiting for as the last time U2 was here was 8 years ago and their supposed March gig was cancelled.

True to form - U2 just walks in and a gazillion lights stream down the large videowall - "City of Blinding Lights" - and Bono sings "oh you look so beautiful tonight". We're jumping, we're screaming, dancing. It's impossible that they sing all our beloved songs from the past and present but the selection is enough to leave us satisfied. A smattering of images on the video wall - a belly dancer, the bill of human rights, aboriginal art interspersed with the music. As corny as it sounds, words can't describe that magical night.

It took me 3 seconds to decide to fly to Australia to watch U2 ... and I would do it all over again. 

My life so far

This Is My Life, Rated
Life:	6.3
Mind:	7.3
Body:	5.9
Spirit:	5.4
Friends/Family:	5.2
Love:	4.3
Finance:	5.6
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ugh...my average life in full color for all to see

with permission from one of the funniest, "out there" cartoonists GARY LARSON.

this is simply one of my favorite cartoons of all time (which includes "second to the last of the mohicans" and much more). why is it funny? on the obvious level, it's funny because, well the ape made a mistake and danced the tango. it's funnier and absurd because, well, it IS an ape, and not a human being, and he asked for a mango mind you, not a banana even (to think of it, nothing funny rhymes with banana).

gary larson's world is populated with sheep who have just been sheared, cows that teach physics, dinosaurs that smoke (which is a solid theory on why they became extinct if you ask me) and human beings who look less human than their animal counterparts. it's an absurd & skewed view of the world and one that i turn to when i need a real good laugh.

to mr. larson THANK YOU.

catfiend's muesli version

i've recently been addicted to homemade muesli. granted the purists who taste my version will insist that i add a few items, but i have found that this version is easy to make as all the ingredients are available at your friendly grocery store:

catfiend's muesli

3 tbsps of instant oatmeal
1 tsp raisins
8-10 chopped cashew nuts
diced dried mango
diced dried papaya (or any other dried fruit - up to you!)
non fat milk (enough to soak the oats; i've never measured it really)
2 tbsps yoghurt
1 tbsp cream
honey to taste

mix and soak overnight, and if you have it, add grated apple. for variation i've added cinnamon. deeee-lish.

complicated meals i love

i am a foodie - with exceptions, there are several things i wouldn't eat, lamb being one of them, nilagang baka another. otherwise, i'm fairly more adventurous than the next guy (meaning i would eat frog's legs but not bull's testicles or goat's eye). so in my recent trip i managed to eat as my friend put it, in extremes - street food to good food. ahhh good food. pictured above is the lobster cappuccino i had at the collonade of sukhothai hotel in bangkok. a little receptacle for brandy, a lobster tempura, and another for creme fraiche..yum a truly interactive experience. than i had a petit angus tenderloin with truffle potatoes and the lady arrives with 9 choices of dijon mustard (meron palang raspberry!!!)

what to choose what to choose. thanks goodness they're soo nice here kasi i take my time. raspberry is a bit sweet (as expected), green peppercorn salty (as not!), and the others, well, tasted quite the same. but the truffle whipped mashed potatoes - loved it loved it loved it.

love the restaurant, love the staff who graciously toured us around the hotel.

all in all, one perfect meal.

a day in the life

In most homes it’s the mother that cooks - but not so in most five star establishments where it’s a largely testosterone-laden environment. As one of two females in the hot kitchen, it’s not exactly a walk in the park.

It’s 2:30pm and with just enough time to spare, I make it to the locker room and change into my white chef’s jacket with white buttons and checkered pants (black buttons and solid black pants are reserved for sous chefs and the Executive Chef). Mindful of Hotel policy, I wrap my apron around my waist and tuck a side towel then don a hairnet and a cook’s hat (the short kind, tall ones are, once again, reserved for the Chefs). To complete the ensemble, I get my scarf - essentially a square napkin folded into a triangle - and proceed to knot it around my neck. All of these are designed to prevent anything foreign, meaning unhygienic particles from my body, to fall into the food while I’m doing the prep.

The menu at the Tivoli Grill is heavy on the French influence, grill items, a la carte, and a roast beef trolley. Chef Jimmy (Sous Chef) is already there, just back from his lunch after a busy lunch period (60 covers). I like Chef Jimmy, he doesn’t really give me shit if I screw up, and always checks my work and gives me tips on how to make it better. It’s me, Ferdie and Chef Greg (Chef de Partie) for the shift, with Artem in the grill. I really have to give it to Ferdie, this guy has the touch. He can make a mean sauce, make the prettiest looking turned vegetables and is constantly thinking of different ways to tweak a dish. Boyishly handsome, brash & cocky…with reason.

Since I’ve been in the Hot Kitchen for close to 4 months, the guys have enough confidence in me to prepare more than the vegetable mise en place*.

*You’re going to come across this phrase if you interact with people from the hotel/restaurant industry. It basically means doing the prep work ahead of time (the chopping, dicing, etc) so that when crunch time comes, you basically throw it in the pan.

Most times I get the meat needed from the butcher on my own (prime rib 12kg, other prepared meats, beef tenderloin, fillet of lapu lapu, Dover sole, chicken breast, rack of lamb, duck breast, foie, etc), but Artem is being very gallant today, and he picks these up together with his meats for the grill. I go to the walk-in and check the prep, they all seem to be okay, except for the lobster ravioli. No problemo, I like making the ravioli. It’s a bit complicated since it’s striped, in three colors. We use either black (squid ink), yellow (saffron), green (green peas) or red (beets) stripes. I choose to use yellow, green and red and go up to the pastry section to make the dough, which is fine by me since Mario is there preparing desserts for the night - he always makes me laugh. Plus, I can filch a couple of sweets while I’m there.

All the mise en place is finished by 5:00pm, which gives us enough time to look at another one of Chef Gandler’s (Executive Sous Chef) new creations, have dinner, and be back by 6:30pm to be ready for the dinner rush. Chef Gandler is probably the best thing that has happened to this restaurant. Tall and pale with a constant look of concentration, Chef Gandler is Austrian and has introduced many of the Tivoli Grill’s biggest hits, one of them is his divine foie gras terrine with grapes soaked in sauterne.

7:00pm : the dinner rush (liberally paraphrased and culled from 15-year old memories)

Mario B the Restaurant Manager rushes in, “Chef, we have 40 reservations tonight, and the wife of the Resident Manager is dining!” All of us collectively groan. She’s a strict vegetarian and will take the set dinner.

We all take our places. I’m at the far left, tonight I’m the entremetier, Ferdie is saucier, Chef Greg does the plating and Chef Jimmy is at the pass. “Order, one prime rib baked potato, one Dover sole meuniere!” On my end this means I get one plate and arrange the sautéed vegetables artfully on the plate. It’s looking pretty tonight since we have purple cabbage, yellow gooseneck squash stuffed with three-colored bell peppers, and bright green asparagus. Since it’s early, I ask Chef Greg if I can do the Dover sole (this is Ferdie’s job as saucier), he agrees. Ferdie watches as I place flour on the sole and suggests that I add a little more butter to the oil to get a nice brown coating.

Downtime doesn’t last long as the orders pile in. “Pick up table 16!” Shouts the runner. While waiting he sidles up to me and asks me if I’m joining the service crew after tonight’s dinner, they’ll be having a few drinks. I think about it and let him know later.

Chef Gandler moves to the pass, he’s red now. Most of the checks are orders for the grill, and very few from the a la carte. It’s easier for everyone (everyone except Artem) if most orders are grill items but that’s not the point. The kitchen doesn’t get to showcase its sterling a la carte menu if all we need to do the whole night is plate vegetables and potatoes before it’s sent out to the grill where Artem will plate the meat.

“Hey Mario! You call yourself a maitre’d when you’re not even selling my menu! What’s this shit!”

“Relax Chef, the night is still young!” Mario B says, then whispers to his Captain “Give the Chef an iced tea, he’s getting on my nerves.”

We’re being hit now as Mario B takes the challenge and a la carte orders start piling up.

“Pick up two rack of lamb medium, one duck breast, one ravioli!”. Chef Gandler booms,
“Hey Jimmy, what are you doing? Clean the bones of that lamb before you plate it!” Chef Jimmy is clearly offended as he doesn’t like being scolded like a child in front of his staff, especially by someone 10 years younger than himself.

“Where are you going with that?”, Chef Gandler yells to the runner, "That’s missing the salad from the Cold Kitchen! I repeat never NEVER pick up anything without my final say!”. Now even the runners are wishing he would drop dead. Personally, I like having Chef Gandler at the pass, ALL of us would rather have him than Chef Josef, the Executive Chef. At least with Chef Gandler you could joke around. When Chef Josef takes the pass, there’s an almost imperceptible sense of dread. NOTHING gets by this man.

All the main courses are out and now the Mario at the Pastry is b-u-s-y. It’s challenging tonight as there are 15 set menus ordered and the dessert for tonight is a soufflé. But he manages to rise to the occasion and all the soufflés are beautifully done.

By this time the Hot section starts to clean up. I’m busy washing the pots, pans and plastic containers used for the mise en place. Ferdie doesn’t like to do this, so he clears the drawers and takes out the heavy pots and pans to the Steward. He returns the meats to the butcher and returns to finish straining the oxtail consommé that’s been simmering the whole night. I go into the walk in and check the mise en place. Wiped out, finito. I make a mental note to arrive an hour earlier tomorrow to complete it. I finish my shift by wiping down the surfaces. Although it’s been a busy (around 98 covers) night, I’m done by 10:30pm so I move to the Cold Kitchen to get some cool air. Chef Jimmy leaves, he’s been here since 10am.

At 11:15pm, I sign out and knock on the Chef’s office. Incredible. Chef Josef is still here – since 7:00am. I stay and chat with him a bit, no one else in the kitchen wants to, most everyone fears the guy – I like talking to him, he’s full of ideas and energy.

“Don’t forget we’re practicing tomorrow!” Ferdie calls out before he leaves. I forget, tomorrow is the first day of our practice for the Market Basket Competition (it’s the same as Iron Chef today) for the Chefs on Parade. This is the second year I’m joining and my stomach acids jump. I’m just really glad I’m in good company with Ferdie and Chef Babaran – our über excellent Pastry Chef.

“What have I gotten myself into?” I think to myself as I change into my civilian clothes before heading home.




Chef Gandler has left the Mandarin Oriental and has put up the culinary academy ISCAHM and Chef Babaran is one of his instructors. Chef Josef Paier has left the kitchen and now heads up his own Internet based company, NexC. Chef Jimmy is now working in Cruise ships. Chef Greg moved to the Makati Shangri-la, where he is a Sous Chef. The last I heard Ferdie was already Executive Chef, but I have no idea where. Artem, I believe also went to a cruise ship. Mario from Pastry has since retired. Almost everyone from the team of that “Golden Age” of Tivoli has moved on, one way or another. One notable mate is Humphrey Navarro, a well respected and loved chef today. He now has his own restaurant at Mandaluyong.

Today the Tivoli Grill is still successful, but the trend towards fine dining in hotels has passed as more and more high caliber, free-standing restaurants are being opened in the city.

And yes, we won the gold in Market Basket that year.