Tourne by Chef Sandralyn Hataway: Menu for July 16 - 31

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I have featured the opening of Tourné here in my blog a few weeks back (check it our here). They are advocates of slow food and sticking to this advocacy, they change their menu every two weeks to provide only the most mouth-watering dishes from the freshest Philippine produce from all over the country.

Two weeks back, they celebrated the start of July with an American themed menu. In the next two weeks here is their offering and I hope something catches your fancy to make you go to The Fort Strip at Taguig.

A sandwich that is filling enough for a meal. The red cabbage slaw and Russian sauce gives it a colorful twist. The battered tilapia sandwich is served with fresh cut potato and sweet potato fries, pickles and home made ketchup. - Php 278

A Vietnamese inspired sandwich. The marinated and grilled pork is wrapped in freshly made pandan (screw pine) scented tortillas served with  carrots, cucumbers and atsara (pickled papaya) - Php 288

Half a Barbecued Spring Chicken is made from young and tender poultry that is grilled to a nice golden brown. The watermelon brunoise gives a nice refreshing balance to the rich house barbecue sauce and sweet mashed sweet potatoes. - Php 608

Local Batangas Beef is made into a Persian classic. The Beef Tenderloin Kebab is served with a sauce similar to a Ratatouille (okra, eggplant, tomatoes), a fried saba banana ring and Moroccan-inspired rice using a long grain variety. - Php 488

Love Parrot Fish - both seen when snorkeling at sea (super colorful and exotic looking with colors ranging from blue, green and yellow) and cooked to perfection. White meat fillets well and has a clean taste and tender flakiness. Here it is pan-seared with a Beurre Blanc (white butter sauce), turmeric (yellow ginger) rice, baby bok choi and fresh tomatoes. - Php 368

Tarragon Spiced Chicken. Tarragon and chicken is always a good pairing. The squash risotto is made from starchy short grain rice has a piquant sweetness to it. Chayote (sayote) tops accompany the dish. - Php 398

Parpadelle are wide flat noodles (made in kitchen, fresh) and it holds up well to the rich and creamy tomato goodness of braised beef shortribs - stroganoff style. A nice familiar flavor with a twit brought by a kangkong (swamp cabbage) saute. - Php 318

Langoustine is a crustacean that is a cross between a shrimp and a lobster. Found these in local markets and so happy to source these (to cook and eat) easily in wet markets now. Made with fresh spaghetti (more fettuccine I suppose), peas, and tournéd carrots; the langoustine is meaty and the rich seafood flavor complements the cream sauce. - Php 408

Due to the overwhelming response, you can now bring a whole 8 inch "PILI PIE" to your home or in your workplace for only P728! Not too sweet and oh so crunchy, makes the classic walnut pie a run for its money. Please place your order at least 3 days in advance. Best with whipped cream or a scoop of vanilla ice cream.

For reservations, please call 5550267 or you may also get in touch with Mark de Jesus through 09267421571 or 09178275685. Tourné is now accepting bookings for small parties and corporate events.

Tourné is located at The Fort Strip, Taguig.

Email: Tourne.Restaurant@gmail.com
Telephone: +63917-8275685
Facebook: Tourne by Chef Sandralyn Hataway
Twitter: @ChefSJHTourne
Business Hours: 10 AM to 10 PM daily, extended hours on weekends
Looking forward to the next menu! :)

Let me know what you think if you get a chance to sample this week's spread. Spread the word!

Hong Kong Food Trip: Tsui Hang Village

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The game plan for this trip so we can satisfy both shopping and food cravings is to eat later than everyone else - to beat the normal meal time crowd and to put more time for strolling, malling and fitting.

So after breakfast at the hotel at 10am, off we went to Tung Chung (at Lantau Island near the airport and Disneyland) for the outlet stores. Finished there around 2 pm and instead of eating at the Food Republic (food court - where from previous experience is not that bad), we stuck to the itinerary and went back Kowloon at Tsim Sha Tsui for our next restaurant destination.

Tsui Hang Village is less than a 5 minute walk from the Jordan or Tsim Sha Tsui MTR. Found at the G/F of Miramar Mall, it is rated to have one of the best Guandong / Cantonese Food in HK. No line when we got there (plan seems to be working) but there were still some diners in the restaurant.

Interiors are newly renovated and give you the special Chinese dining experience. (Gloria Maris Greenhills? Kidding!)

  

The emblem reminded us of the peacock (Lord Shen) from Kung Fu Panda 2

One should not miss their Honey Glazed Barbecue Pork, Slat Baked Chicken and Bird's Nest Soup according to reviews but we missed the Pork & Chicken as it was not available at that time anymore (3:30 PM) as it was wiped out from the lunch hour. In some way the plan worked against us; the downside of not going the lunch or dinner hour. But despite that we ordered away from the menu. By the way, Peking Duck also available but needs to be ordered 1 day in advance - good time to also make the reservation.

Aside from the fancy card menu, there was also this sheet of paper they give you with English descriptions and prices. Comes with a pencil so you can just tick your orders. Clever way for tourists to have a pleasant ordering experience, specially when you have famished shoppers in the table. :)

We ordered Shrimp Dumplings, Pork & Vegetable Dumplings, Wok Fried Noodles with Pork & Beansprout, Suckling Pig, Fried Rice with Chicken & Squash, and Soy Chicken.

The dumplings are ok. Shrimp was plump and juicy. Pork and vegetable had clean flavor. The dumpling skins were thin enough to just hold the filling together.

Dipping sauce is Chinese Red Vinegar. Maybe the soy sauce and chili we are all used too is too overpowering for this Cantonese delicacy. But you may opt to request for some.

Served like a pizza! Hahaha these remind me of Birthday noodles served in Ongpin restaurants but in this case both sides are wok friend until crispy. The sauce is served separately. No distinct flavor but the pork and beansprout flavors really come through. The noodles soften when the sauce is added - an interesting treat which is not heavy compared to other festive noodle dishes (i.e. Pinoy Pansit Canton).

The suckling pig portion is different as it is served under a sauce of soy beans (not the fermented soy beans or tausi so it is not salty but in fact sweet). Hoisin sauce and salt is served on the side for dipping. The skin is not consistently crispy (some of us had chewy cracklings) but mine was crisp enough. It was not oily and the meat was tender. Do not bite in directly, they serve it with some bones still. Could have been a good touch if they served it off the bone.

A good break from the "Yang Chow" rice we always have. Though still yellow from the egg, the rice has nice chunks of chicken and pumpkin which is very flavorful. Biting into the squash gives a nice burst of sweetness to your mouth and counterbalances the richness of the dishes. This was half an order (yes they have half portions and prices) but we ended up ordering another anyway. Stop pretending girls! ;)

Beautiful presentation for the Soy Chicken - butterflied and nicely cut-up into serving portions. The chicken had nice coloration from poaching and roasting where the juices and natural oils have flowed into the plate.

Dipping sauce is oil, ginger and spring onions - ala Hainanese Chicken but more flavorful. Had to go back for more and more!

Went for the head - I love icky food things! Hahaha The cock's comb and skin not as tender as I expected so did not bother to finish it. But this was the dish of the meal.

Everyone was hungry so the dishes came in and out, like that.

Similar to the scheme when we ate at Under Bridge Spicy Crab (read the post), tea charges per person even if you do not drink the tea! hahaha


Nice tea- Jasmine! Jing it's for you! :)

Eat for around HK$ 150 per person or roughly PHP 800 which is reasonable for a rated restaurant in the metro.

Food:        3/5 - For Filipinos, maybe this is something too simple. Order the bestsellers as suggested above (call in advance if you can) and you should have a good lunch or dinner.
Service:     3.5/5 - The paper checklist and the Chef's Recommendations in the menu made it easier. The Front of House manager speaks English. Service was kind of slow considering it was not a busy hour.
Ambiance: 4/5 - Nice place to dine and relax without the feeling of being hurried (specially after hours of walking and shopping)
Price:        4/5 - Portions are priced accordingly. Half orders for some dishes make it worth what it costs.

The restaurant has two locations:
Tsim Sha Tsui Main Branch
G/F, Miramar Shopping Centre,
132 Nathan Road, Tsim Sha Tsui, Kowloon, Hong Kong
Tel: (852) 2376 2882
Opening Hours:
11:30am-11:30pm (Mon-Sat)
10:30am-11:30pm (Sun & Public Holiday)

Central Branch 
2/F, New World Tower,
16-18 Queen's Road, Central, Hong Kong
Tel: (852) 2524 2012
Opening Hours:
11:30am-11:30pm (Mon-Sat)
10:30am-11:30pm (Sun & Public Holiday)

Whew! Not even half-way through the HK food chronicles! But hope you are enjoying it the same way I'm sharing the experience! Hope you can eat here soon! :)

Hong Kong Food Trip: Delicious Kitchen

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Impulse Hong Kong trip with friends from marketing with two things in mind - SHOP and EAT! :) It was tagged as Project Independence Day among us since we were flying back on June 12 which is the Philippine Independence Day!

Whenever in HK, I just ate wherever my feet would stop when my tummy starts growling (but with a rule of no fastfood... whenever we can!). But this time we all had to eat at the best culinary destinations in HK based on reviews by friends, friends of friends, and online resources. We even devoted a pre-production meeting to map out the optimal itinerary to bridge food, shopping and night out in the 3 days we were going to be there. Well, except for Criselle who was a HK virgin who was looking forward to the touristy destinations (which you will later find out in my other posts, had an Epiphany of sorts).

Upon landing in HK last Friday, July 9, we were all hungry after checking in the hotel. First stop was Delicious Kitchen which our friend Ivy was super raving about. She told us that one of our suppliers and friend, Stephen first ate there when he was 16 years old (decades ago... hihihi).

Of course Delicious Kitchen is now more modern but still a quaint little unassuming place. After a quick 10 minute walk from the hotel, we have reached the resto and we're very happy that it's air conditioned. Contrary to what reviews say, no line on Friday lunch time so double yay for us!

Nifty place with the pictures of their best sellers posted outside.

And it has English translations. No second guessing. Chili prawns was also tagged as a must try.

They now even accept credit cards - Citibank Promo: Free Mashed Red Bean Pancake for every HK$ 1,000 (hindi umabot ang bill namin haha)

People said one should get their famous Pork Rib Vegetable Rice, Beef Tendon and Hainan Chicken. But still we browsed through the menu to see what else they had to offer.

Teejae, Jo, Criselle, me and Tish - ready to fight!

Jing, Jena and Allie - and of course Coke to complete the meal!

You may need to call for reservations.

Individual bowls at reasonable prices. Platters for sharing also available. More pictures and other selection found in the menu.

Everyone had something different so that everyone can sample something from the Delicious Kitchen.


Tish had Nanking Beef Vegetable Rice. Beef was tender but a bit fatty (most probably they used Oyster Blade or Brisket cut which has fat layers in between the meat. Slightly sweet with the flavors of soy and anise. Something familiar which everyone will enjoy.

Jing ordered the Delicious Chicken - golden fried chicken which had very juicy and tasty meat and a crispy skin. Imagine your Max's chicken with crisper skin! Yum.

It's served with a 5-spice salt (salt with 5-spice powder which gives it Chinese notes of clove, cinnamon, star anise). Found it too salty though when sprinkled, so it's just delicious as it is.

Jo had the famous Pork Rib Vegetable Rice. Seemed like ordinary  fried pork chop when it arrived but the reddish brown glaze is what gave it it's distinct flavor. Jo found it a bit overpowering but over-all definitely a must-try in the restaurant.



Sweet and salty, it was the perfect complement to the tender slightly fatty pork chop (boneless and skinless though). The flavors reminded me of pork asado or char siu (Chinese Barbecue). There is Double Pork Rib available which I feel is good for sharing.

 

Teejae had the Chicken Vegetable Rice. It does not really say Hainan Chicken in the menu but we figured that was it. Hahaha what we did not expect is that the chicken is served cold with the hot bowl of rice. If you decide to try it, just be ready for that temperature difference.

Highlight the contrast in temperature in flavor with chili sauce.

The chicken is succulent with delicate flavors of ginger and spring onion. Despite being poached in wine and cooled down, it has retained its tenderness and created a gelatinous texture on the skin (which I love).

Speaking of gelatinous textures, I ordered the Beef Tendon which came in a sweet soy-anise sauce similar to the Nanking Beef. I love eating jelly and grizzly weird things from animals so I was sooo excited! Tendon is litid in Tagalog which are the connective ligaments in the cow.

And the steaming vegetable rice is also something special. It's cooked in flavorful broth (Chicken I presume) and has this wonderful aroma. The fat from the cooking broth also kept each grain separated. Wom boc (Chinese pechay) was also cooked into it.

Each piece of tendon was like savory jello which just melts in your mouth. I can just imagine how many hours these were cooked to reach this state of tenderness. Let us not count cholesterol now! :)

Burp!

That was a good opening lunch to a wonderful food escapade in Hong Kong!

Delicious Kitchen has many branches in HK but this one is found near Causeway Bay (streets behind Sogo Department Store).

Food:        4/5 - Really interesting flavors. Just plan out your orders so that you do not pile up rich dishes on top of each other
Service:     4/5 - Fast service. One English speaking person in the staff, but over-all manageable.
Ambiance: 4/5 - No frills. Good airconditioning (clothes may smell like pork rib though) and not too cramped.
Price:        4/5 - Single rice bowl is at HK$40 average. Not bad and it will leave you stuffed and charged for walking all day in the streets of HongKong.

Delicious Kitchen lives up to its long standing history and it's name.

Watch out for the continuation of this food trip in the next posts. Xie xie! :)

*some photos courtesy of Allie and Teejae