ASIAN ODYSSEY: A taste of travel at Days Hotel Iloilo

Salad and appetizer stations

Diners will take pleasure in a variety of cuisine that tickle the palate as The Promenade offers not one nor two but five new buffet spreads for its weekday lunch “smorgasbord”. Living up to its name, the Asian Odyssey buffet series at Days Hotel Iloilo, offers a gastronomic voyage featuring the exciting flavors of Asia.

Your food journey starts with the most sumptuous Japanese lunch buffet in town every Monday. Enjoy the tofu-miso soup with appetizers like gyoza (Japanese-style dumplings), and tsukune (meat balls) in teriyaki sauce, on the side. Satisfy your cravings for sushi, freshly-made tempura and other Japanese specialties. Be sure to try the Japanese-inspired desserts and sweets before you say “sayonara”.

Tuesdays let you appreciate the savory flavors and taste of true Korea. Whet your appetite with the Korean version of dumplings called mandu and of course - kimchi! Also try one of the most popular Korean noodle dishes called chapchae. The highlight of the buffet is the bulgogi cooking station where diners can mix-and-match meat (pork, beef, chicken or fish fillet) and assorted sauces for a Korean BBQ experience. Savor it more with bokkeumbap (kimchi rice).

How about dim sum on Wednesdays? Take your pick from sio mai, sio pao, chicken feet, pork spareribs and fried dumplings, among others. Indulge in delectable Chinese specialties like chicken in lemon sauce, Shanghai braised beef, Hainanese chicken and Yangchow fried rice, among others.

Feast on your favorite Filipino dishes with a twist every Thursday. Showcasing dishes and delicacies with a taste of home, how about some local soups like inubaran or linagpang nga manok for starters? Add more local flavors with chicken skin chicharon , pritong lumpia and apan-apan (Ilonggo-style adobong kangkong). There’s also Pork binago-ongan, lechon kawali, sinugba nga isda and a lot more. You’ll definitely love the Ihaw-Ihaw cooking station with lots of barbecue - pork, chicken, beef and chicken liver, among others. Finish it with local fruits, native sweets and halo-halo

And on Fridays, create your own stir fry and lavish on the flavors of Mongolia. With around 25 ingredients on display, you get to choose from the noodles, vegetables, meat, spices and sauces that suit your taste! But don’t forget the soups, salads, appetizers, main courses and desserts.

With Asian Odyssey, your week long gastronomic journey begins with the first bite!

Asian Odyssey happens every weekday from 11am to 2pm at The Promenade at Days Hotel Iloilo, 4th Level of The Atrium. For reservations, please call 033-337-3297.

(as published on The Daily Guardian)

Ultimate Ilonggo Favorite: KBL Kadyos, Baboy, Langka

K.B.L. or Kadyos, Baboy, Langka is the ultimate favorite dish of most Ilonggos. It is also one of the most missed native dishes as kadyos and the souring ingredient, batwan , are hard to find when outside of the Ilonggo region. Basically, it is boiled/stewed pork dish owing its "deliciousness" to the combination of the soft and tender pork, the tamed sourness of batwan and the malinamnam na sabaw . One of the "secrets" of the malinamnamn na sabaw , is the fact that the pork, whether just the plain meat or pata (hocks) are first grilled or broiled. This gives the broth a rather smoky taste that makes it more appetizing.. Learn how to make the Ilonggo dish KBL (Kadyos, Baboy, at Langka) with the recipe below. Ingredients 1 kilo Pata (pork hocks) or pork cubes, GRILLED and sliced into bite size pieces 1 unripe Jack fruit, cubed 2 cups pigeon pea (kadyos) 6-8 pieces batwan fruit (or tamarind powder) 1 piece pork broth cube (

An Ilonggo favorite - Valenciana

Found in almost all occasions like fiesta, birthdays, reunions and others, Ilonggos really love valenciana because most if not all have grown accustomed of having it in special gatherings at home. A complete " go, grow and glow " dish because it has the carbohydrates, protein and vitamins and minerals in just one spoonful, Valenciana is really an " occasional dish ". Here's the recipe for Valenciana

Takway

The gabi (taro) is just one of those plants which is edible from "roots to tops". The most popular of which is the tuber part which is used in a variety of dishes and mostly in combination with coconut milk. Its leaves, of course, is the main ingredient of a Bicol specialty, laing . It is dried then chopped and sauteed with other ingredients including, again, coconut milk. Then there is takway . The local term for its tendrils/runner, that part which is torn between being a stem or a root for it neither grows upwards nor downwards - it grows sideways . Scraped off of its outer skin, takway is often a key ingredient in vegetable dishes like laswa and the gabi tuber with coconut milk and local snails know as bago-ngon . It is also popular when cooked adobo style with guinamos , the local bago-ong . It is very popular in the region that even big supermarkets sell takway in style - cleaned and plastic wrapped in styro with some additions to make it easier to prepare.

Batwan

Ilonggos know batwan or batuan by heart as the fruit is almost endemic to the Western Visayas. Its scientific name is Garcinia binucao, derived from the Tagalog name for the fruit, binukaw. It is a large green fruit with large seeds and its a favorite souring ingredient in most Ilonggo dishes especially KBL or kadyos, baboy, langka and the Ilonggo-style paksiw known as "pinamalhan". It is characterized by a tamed sourness compared to tamarind and kamias . The fruit is sold by pieces or kilo in wet markets and even big grocery stores. Batwan is the preferred souring ingredients for the Ilonggo favorite- KBL. The photo shows boiled batwan with skin and without skin (right) A favorite riddle when we were young - "Among the many fruits in the forest, but one (batuan) is the best. What is it?"

A native (foods) welcome in Guimaras

Even after having breakfast less than an hour that time, we couldn't say no to this lot of native delciacies that welcomed us in Guimaras. First and foremost, Guimaras best known produce is their sweet mango famous almost worldwide. And it comes with it's best partner, ibos. This brown baye-baye variety is made from toasted rice thus giving it a more disctinct flavour compared to it's more "caucasian" cousin. I like the one wrapped in banana leaves compared with the one in plastic for it gives it a more native feel. So when you're in Guimaras, be sure to check out the markets for these native delicacies that can make your trip more gastronomically satisfying.

FLAVOURS OF ILOILO

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