Hotel buffet hack: How to elevate an all-you-can-eat experience

Photos by JC Cailles Lo 

It’s hard to admit that I am aging and just earnestly hoping my body is doing it gracefully. Unlike my younger years when I could eat at least five full mountainous plates in a hotel buffet, it is no longer the case. This new era has come when I need to be more selective with food choices, choosing quality over quantity, but still not sacrificing the value of what I’ve paid for. I am also in that phase where I absolutely love exploring tasting and set menus, highly influenced by the mouthwatering posts shared by dear members of the Fine Dining Club Philippines Facebook group.

After being out of the buffet scene for a long time, I decided to give it another go. My choice was Okada’s Medley restaurant where they serve lobsters on Fridays and weekends. I also learned about their new cheese room launched last November 2023 and wanted to see the selections.

This time, I had a different game plan. I won’t have a plate full of salmon sashimi and maki per usual, or heaps of fried rice and dim sum. Would it still be possible to have an elevated buffet experience at present? In this day and age, can buffets still have a luxurious offering for diners? My personal challenge is to recreate a date-worthy set menu based on what is available on the buffet spread with no special requests or handling.

Amuse-bouche. JC Cailles Lo

I started with amuse-bouche, also known as bite-sized appetizers. This is usually served at the beginning of a multi-course menu and showcases the signature cooking style of the chef. I scanned through the bountiful spread of Medley restaurant and found ready-made appetizers on display. I had a trio of Seared Tuna, Turkey Cream Cheese Roulade, and Chicken Galantine.

I then went to the bread station and carefully selected what to include in my bread course. I had a dinner bun, a sourdough slice, and country bread paired with butter, salmon, and artichoke mousse.

First savory course. JC Cailles Lo 

For my first savory course, I went to the salad station and assembled some greens, sliced pomelos, cooked shrimp, garlic confit, and beetroot slices. Presenting: My Thai Shrimp Pomelo dish.

 Second savory course. JC Cailles Lo 

For the second course, I was inspired by the super fresh lobsters I saw on the cold station and asked them to steam it lightly. I went to the pasta station and asked the chef to cook Aglio Olio Spaghetti for me. Back on my table, I quickly sliced the lobster meat into pieces and topped it on my pasta. There we have it, a very simple Lobster Pasta loosely inspired by the masterpiece of the Michelin star restaurant Joel Robuchon. This was divine and I was tempted to have a second serving.

Time for a palate cleanser. In multi-course menus, this is typically served before the mains with the intent to neutralize one’s taste buds. Think of it as preparing our senses for the highlight dish so we can fully appreciate it. I went to the dessert station, picked one of the fruits on a stick, and poured a raspberry vinaigrette on it. I think I did justice with this one.

Main course. JC Cailles Lo 

For my much-awaited main course, I went to the cold station to have some shrimp steamed for me and went to the carving station to get a generous piece of steak. I passed by the pickled vegetable section and got some asparagus. I also saw a ready-made herbed creamy sauce and put some on the sauce plate. On my dining table, I peeled the shrimp, topped it on my medium steak, put some veggies on the side, poured the sauce, and voila! I did my own Surf and Turf. I also paired this with a glass of Cabernet Sauvignon to elevate my dinner. Wines are included on this buffet so might as well have it in moderation.

 Dessert cheese course. JC Cailles Lo 

A French set menu normally has an option to add a cheese course as one of the desserts. I was impressed by Medley’s cheese room which boasts of at least 50 different international cheeses, charcuteries, dried and fresh fruits, and a lot of condiments. I thoroughly enjoyed the process of choosing and made sure I would have a combination of soft and hard cheeses.

Dessert course. JC Cailles Lo 

For my second dessert, I opted for a ready-made creation and it was called the Dark Chocolate Crunch. A smooth chocolate mousse as the base, topped with chocolate crumble, cream, and chocolate shard. This was good.

Petit fours. JC Cailles Lo 

And last, the petit fours or also called mignardises. The literal translation of this is "a small oven" and usually meant to pair with coffee or tea to end the meal. I picked colorful mini-desserts for my finale composed of a small ube cake, a chocolate tart, and a fruit mousse cake.

With a regular price of P3,788 nett, plus several discount opportunities for some credit card holders and hotel guests, the meal that I had was fantastic. I realized that in most cases, it might only need a little creativity and resourcefulness to achieve a high-quality and elevated dining experience. Will it beat a 3-Michelin Star restaurant experience? Probably not. But I am confident that what I created can match some 5-star hotel sit-down banquet or a luxury cruise ship restaurant.  At the end of the day, it’s all about managing one's expectations and making the best of what we have.

The buffet restaurants can also play a huge role when it comes to innovation. Why not create more impressive dishes cooked or prepared à la minute for diners? What about offering Thai-style crab fried rice just by topping generous chunks of readily available crab meat from the chilled section on the standard fried rice? Or if the buffet restaurant has foie gras, why not have an option to add it to the adobo? Or better yet, just simply share to diners the list of exciting possibilities that they can do from the spread. 

Here's to making our dining experiences much more satisfying than what it used to be.