Paradise Dynasty

Eating in Paradise

Published on Manila Bulletin Lifestyle, December 15, 2016

My first time at Paradise Dynasty was in Singapore six years ago. I saw the posters everywhere, along the walkway to the MRT station and all over ION Orchard, the most happening shopping mall during those days. Photos of bamboo steamer filled with dumplings the colors of the rainbow haunted me. Oh how I love rainbows. And chasing/eating them.

I made plans to have lunch there with a friend almost immediately. We ate our way through the colorful babies, which also doubled as educational materials for her learning toddler. “What color is this dumpling mama is eating?” “Green!” “How about the one Auntie Jin is eating?” “Yellow!” “Orange!” “Red!” He had almost as much fun as we did, even if all he ate was blended chicken and vegetables.

It was not surprising to see the same reception when Paradise Dynasty opened in S Maison. Curious people queued up for the fun experience and there was always a basket or two of rainbow xiao long bao on every table.

During one of my visits I was able to chat with Paradise Group CEO Eldwin Chua who was in town to oversee the opening of his first Manila branch. “We are very excited to be in the Philippines. We have been wanting to bring our brand here for many years, we were just waiting for the right partner and the right location,” shared the young Singaporean businessman.

In the span of 13 years, the Paradise Group has expanded into over 30 restaurants in Singapore and 20 outlets in Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia, Japan, China, Hong Kong, and London, with every branch exuding opulence and luxury. When you go, make sure to check out the VIP room with its monstrous dragon sculpture hanging on the wall. It’s like stepping into the lavishness and drama of 1930’s Shanghai, with you feeling like some emperor, ordering and eating up a feast, and then feeling absolutely pleased with yourself when the bill arrives and you realize you are paying ordinary working men prices.

This is exactly the experience Chua wants to offer his diners. “Here at Paradise Dynasty, we want customers to enjoy premium food in fine dining setting without breaking their wallets. We use simple ingredients and find ways to elevate their flavors. We always work to improve and innovate so we can offer gourmet food with exceptional value.”

So what are the five dishes you must try at Paradise Dynasty?

1. The most popular 8-color Dynasty Xiao Long Bao, of course. 

You will be given an eating instruction manual to ensure you get the optimum taste of the

technicolor pouches. No, you cannot just eat them according to your favorite colors. 

You have to follow rules here and eat the dumplings in this sequence: Original, Ginseng, 

Foie Gras, Black Truffle, Cheese, Crab Roe, Garlic, Szechuan. The two I enjoyed most

were #3 foie gras and #4 black truffle. While I thought this was fun and something 

people should try once in their xiao long bao-eating lives, I am still a purist at heart

 and prefer uncomplicated flavors, which brings me to the second dish.

Rainbow xiao long bao eating manual

1    

2. Original Xiao Long Bao

To be enjoyed simply with vinegar and ginger because the classic way is the best way. Period.

3. Scrambled Egg White with Fish and Conpoy 

This dish dates back to a time when seafood was a rare commodity in China. The emperor

wanted crab during a time there was none so the kitchen had to create a dish to satisfy

his craving. The result: egg whites cooked painstakingly under low heat to attain a texture 

similar to that of the crustacean. If this dish made the emperor happy, I believe it should 

make ordinary people like you and me happy, too. Tip: There is a special way to mix

the egg yolk so sit back and let your server do the honors.

4. Stir-Fried Shredded Pork with Chinese Crepes 

Paradise Dynasty’s take on peking duck. Shredded pork stir-fried in black bean and hoisin

sauce until tender, to be paired with scallions and wrapped in thin, soft and chewy pancakes.

5. Radish Pastry

This is THE BEST THING at Paradise Dynasty. Soft and creamy radish strips in an 

incredibly fine and flaky crust that is almost too gorgeous to eat. Do eat it anyway. 

I can come to the restaurant and order nothing else but eight pieces of this golden 

beauty and leave perfectly merry and content.

Paradise Dynasty is located at 2/F S Maison at the Conrad, Mall of Asia Complex, Pasay City 

Tel: 828-8333

Hong Kong Eat List

EAT LIST
Where to eat the next time you are in Hong Kong

Published on Manila Bulletin Lifestyle, July 2, 2015


In my iPhone notes I keep a catalog of my favorite restaurants in the cities I frequent. My Hong Kong list has remained the same over the last year (Mott 32, Ronin, Liberty Private Works, Lung King Heen, Tate, Carbone…) until the past weekend when I flew to the gastronomic capital of Asia for a quick trip with the parents. I happily added three new restaurants to the precious list.

You see, my folks are not huge fans of western food, especially those that look like miniature artworks on a plate. Their idea of a good meal consists of roasted meats (plenty of them and preferably served with innards), braised abalone, sea cucumber, shad fish, and a thick almond cream with egg white for dessert. So when I announced that we will be celebrating Father’s Day at Serge et le Phoque, disappointment was written all over their faces.

Serge et le Phoque

The French restaurant was located right beside the Wanchai Market. We walked past it a couple of times before we finally found the entrance (tip: look for the row of colorful chairs). Mom kind of freaked out when she was told the restroom was outside at the parking lot next door, but as soon as we were seated and served the first dish of crispy white bait with seaweed flakes, I knew I made the right decision. Chef Frédéric Peneau, formerly of Le Chateaubriand, and Chef Christophe Pelé, formerly of La Bigarrade in Paris, served a fun and unpretentious 7-course menu starting with a frozen ceviche of oyster with coconut milk and fresh raspberry, followed by tasty frog legs in tamarind sauce. It was my first time to have yellowtail sashimi with peanuts and fresh peach, and what a revelation! 

Yellowtail sashimi, peach, peanuts, sea grape, black garlic, squid ink

Grilled scallop was served on a velvety cauliflower puree and sprinkled with matcha powder, the almost-raw-the-way-I-like-it mackerel was complemented with smoked eggplant topped with seaweed and sesame seeds, and my favorite course, the pigeon, was cooked so masterfully with its skin all crisped up yet its meat remained red, moist and tender. The gamey bird was served with blackberries and in a pool of sauce made with its own liver. Killer. 

French pigeon, beetroot, blackberry, pigeon liver sauce

Serge et le Phoque surprised us dish after dish after dish, but nothing could have prepared me for the desserts. The unassuming pot of lemon cream blew me away. It was the lightest in texture, like clouds, but packed a punch of tangy, citrusy, milky flavors. The painfully plain-looking chocolate tart was the smoothest, deepest dark chocolate dessert, and it was playfully sprinkled with you’d never guess - kiamoy crumbles!!! It was a perfect meal from start to finish, and my only complaint was the kitchen forgot my request to write a Happy Father’s Day greeting on the dessert, although I could see from my dad’s face and bulging stomach that he had a fantastic one.

Dark chocolate tart 

The next day I brought the parents to have something they both love – Cantonese cuisine. Seventh Son Restaurant is the successful attempt by the seventh son (surprise, surprise!) of the famous Fook Lam Moon family to branch out on his own.

Seventh Son Restaurant

It was comforting to be back in a traditional chinese restaurant setting with tasteful, no-frills interiors and good old charsiu – no iberico pork or ultra chic bathrooms, which I both adore, by the way. We enjoyed barbecued pork and a plate of honey glazed chicken liver before we moved on to two of the most exquisite dimsum dishes I’ve had in a while - steamed fish tripe and steamed tofu skin roll stuffed with roast duck and vegetables.

Steamed tofu skin roll stuffed with roast duck and vegetables

The goose web was cooked expertly with Japanese tofu and crisp vegetables in a rich and tasty thick brown sauce. The signature stuffed crab was pregnant with generous chunks of crab meat sautéed with sweet onions. 

Stuffed crab

I drooled over other tables’ orders of whole suckling pigs and made a mental note to come back with a bigger group, there was only so much three people with huge appetites could eat. Our desserts of malay sponge cake, almond cream with egg white, and walnut soup were among the best we’ve had. Every dish at Seventh Son was carefully prepared, the ingredients fresh, and the service exemplary. The parents were delighted. So was I.

Suckling pig

Yat Lok’s roast goose proved to be the biggest surprise of the trip. I wasn’t expecting much from the tiny Hong Kong style eatery. We arrived before noon and were seated immediately.

Colorful chopsticks at Yat Lok and my HK style milk tea

Sexy roast geese hung from the open kitchen, and beside it were buckets of used plastic spoons and chopsticks ready for dishwashing. If you do not mind this view, hurried service, cramped and communal seating, a meal at Yat Lok is a must.

Sexy geese

 My roast goose and charsiu rice combo

I don’t care if you order it with rice or noodles, just order the drumstick, not the breast part, not the chasiu nor roast pork, just the roast goose leg with skin that glistens, and meat that is flavorful and succulent and almost falls off the bone. Go early to avoid the queue that was forming when we left with happy bellies at half past noon.

Yat Lok at 12:30pm

Serge et le Phoque is located at 3 Wanchai Road, Hong Kong. Tel: +852 5465 2000.

Seventh Son is at the 5th and 6th floors of Kwan Chart Tower, 6 Tonnochy Road, Wanchai. Tel: +852 2892 2888.

Yat Lok is at 34-36 Stanley Street, Hong Kong. Tel: +852 2524 3882.

Dimsum Master Class at The Peninsula Manila

 

I love how elegantly The Peninsula dressed up its lobby for Chinese New Year.
It really is my favorite hotel lobby in Manila!

 

 

Even the flowers match the red and gold lanterns

 

 

 

 

 

 And if you look closely, you'll see there are Chinese lucky charms
hanging on the arrangement

 

 

Because it is Chinese New Year, I decided to learn a new Chinese skill - Dimsum-Making!
I joined The Peninsula's Dimsum Master Class with Dimsum Ambassador Chef Yip Wing Wah. 

 

 

Before they let us in the kitchen, they made sure we washed our hands
properly. Here's Pat washing her hands without water! Lol! :P

 

 

Each student was given an apron, a 2-layer dimsum basket, a tool for scooping up dimsum filling
(I have no idea what it's called, sorry!), and paper and pencil for taking down notes.

 

 

 

 The easiest part of the class was Step # 1: Put the dimsum paper into the bamboo basket. Lol.

 

 

 

 

Then Chef Yip showed us how to make the wrapper for har gau
(or hakaw or shrimp dumpling) 

 

 

Basically, it is mixing flour, cornstarch and boiling water in the right
proportions and kneading it a bit to make a smooth dough

 

 

Keep the dough wrapped until ready to use to prevent it from drying up.
Remember, hakaw wrappers are very sensitive things.

 

 

Chef Yip spoke in Cantonese, and Mr. Teddy Leung, Peninsula Hotels Chinese Food and
Beverage Operations Manager, translated everything into perfect English

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Master made it seem like a breeze. Maybe after 30 years
of practice, I will be as good and fast as he.

 

 

 

Each student was given the chance to show off his skills

 

 

 

 

 

 

That's me showing everyone I had none. Hahaha! :D

 

 

And then he showed us how to put in the filling

 

 

And seal the bundle

 

 

And then it was our turn

 

 

 

Of course I managed to put the wrong filling. This was the filling for chive dumpling. Lol!

 

 

 Ta-Da!!!

 

 

My very first hakaw. Not too shabby for a beginner, methinks! :)

 

 

Chef Yip's

 

 

Mine.
Obviously, I have a serious problem following instructions. 

 

 

Next, we learned to do Chive Dumplings

 

 

 

First, the wrapper. It was a totally different procedure from the shrimp version.
Fresh chives were used to create the pretty green color.

 

 

It involved pouring boiling water onto the mixture and then straining...

 

 

And mixing and kneading again with flour and cornstarch

 

 

Until you get this

 

 

 Fresh chive dumpling wrapper

 

 

It was a totally different way of wrapping, too 

 

 

This time I got the correct filling :P

 

 

Chef Yip's

 

 

Mine

 

 

And then our baskets were ready for steaming 

 

 

While waiting, we had some snacks and refreshments at the next room

 

 

 After 10 minutes...

 

 

Our baskets were ready!

 

 

My shrimp dumplings (including one with incorrect filling, lol)

 

 

My chive dumplings

 

 

We got to enjoy our own creations. Modesty aside, they were very delicious! :P
With classmates Migs Yambao, Cheryl Tiu, and Grace Lim, The Photobomber! :P 

 

 

 

 

 

We also had these sweet Chinese New Year pastries for dessert.
Hi Audrey! :)

 

 

Some bubbly to celebrate everyone's success 

 

 

Students got to bring home a mini dimsum basket and a bottle of Peninsula XO Chili Sauce

 

 

With Chef Yip and Grace

 

 

I am now a certified Dimsum Master… Master of Eating Dimsum!!!

 

 
The Peninsula Manila: Corners of Ayala and Makati Avenues, Makati City. Tel: +632 887 2888

The Peninsula Manila Website

The Peninsula Academy