Marriott Hotel Manila’s new Cantonese restaurant is heating up the dining scene.
Chinese food is a necessary staple for the Filipino market, ranging from quick-service snacks to fine dining lauriat feasts. However, with the predominance of this cuisine in the dining scene, how does one stand out and create something unique for today’s discerning diner? Man Ho, Marriott Hotel Manila’s newest Cantonese restaurant, may have the perfect answer to this question with the experienced and passionate Chef Law Wui Wing alongside his equally experienced culinary team paired with classic and traditional Hong Kong-style cuisine that only uses the best ingredients to elevate every dish into a dining experience like no other.
While Man Ho aims to provide authenticity in its Chinese food preparation, it also anticipates attracting modern food connoisseurs by incorporating contemporary design touches to its otherwise elegant Chinese-inspired interiors. Guests will be welcomed by an elegant ambiance of high ceilings, intricate wood carving details, and floor-to-ceiling windows giving a lush view of the golf course. It has a total of 140 seats and features 6 private dining rooms that can hold from 6 – 24 persons. Two private dining rooms can be combined for a larger intimate gathering, with each one adorned with decorative artifacts reflective of the dynasty the rooms are named after.
CREATING A CANTONESE MENU
Man Ho’s menu focuses on very traditional Hong Kong-style cuisine — developed after insights and research on customer dining preferences, Marriott Hotel Manila Director for Food and Beverage Brendan Mahoney explained. The result of this is the soon to open Man Ho Cantonese Restaurant. Starting November 29 at 6pm, Man Ho will be serving lunch and dinner for the hungry public.
Customers can choose familiar Cantonese dishes such as Deep Fried Boneless Chicken “Japanese style”, Fried Rice with Chicken and Salted Fish, Beef Fillet and Black Fungus with Ginger and Leeks, Sautéed Porcini Mushrooms, and Braised Seafood Soup with Caviar.
In addition, they can try the more unusual ones such as the Deep Fried Bean Curd with Spicy Salt, Marinated Fungus with Black Vinegar, the Smoked Duck Breast with Mango and the ever-popular Roasted Peking Duck with Chinese pancakes. With Chef Law at the helm, these dishes are guaranteed to be as scrumptious as they sound.
One of the items in Man Ho’s menu is a rarity in Manila: roast goose with plum sauce. Law is especially proud of the way they prepare this Hong Kong specialty. “We stuff the goose with Chinese herbs,” he says. “Then we put it in front of a fan for about 10 hours so that the skin will be very dry before we put it in the oven.” The technique makes the goose’s skin very crispy. But it’s more than just the crisp, mahogany colored skin that makes the roast goose so appealing. Underneath the skin is a very thin layer of fat that adds texture and gives the goose a very sensuous flavor.
Another must try are the dim sum specialties prepared by Du Wen Bo, a specially trained chef that previously worked at Beijing Marriott Hotel City Wall and was a well-known dim sum chef in town. The dumplings are cooked only upon order and are served steaming hot with chili bean sauce. Chef Law reveals that Man Ho will have special dim sum recommendations on weekends that families and large groups can enjoy.
Desserts are also something to look forward to, with Chef Felino Afable creating Chinese-inspired western dessert plates, such as his Jasmine Tea Lava Cake with Chocolate Gelato. Of course, other Cantonese classics like the buchi will also be available.
EXPERIENCE AND QUALITY
“We have found the right guy,” Marriott Hotel Manila General Manager Bruce Winton exclaims about Chef Law. “With his team, they have 250 years of experience combined.” Chef Law has already carved his own mark since he arrived in Manila in 2014, with Chinese banquets becoming a more popular choice at the Marriott Grand Ballroom. His menu has included live abalone from Hong Kong, Alaskan king crabs weighing five kilos each, braised bird’s nest in a broth simmered with Chinese ham for at least five hours, and buchi stuffed with Ferrero Rocher chocolate prepared for weddings, birthdays, corporate events and other festive occasions.
A native of Hong Kong, Law has been cooking in Chinese kitchens since he was 15 years old. After working in some of the best restaurants in Hong Kong and Japan, he became executive Chinese chef at the JW Marriott Hotel in Shanghai, the Pearl Restaurant at the Beijing Marriott Hotel City Wall and at the Marriott China Hotel in Guangzhou. The Man Ho restaurant he opened in Shanghai was named one of the top 10 Cantonese restaurants for three consecutive years by Shanghai Modern Weekly.
“I always make sure of the freshness of the ingredients,” says Law. He imports many of the seafood such as the king prawns and crabs from Hong Kong. On his days off, he goes to Chinatown to check what’s available. One of the ingredients he buys there are the almonds, which he grinds down to dust to make his authentic almond cream dessert.
Also imported from China are the pigeons and suckling pigs. The suckling pigs come from Hunan province, where pigs of very good quality are raised, says Law. “I always talk to the guests because I’m the one who knows everything about the Chinese food we serve,” says Chef Law. “I make sure they’re happy. If they’re happy, then I’m happy.”
Chef Law has been quite adamant about only using the best ingredients, whether it is sourced locally or from Hong Kong or China, such as the wild pink garoupa that yields a silken texture when poached or whole fish that has to weigh at least 600 grams for it to be served. Crab and fish to be served during the day have to delivered fresh and alive in the morning, kept in a fish tank in the kitchen. “Guests may not know how to prepare the food, but they know when it is quality ingredients served to them.”
For a truly unique Cantonese dining experience, be sure to visit Man Ho at the new West Wing of Marriott Hotel Manila.
Man Ho Cantonese Restaurant
West Wing, Marriott Hotel Manila
Tel. (02) 988-9999
Facebook Account: MarriottManila
Twitter @marriottmanila
Instagram @manilamarriott
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