I was recently invited to dine at the newly-opened hotel in Araneta Center in Cubao: Novotel Araneta Center Manila. We were able to try their casual dining bar and restaurant, Gourmet Bar by Novotel.
Gourmet Bar is the signature lounge bar of Novotel Hotels around the world. This modernist bar and cafe serve a variety of international cuisine, along with an impressive line of drinks.
For starters, we were served freshly-baked bread and butter, and sampled Pan Seared Local Buffalo Mozzarella & Vegetable Salad and Norwegian Salmon with Chives Burrata Espuma, along with a glass of Unleaded Cucumber (Php 180).
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| Pan-Seared Local Buffalo Mozzarella & Vegetable Salad and Norwegian Salmon with Chives Burrata Espuma |
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| Unleaded Cucumber |
The local buffalo mozzarella is fresh from the Aranetas' El Dorado Farm, paired with greens while the salmon with chives burrata espuma is garnished with crispy sweet potato and avruga caviar. I love the textures and the contrast of sharp and creamy flavors in this tasting plate, though I am partial to the Norwegian Salmon. I would love to have more of this. I enjoyed the Non-Alcoholic Unleaded Cucumber, with soda, lime, cucumber, mint leaves, and house-made sour. I really love any drink with cucumber and I love that they have this drink here.
For soup, we were served Scallop & Champagne Veloute.
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| Scallop & Champagne Veloute |
The soup is an infusion of scallops and champagne, the flavors are mild and the champagne complemented the scallops well.
For the main course, we had Lobster Ravioli and Beef Tenderloin. I was also served a glass of white wine along with these dishes.
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| Lobster Ravioli |
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Beef Tenderloin |
The Lobster Ravioli, served with pesto and saffron sauces, was a disappointment. The ravioli itself was tough, making it difficult to chew. However, the Beef Tenderloin was a complete opposite, with its really tender sliced beef on top of truffle mashed potatoes, lettuce, and veal jus. I would love do have the beef tenderloin again.
For dessert, we had a serving of 2 Ways of Churros.
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| 2 Ways of Churros |
The churros is served with dark chocolate sauce and vanilla ice cream. The churros are extremely crispy on the outside but creamy and milky on the inside, a unique take on one of the popular desserts today.
We were also served a special dessert by Gourmet Bar this summer: the Le Mont Gourmand (Php 999).
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| Le Mont Gourmand |
The Le Mont Gourmand is a huge bowl with 15 scoops of house-made ice cream, with macarons, nuts, mixed berry coulis, chocolate syrup, caramel sauce, and whipped cream, especially made by Chef Didier Derouet. A bowl is more than enough for our huge group. Try this while it's still on the menu. :)
Overall, I had a lovely dinner at Gourmet Bar by Novotel Manila. Most of the dishes we had were impressive and the service was excellent. I would love to go back and try more items on their menu, and probably have some drinks too.
Thanks to Novotel Manila Araneta Center and Zomato Philippines for having us.
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Gourmet Bar by Novotel Manila
Ground Floor
Novotel Manila Araneta Center,
General Aguinaldo Avenue,
Araneta Center,
Cubao, Quezon
Twitter: @NovotelManilaAC
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