For the very first time, Tsinoy Foodies got invited to a Chinese New Year celebration so we were very excited!  Knowing that Manila Pavilion (formerly Waterfront Hotel Manila) has a lot of festivities in store to welcome the year of the Fire Rooster 2017, shobe and I  arrived there at around 6 pm last January 28, 2017.

At around 7 pm, it was announced that the Chinese New Year program is about to start.  Manila Pavilion Hotel's New General Manager, Mr. Franz V. Eichenauer, CHA, together with his family graced the event. 

And soon, the crowd gathered outside to...  



It was a fun experience watching the hearing the loud beat of the drums accompanied by the lion and dragon dance.  But, what made everyone so enthusiastic and alert in picking up the lucky coins and candies being tossed.  While, I was taking a photo, I got hit on the head by a coin... Is that lucky?

Salad Stations
While the Lion and Dragon proceeded to each facility of the hotel, shobe and I proceeded Season's Cafe for our Chinese New Year buffet.  While the usual rate for the buffet at Season's Cafe is usually at 1,200 php nett.  For this one night only, they reduced their rate to 888 php net and the spread is mainly Chinese selections.

Since this is our first time at Season's Cafe, we wanted to try as much of their offerings.

We skipped the salad stations and headed more on the dishes that involved more preparation and culinary skills.

Soup Station

Hot and Sour Soup

To warm up our tummy, we began with the Soup Station.  There were 2 selections: Hot and Sour Soup and Egg Drop Soup.  Shobe (who doesn't like spicy foods) loved the Hot and Sour Soup which was not spicy at all.  I personally, would have enjoyed it spicier though.

Bread Station
Shobe was very happy with their freshly baked pastries so we bought some Ube Ensaymada, Ensaymada and Cinnamon Roll for the family from the Patisserie before heading home.  They loved them!

Cheese and Cold Cuts Station

Being cheese and nut lovers, shobe and I were thrilled with their cheese and nuts selections.  They even have pistachios available which is not usually offered in other buffets because it is expensive.  Since we're used to the typical Chinese cold cuts, we didn't try those anymore.

Both the Soy Chicken and Hainanese Chicken (see IG photo here) is a must try because they are both so soft, moist and delivers an almost melt-in-your-mouth sensation.  I'm intrigued by their cooking technique!

Wanton Noodle Soup Station
As much as we wanted to try their Wanton Noodle Soup, we were so stuffed already...

Shabu-Shabu Station
And, they also have a Shabu-Shabu Station which we were also forced to skip...

Dimsum Station

Shobe was a bit disappointment because there was no Hakaw available.

I have to admit defeat... My popular Chinese Tikoy with Egg Recipe is no match for their version of Tikoy.   Shobe tried the Buchi and liked it.  We couldn't guess what the others were filled with though.

Deep Fried Station


Main Dishes Station
Although the selection is limited, everything was delicious.

Carving Station

The Peking Duck Wraps are so good! Just like the Soy Chicken and Hainanese Chicken, the Peking Duck meat is also tender and moist.  The Chinese Ham is worth a try too.  It was lean and meaty with least amount of fats.

Dessert Station
Better save room for dessert because they have a rather extensive Dessert Station.

Our Dessert Pastry Plate

Our favorites are the Chocolate Cake, Leche Flan and Mango Sago.

Ice Cream Station

Fresh Fruit and Chinese Dessert Station


Crepe Station

Cherry and Strawberry Crepe

The texture of their Cherry and Strawberry Crepe is perfect.  We managed to finish this despite being full.


Beverage Station
The buffet rate is inclusive of the beverages.  Shobe enjoyed their brewed coffee.  She had one before the main meal and as a dessert accompaniment.
 

As part of the festivities, the Lions also passed by Season's Cafe to wish good fortune to the diners.

Overall, we Tsinoy Foodies, enjoyed our Chinese New Year 2017 experience at Season's Cafe in Manila Pavilion.  Because of our overindulgence, it was one of the rare moments that we were in a good and delightful mood to take a stroll and walk home.  

The family was supposed to try Tsukada Nojo a few weeks ago but they felt guilty that I was not with them so they opted to try something else instead. (Yes, I'm so grateful to have a sweet and thoughtful family...)  Just a few days later, my cousin group messaged us that our aunt is inviting us there for her birthday celebration.

I'm not sure about the boys but we ladies were quite intrigued.

It was a Tuesday night and the place was almost unoccupied for a table of two when we arrived.

Food

Bijin Nabe (750 php/portion) *Min of 2 person pero 1 portion

Aunt already ordered the Bijin Nabe for each table so this was already waiting for us.  


According to the menu "Bijin Nabe is a combination of the freshest vegetable, seafood, chicken cooked in their golden Jidori chicken stock".

This is the beautiful silky collagen that requires the chicken to be stewed for 8 hours until bones are dissolved.  And, yes this is the  beautifying component of our Bijin Nabe.  Upon being seated, our server turned on the stove and the collagen began to melt before us.

It didn't take long before it boiled.

While waiting, we were given a small glass of pure collagen and a piece of chicken each.  They also gave a set of their basic spices: Homemade Chili Oil, Leek Oil, Yuzu Pepper and Soy Sauce.

The server then added all the toppings to the broth and left it to us to consume it whenever we feel its ready.

As soon as the toppings began sinking, we figured we could already start devouring on the Bijin Nabe.


After finishing the big hot pot, we thought we were finished.  But, then our server comes back and asks us what noodle to we want.  We chose the Thick Mochi-mochi Noodle (80 php) which is cooked together with the prawns.  Like the first batch, we finished this clean because it's so good!  This is truly a heavenly experience for the taste buds and the body.

Smoked Salmon Spring Roll (210 php)

This is the first time we've encountered a fresh spring roll in a Japanese restaurant.  To our surprise, we loved the Smoked Salmon Spring Roll as compared to the Vietnamese versions we've tried.
 

Chicken Nanban Original (295 php)

The Chicken Nanban is deep fried and breaded chicken.  It actually reminded me of the chicken karaage but the menu state that the cooking style is from Miyazaki City.

♥ Shitake Tsukane Nanban Original (335 php)

The Shitake Tsukane Nanban is just like the Chicken Nanban but with a shitake mushroom on the bottom.  The serving also doesn't have sliced lettuce salad on the side.  This made us regret ordering the Chicken Nanban because between the two, this is better.

 

♥ Shitake Tsukane Nanban Spicy Hot (355 php)

I ordered the Shitake Tsukane Nanban Spicy Hot.  It was really spicy!  Good thing the boys raided this as soon as I took one cause I couldn't finish this on my own.  They really loved this!  In fact, they wanted more of it.  So if you're looking for spiciness, I challenge you with this!

Nikumaki Original (105 php) and ♥ Nikumaki Yuzu-Mayo (115 php)

Tsukada Nojo offers 4 kinds of Nikumaki.   I ordered the Nikumaki Original and Nikumaki Spicy but instead got the Nikumaki Yuzu-Mayo.

♥ Nikumaki Yuzu-Mayo (115 php)

It's okay that they gave the wrong order because I enjoyed the Nikumaki Yuzu-Mayo.  I don't even mind that it's extra rice.

For dessert, we had the Homemade Egg Pudding (150 php).  I personally prefer it to be without the caramelized top which was too sweet for me.  We also wanted to try the Yuzu Sorbet with Jello but it was not available.

Tsinoy Foodies Verdict
The entire family (all 20 plus of us) loved Tsukada Nojo Bijin Nabe.  We enjoyed everything we ordered.  Perhaps, our only concern is the service.  Considering that we were the only diners, there were times were no servers were on site.  My siblings who ordered Unlimited Tea was disappointed that they could not have it refilled as often as they wanted.