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‘Culinary Class Wars’ chef Choi Hyun-seok is serving some of his famous dishes, including Jang Trio Steak (upper right) and Vongole (bottom right), for a limited time in Solaire.
Philstar.com / Kathleen A. Llemit, Photo release
MANILA, Philippines — Chef Choi Hyun-seok made sure that he has included garlic in his Vongole when he served it to his Manila diners in Solaire Entertainment City.
At last Monday night’s dinner in Finestra, Solaire’s Italian fine dining restaurant, the Korean chef assured that his take on the famous Italian clam pasta has the requisite garlic.
“Definitely Vongole with garlic,” he said to a group of reporters who interviewed him after he served his special menu to his fans last Monday night.
The emphasis on garlic is a reference to his mishap in the hit Korean cooking show “Culinary Class Wars,” where in one episode, he missed adding garlic to Vongole.
Chef Choi is the latest Korean chef to showcase his dishes in the entertainment complex in Parañaque City. Last month, Solaire tapped Korean chef Sun Kim, who featured his exquisite dishes in Meta, a two-starred Michelin restaurant in Singapore. Chef Choi comes with a selection of dishes that he also prepared in the hit Netflix show.
Apart from the Vongole with the definite inclusion of garlic, chef Choi also included Seaweed Soup, a dish popular to Korean drama viewers because the soup is a staple and a must-serve dish for any Korean who is celebrating his or her birthday. It has made countless appearances in quite a lot of K-dramas that it needs no introduction.
Chef Choi’s Seaweed Soup is particularly a new take with its the hairtail fish coated in a fried batter sitting on top of the seaweed soup.
The chef shared that he did some adjustments to its taste since he had thought of the Filipino palate.
“For the Seaweed Soup, it has a very traditional, strong Korean flavor, especially with sesame oil. So, it has a lot sesame oil when served in Korea. But for Filipinos, that's not something that you guys are familiar with, there is less of it. The flavor is very soft, and the fried fish is less salty so that it's very mild and very easy to eat,” said the chef through an interpreter.
The five-course meal also features his famous Jang Trio Steak, named after the three “Jang” sauces: gochujang (red chili paste), doenjang (soybean paste), and ganchang (soy sauce).
He also served amuse bouches he calls Beans (chickpeas) and Donut (corn with caviar).
His dessert is notably inspired by the flavors of Korean shaved ice or Bingsu. In his Solaire menu, his take comes in a matcha stick and a serving of mascarpone and white chocolate.
The dishes can be ordered a la carte for a limited time from April 11 until July 6. The full menu is available in Waterside in Solaire Resort Entertainment City, while the donut, Vongole, and Three-sauce or Jang Trio Steak are available in Finestra in Solaire Resort North in Quezon City.
RELATED: Oppa cooks: Korean chef of 2-Michelin star Meta presents modern Korean comfort food
