Ordering “off menu” is asking for something extra. Anchored on the same concept it was named after, Tatler Dining Philippines’ Off Menu is all about being above and beyond. The distinct and innovative dining experience provides a different level of excitement, pairing some of the nation’s most renowned chefs to create exclusive dishes for a two-night feast aimed to rouse more passion for the local culinary industry.

The food fest isn’t new to Tatler. Off Menu was established in Hong Kong in 2019, “for those who crave the unexpected.” It was adopted in Singapore and the Philippines three years later after pandemic restrictions eased. From last year’s inaugural event that featured 12 collaborators, this year’s edition in Manila took it up a notch, coupling 14 culinary trailblazers for an unforgettable seven-course meal.

For its second edition, the venue and idea remained the same here in the Philippines, only on a grander scale. The food market-style dinner took place at the Grand Ballroom of Shangri-La The Fort, Manila, starring the cream of the crop in Philippine dining, all tasked to prepare plates not ordinarily found in their respective restaurants.

It is a rare occasion to find this many stellar chefs under a single roof, and in a unique bazaar-like setup at that. As Tatler Dining editor Isabel Martel Francisco puts it, “[Off Menu] is a time when the culinary community, from industry professionals to food-lovers from across the country, can come together, make new friends, and create memories,” the highbrow but laidback affair was attended by both young and mature crowds, gathered by their love for food.

While the banquet presents an opportunity for like-minded foodies to build a network and meet their favorite chefs, its essence is simply to be a platform where people can relish good food with free-flowing drinks.

The turnout for this year, compared to the last, was almost doubled. Tickets, all 400, were sold out. Skillfully made by today’s top chefs, the dishes were nothing short of marvelous. While there is no particular sequence suggested at Off Menu, here is what I imagine would be the best order to fully appreciate the seven-course 28-hands dinner.

An excellent starter would be the Nyumen by Josh Boutwood and Jorge Mendez. A hot version of the somen, this noodle dish has a refreshing and light tamarind bone broth, topped with seared scallops and sukiyaki vegetables. This would be the second time Josh and Jorge had worked together in the kitchen, proving a little bit more challenging than their last collaboration as Mōdan’s Jorge had just arrived in the morning from Italy.

Although the two chefs had too little time to prepare, the soup and noodles they came up with turned out pretty well, with a mingling of chewy textures and fairly mild flavors. “I can’t complain ‘cause he’s standing right next to me,” said Helm’s Josh in jest when asked what their partnership was like for the second time, before ending with a smile, “It’s been fantastic.”

Another wonderful starter was the terrine of foie gras, aged and cured buri, pork belly, sumac, and bread made from foraged leaves and sawsawan (sauce) on the side by Don Baldosano of Linamnam and Stephan Duhesme of Metiz. Dominant were the flavors of the Japanese fish and the Arabic spice, giving the loaf of forcemeat a lovely dimension.

“We just had a lot of wine and jammed,” said Stephan on their inspiration to do the traditional French cuisine. “We wanted to do something easy,” added Don. “We assumed one of us knew how to make terrine. On the evening before this event, both of us learned how to make one.” Stephan interjected, “In other words, it was a major challenge. But it was fun. That was the important thing.”

Follow with the Kilawing Tomo by Bettina Arguelles and Yoji Kitayama of Sofitel and Wagyu Studios, respectively. The most beautiful and colorful dish had Japanese marinated yellowfin tuna, Zamboanga lobster, and vinegared mackerel, swimming in Bicolandia kilaw dressing with yuzu and coconut milk. Dressed by Bettina, the elevated Philippine ceviche is too pretty to touch. Yoji’s knife work, meanwhile, shone in the seafood.

Aaron Isip of Balai Palma and Joris Rycken of Shangri-La The Fort came up with a terrific Terre et Mer, chicken neck ballotine with tiger prawn, seaweed, santol gastrique, moringa gribiche, and ikura. The superb surf and turf was my favorite from everything served that evening as I found the interplay of flavors among the meats and the garnish interesting. The slightly bitter undertones of moringa danced with the milky-sweet and floral taste of sweet-and-sour sauce.

Next would be the Fried Negros Pitaw by Margarita Fores of Cibo and Jordy Navarra of Toyo.

Heirloom rice was made into a puto (rice cake) with steamed eggplant, aligue mixed with coconut milk and a lot of ginger, Jordy’s homemade talaba, topped with adobong pitaw, tiny birds found in the fields of Negros. The softness and sweetness of the mountain violet sticky rice contrasted with the salty and crisp adobong pitaw.

“Since I’m a big fan of chef Margarita, throwing around ideas with her was fun,” explained Jordy. “It’s the same for me, I’m Jordy’s fan,” replied Margarita. “We decided to do a dish that had our favorite ingredients.”

The dish, Margarita joked, only took them 10 minutes to develop. “We understood each other’s works well so we knew how to complement each other,” she said. Jordy added, “The ideas flowed by so fast.”

Tom Bascon of M Dining and Rhea Rizzo of Mrs. Saldo’s collaborated for the first time on the Braised Beef Tongue on a Crispy Masa Boat. The use of lengua highlighted the fact that ingredients need not be premium for a dish to taste exceptional.

“We love Mexican flavors, Rhea and I. She was asking me to take the lead since I was present at Off Menu last year. But we agreed to do a twist on Mexican street food,” said Tom on why they chose the dish they made, which they developed in a single day because, as the two chefs said, it was easy working with each other. “We just hit it off. I always work best with chefs who are down-to-earth, talented, and passionate. Our stories also align because both of us started late in our careers,” mused Rhea.

Last, but certainly not least, is the Duck Confit Chukadon by Miko Calo of Metronome and Nico Santos of Your Local. The Chinese-style rice bowl consisted of duck confit, ginger barbecue glaze, soy tamarind, gohan, cured duck egg, and sansho soy milk white sauce. This was the most filling dish of the bunch. 

Diners savored these dishes with concoctions from Hendrick’s Gin, Don Papa Rum, Nespresso, as well as wines from Chandon, The Balvenie, and Terrazas de los Andes. Major sponsors included HSBC and Shangri-La The Fort, Manila.

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