A preview of the special Four Hands dinner at Solaire’s Waterside Restobar on the 24th of November gave us an exquisite taste of the gastronomic ingenuity of whizzes-in-the-kitchen, Waterside’s chef de cuisine Alfred Santiago and Aaron Isip, the French culinary school-trained, half-Ilonggo former chef of noted Paris-based restaurant Dix Huit, who, in 2015, was awarded the prestigious Trophée Espoir of Ile de France by Gault & Millau — the only Filipino chef to be so honored by the renowned French guide which particularly rates chefs for excellence in their craft.
A sampling of the Four Hands dinner menu had us sitting to an amuse bouche duo of Santiago’s tuna with crab fat on a base of alamang (shrimp) seaweed meringue and Isip’s cured yellowtail scad with crisp ube tapioca, dragon fruit aguachile and oba leaf topped with pickled red onion.
Those, along with what followed — a raw bar of plump oysters with green mango relish and torched bone marrow, charcoal-seared scallops brushed with tamarind brown butter kosho, along with prawns, sigarilyas (winged beans), poached razor clams with lambanog (coconut vodka) citrus jelly, candied guanciale and a red bell pepper sauce set on kansi (Filipino beef soup) ice sent our senses through the roof, setting the tone for what was truly a remarkable feast.
Palate cleanser
The kansi ice served to cleanse our palates for Isip’s delectably firewood-grilled tupig (glutinous rice cake) topped by smoked Nomad caviar and tinapa (sun-dried fish) mascarpone.
Not to be outdone was Santiago’s pinangat of crab on a shell with gabi leaf mousseline topped by a film of gratinated soy and moringa, and finished with a coconut lemongrass annatto sauce and curry leaf chili oil.
What an absolutely stellar marriage of flavors as ingeniously crafted by Isip and Santiago, both veritable culinary whizzes!
But wait, the dinner was just getting into gear. Our plates were cleared, and laid next on the table were Santiago’s terrific mantis shrimp smeared with spiced champorado-like buro, that is, fermented red rice scented with crab bisque and curry leaves, followed by Isip’s grilled pulpo with a sauce of smoked yogurt sauce and blistered cherry tomatoes, which segued into a plate of grilled red snapper accompanied by crispy scales for a good crunch, and burnt shishito sauce.
Versatility with seafood
All three dishes — including the last two which were lifted from the menu of Isip’s restaurant, Kasa Palma in Poblacion — gave a good pretty good idea about both chef’s luminous versatility with seafood.
Isip’s contributions to the Four Hands menu likewise include a 36-hour beef short ribs confit with crispy shallots, thai basil and a peanut sauce as well as a gorgeous pork dish comprised of Kurobuta suckling pig belly skin wrapped around lobster with spring onion rice and a trifecta of sauces: cilantro green, tartare, and tomato pork jus.
A bowl of grilled white corn, crispy kale, grilled snow peas and sweet potatoes was offered for those who wanted to balance off the richness of the hearty viands, and rice, for those who prefer having their meal with starch.
Also made offered were cocktails: a refreshing concoction of vodka, proseco, tomato shrub, elderflower and a touch of wasabi, and/or Isip’s Kasa Grande — mescal, yuzu and egg white lightly sweetened by lemon grass syrup.
Irresistible ending
To end — our stomachs were bursting, but how could one resist Isip’s corn madeleine stuffed with corn custard, and sweet corn ice cream with corn puffs for texture?
Santiago’s own Waterside bombe, a dessert masterpiece of deconstructed baked Alaska, that is, white chocolate dome made to look like a coconut husk with toasted rice ice cream, calamansi meringue, langka jam, and pandan espasol crumbs drizzled with dark chocolate rum sauce that was flambéed with Quezon lambanog just before it was served was slurped down before we took to our feet, giving both chefs and their exemplary kitchen crew a hearty, so well-deserved “Bravo!”
(Essential facts: Four Hands, a special one-night-only dinner featuring Waterside Chef Alfred Santiago and Kasa Palma chef patron Aaron Isip, will be held on 24 November 2024 at Waterside, Solaire Resort Entertainment City, 1 Aseana Avenue, Parañaque City, Metro Manila. For reservations and other inquiries, call (02) 8888.8888).