High Street Cafe
JULY
16, 2016
We
arrived at the place at around 11:40 am lunch time. The living chandelier
welcomes you as you enter the Café. We were warmly ushered to our table in a
plush and stunning setting that has an expansive marble-top open kitchen and a
commanding luxurious view of the place.
The restaurant interior has spherical light fixtures, upscale and
contemporary décor, almost full-length glass windows creating an elegant and
open dining space.
Other
than the warm personalized service they are known for and the comfortable
dining setting, there are many reasons to make Shangri-la your home away from
home, an interim abode whether for dwelling of your weary souls or a gustatory
escape from the usual. To me, it is
really the food that will speak straight to my heart and will get me towed in
time and again.
High
Street Café blends modern European, Chinese, Japanese cuisine with Asian
flavors to surprise even the most sophisticated palates. The menu is carefully created by Executive
Chef Joris Rycken. Their high standards
in the kitchen, where they make everything from scratch, translate into
excellent food in the dining room.
 |
| Quezo de Bola & Hamon |
Textures
of cheese, glazed ham and gelee, asparagus. A
dish inspired by Massimo Bottura. It’s a
great starter since the sharpness of the cheese jolts your palate to wake up,
together with the altering textures from the glazed ham bits and crunch of
fresh asparagus creating a quiet tremble in the mouth. It opened up my taste for what’s to come.
Chef’s
Table is a Netflix original docu-series that goes inside the lives and kitchens
of the world’s most renowned international chefs. I caught one episode while having a 3 day
vacation in Batanes last May and nothing but cavernous desires filled me while
watching that episode. Anything that
replicates close to his perspective is already a slice of culinary heaven. High Street Café did not disappoint and
stirred that inclination with the first dish.
 |
| Pan Seared U,S Scallops |
Porcini
Mushroom Marmalade, Endive, Madeira-Mirin Glaze. Sweet
smokiness wafted under my nose as the plate rested before me. The scallops were beautifully seared on the
outside, showing blistered marks, and continuity from the opener is obvious
from the porcini mushroom marmalade’s piercing taste. The scallop, which is seafood-flavored
marshmallow, retained its gentle, slightly chewy yet soft state
and natural sweetness but prickled with smoked woodsy flavor.
The
first two dishes were washed down with a glass of Riesling.
Every
single component on the plate even the translucent endive, velvety, tender,
flavor-ridden, and the mirin glaze are to be remembered. I savored every bite, not wanting time to go
any faster.
 |
| Duo of Duck |
Duo
of Duck dish is an assembly of Pan Seared Foie Gras over Teriyaki Eggplant,
Pickled Pears, Nori-Tempura Crunch and their Pan-Roasted Duck Breast.
The
duck breast had the fair layer of fat and lean red meat, outlined by faint
crispy skin. Most would like their duck
breast medium-rare but the doneness of medium last night was simply perfect for
me. Duck has so much character and the
addition of the bed of pumpkin puree, charred leaks and spiced honey glaze
pulled it all together. The presence of
the radish was required since it cut the richness somewhat and refreshed my
mouth.
Their
pan-seared foie gras will automatically draw you upon sight. This is their mouth watering specialty and
almost needs no explanation. I just wish
the pickled pears were a tad bit sweeter or tangier to counterbalance but this
is easily a favorite.
 |
| Entrees accompanied by Merlot |
Certified
Angus Beef with Celeriac Puree, Mustard Seeds, Ginger Tamarind Sauce.
Linger
long after dinner for the Café’s dessert repertoire, which includes a Flourless
Chocolate Cake with Homemade Pistachio Ice Cream, their dessert dish called
Apple, Apple, Apple!, which is made of caramelized apples, calvados cream,
apple gelee, cinnamon puff pastry, and their Taleggio which is homemade apricot
and cherry mostarda. It was a sweet cap
of the night matched with my TWG Moroccan Mint Tea.
Executive
Chef Joris takes modern European cuisine, its culinary techniques and Asian
flairs and ingredients to bold, intriguing directions. The dishes showed passion, talent and
imagination and have been rightfully roofed under a restaurant dubbed High
Street Cafe, taking from the team’s burning passion and desire to create new
experiences through food.
