CHINESE cuisine has become a favorite for many of us, especially when celebrating birthdays and other milestones. Who doesn’t relish a succulent Peking duck, its crispy skin wrapped in thin pancakes with slivers of cucumber and leeks topped with plum sauce? Or even just start one’s meal with authentic flavors of dim sum favorites, like pork siomai or hakaw?
For many Quezon City residents such as myself, one previously had to go all the way to Greenhills in San Juan, or Chinatown in Manila to partake of comforting Chinese delights for our special occasions. Fortunately, the need for an authentic Cantonese restaurant in my neck of the woods has been met with the recent opening of Pin Wei (“good taste”) at the Seda Hotel in Vertis North.
At its helm is Executive Chinese Chef Chen Hann Furn, formerly of Tin Hau, one of the most popular and premier Chinese restaurants in the Metro when Mandarin Oriental Manila was still around.
At a recent tasting event, Chef Chen wowed us diners with specialties that he has been known for, like dim sum items and hand-pulled noodle dishes. There is also a wide array of barbecued meats, seafood and beef, all paired with the finest collection of teas. There is definitely something for everybody, yes, even the ever-popular Pinoy favorite, Sweet and Sour Pork.
(Chef Chen pointed out that this dish appears to have a following only in the Philippines, but not in Indonesia, Singapore or Dubai where he has also worked. Well, the Pinoy palate certainly is different, as it has been influenced by so many other foreign cuisines from Spain, America and Latin-America.)
My favorite so far is Chef Chen’s Xiao Long Bao, with its delicate wrapper enfolding a delicious medley of pork and shrimp, swimming lightly in a warm deeply comforting broth. I have eaten so many xiao long bao in my lifetime, but in our home shores, I can proclaim Chef Chen’s to be truly one of the most authentic and most delicious I’ve tasted. (It’s a shame that only one piece is offered as part of the Deluxe Dimsum Basket; it can stand on its own merits and should be offered in four to six pieces for more people in a dining party to enjoy.)
The restaurant also features other popular dim sums including flavorsome siomai combinations of caviar tobiko, baby abalone, scallops and shrimps. There is also a carrot-shaped glutinous dumpling with black pepper minced beef, and the steamed buns with minced duck in oyster sauce shaped and colored to look like a large mushroom. I was also enamored by a steamed bun with creamy and luscious salted egg yolk. Another dish I particularly relished is the Steamed Live Garoupa with Scallions in Superior Sauce, Hong Kong Style for the simplicity of ingredients and the freshness of the fish.
Of course, for special occasions, Pin Wei’s Beijing Duck with Chinese Pancakes and Crispy Roasted Suckling Pig are likely to be the festive centerpieces of any meal. The tender, but firm, pancakes beautifully contrast with the duck’s crispy skin and moist slivers of meat smeared with homemade hoisin sauce.
Seda Hotel tries to source most of its ingredients locally so the homegrown duck is not as fatty, and its meat firmer. Roasted in the remarkable way that Chef Chen has used over the years, the dish still delivers the tastiest flavor profiles we have come to love.
The suckling pig’s entire skin, on the other hand, has the crunch of lechon macao, but not so oily. The pig is slowly but meticulously roasted for four hours, so diners must give the restaurant advanced notice if they are ordering it.
Giving our meal a touch of whimsy is the Deep-Fried Prawns with Mayonnaise and Golden Corn Flakes. I thought this was a delight because the prawn had heft, but its meat still tender despite the frying.
For rice choices, Pin Wei has Wok-Fried Fragrant Rice, Yang Chow Style; and Wok-Fried Rice with Minced Chicken and Salted Fish, the latter being my preference.
Until the end of November, diners can enjoy a dim sum buffet every Sunday lunchtime. Hopefully, they extend this promo as I will certainly be first in line for it.
The 130-seat restaurant is designed in a more modern ethos, so there will be none of the garish red tones and lacquered wood furniture common in most Chinese restaurants. Natural lighting from floor-to-ceiling windows are easily deflected by the bleached wooden panels and the streamlined seats with woven rattan backs.
At night, warm lighting illuminates the second floor restaurant, easily visible through glass walls from Ayala Malls Vertis North. The atmosphere is comfortably warm and inviting, complementing the interiors of the hotel.
What’s best about the Pin Wei is that diners don’t have to spend a fortune to get a taste of Chef Chen’s genius. The restaurant spells value-for-money with its well-executed dishes and authentic flavors, matched with fine service at reasonable prices. And that, to me, is extremely in “good taste.”
Pin Wei is on the second floor of Seda Vertis North, Quezon City. For inquiries, call 7739-8888.