The culinary event was a delight to the palate and the eyes.

The high society and lifestyle press partook of a gastronomic feast that highlighted the specialties of the Filipino dining table through the last 80 years on 7 October when Taal Vista Hotel celebrated its 80th anniversary.

On hand to celebrate with the press were the hotel bigwigs led by president Elizabeth Sy, executive vice president Peggy Angeles and the hotel general manager, Richard Gamlin, who related that the hotel’s story “began in 1936 when newly-elected Commonwealth president Manuel L. Quezon wanted to develop Tagaytay as a tourism destination. Three years later, on October 7, 1939, the Taal Vista Lodge opened as the premier lodging and recreational place of Tagaytay.”

On the day itself, the guests who had just arrived from Manila and those who had stayed overnight converged at the patio of the Taza Fresh Table restaurant where the waiters passed around hors d oeuvre of Shrimp with desiccated coconut and Adobong dilaw sa pan de bulilit, inspired by significant historical events of the 1930s and 1940s, followed by Chicken relleno, a favorite fiesta fare in the 1950s as written about by Enriqueta David-Perez.

The appetizer was Lumpiang sariwa with pancit buko, which brought to the diners’ mind Nora Daza who, in the 1960s, gave the world a sampling of elegant Filipino dishes through her restaurants in Paris and New York. The soup was Braised beef, chicken and pork chickpeas, chorizo, cabbage and eggplant, reminiscent of the 1970s when restaurateur Glenda Barreto elevated Pinoy plating into an art worthy of the corporate boardroom and the diplomatic table.

Myrna Segismundo, a culinary icon of the 1980s because she presided over the birthing of private dining, came to the mind of the guests when they were served Poached seabass with potato puree, baby carrots, zucchini, saffron beurre blanc and saffron foam, at a time when Slow Food came into the international culinary scene.

Philip Cu Unjieng (left) Elizabeth Sy, Issa Litton and Chit Lijauco.

RICHARD Gamlin, Peggy Angeles and Elizabeth Sy.

A tribute to the Amy Besa and Romy Dorotan who championed Filipino cuisine in Manhattan came by way of the sorbet, Hibiscus tarragon.

Guests were next treated to the delectable main dish, Sous vide Bukidnon wagyu strip steak with marble potatoes, mixed mushrooms and Amadeo coffee port sauce, this one inspired by the global consciousness of environmental sustainability and the publication of Kulinarya, the food book. Claude Tayag, having shifted gear into the kitchen, also made a dent during this period, 2000. Finally, dessert was Blue pea coconut cheesecake with coco-caramel and dragon fruit coulis, celebrating the 2015 Madrid Fusion Manila.

The culinary event, a delight both to the palate and to one’s eyes, ended with SM Hotels and Conventions Corporation executive vice president Peggy Angeles delivering a congratulatory speech to those who made the anniversary luncheon an affair to remember.

If the anniversary was such a great success, it is because everyone did their part, with Michael Anthony Sagaran ensuring that the best of the national media, many of them members of the 400, came in full force.

The art deco ambience, in keeping with the “As time goes by” theme of the occasion, was successfully recreated under the direction of arts advocate, educator and former CCP president Nestor Jardin. Clang Garcia curated the menu, with Chef Jayme Natividad and his staff interpreting it.