There is more to Jasmine than dimsum
It has added 30 dishes to its menu, plus cocktails
WHILE New World Makati Hotel’s Chinese restaurant Jasmine has been an institution for its eat-all-you-can dimsum lunch and dinner promotion, its a la carte menu is still worthy of mention. During a tasting last week, Jasmine showed off its new selections, numbering over 30.
Of course, we’re only human, so for the tasting last week, Jasmine paired down the samples to just over 13 dishes. The Filipino chefs at Jasmine pulled out all the stops with seafood and other luxurious ingredients.
The meal opened with a truffled duck dumpling, wrapped in a silky soft skin, and it was surprisingly subtle. A Soft-Shell Crab with mango salsa encased in a bao was satisfying, as was the Deep-fried Crab Claw, an easy and elegant way to eat crab claws (with the bonus of being stuffed with other seafood).
We do note that the new menu items lean towards fried dishes: there was a crispy Shrimp Ball, Deep-fried Spareribs, Crispy Stuffed Eggplant, and Deep-fried Golden Mushrooms. Of these, we’d gladly partake of the golden mushrooms and the spareribs again (and they go so well together). A rather unusual dish was the beef tenderloin in a light purple taro sauce. Though we didn’t like the taro, the rather strange sauce made a creamy counterpoint to the aggressive beef. We especially liked the Fried Prawns Peking-style, and the Scallops with Broccoli and XO sauce, because of their freshness and subtlety.
The meal ended with E-fu noodle with spicy ma po tofu and seafood and a seafood fried rice, which were certainly filling.
Other dishes to look forward to (which were not presented at the tasting) include Sichuan-style Poached Beef Tenderloin with Chinese cabbage and bok choy, Sliced Chicken Black Pepper Sauce, and Taiwanese-style Chicken in Claypot.
CHINESE-INSPIRED COCKTAILS
Now there’s something completely new on the restaurant’s menu: cocktails by Jasmine.
The normally staid restaurant is taking a walk on the wild side with Chinese-inspired cocktails. That day, they brought out of Jasmine Bloom (Christian Drouin gin, Mancino Bianco vermouth, jasmine tea, lime juice, egg white and honey), Yin Yang (Martin Miller’s gin, elderflower cordial, chili, egg white, lemon juice and rose buds tea syrup), Lapsang Cooler (Pierre Ferrand 1840 cognac, black tea, basil, ginger, lemon juice and sugar syrup), and Xi?ng M?o Drop (That Boutique-y Rum Signature Blend rum, lemongrass, fresh mint, lime juice and tieguanyin tea syrup).
We tried the Yin Yang, with a single rose bud floating on top of the egg white foam. It tasted refined and delicate — until the chili touches your tongue. Then you just feel refined, delicate, and very, very awake, and the spice lingers on your lips. This will probably save you from the inevitable nap one might have to take after all that food.
For reservations, visit https://bit.ly/NWJasmineReservation, call 8811-6888 ext. 3679, e-mail fbreservations.manila@newworldhotels.com, or Viber/ Whatsapp via 0917-888-4194. — Joseph L. Garcia
