By Marane Plaza
Since my identity as Filipino is deeply rooted to Spanish culture, being that the Philippines was under Spain’s occupation for more than 300 years, I’d always thought I’d been familiar enough of Spanish cuisine — what with typical home-cooked Filipino dishes like Menudo, Afritada, and Caldereta that we regularly prepare and eat being heavily influenced by la cultura española. That perception has changed recently when the Stylish Magazine team was invited by Singular Manila, one of the chicest dining concepts at The Palace in BGC, Taguig.
“The concept behind Singular Manila is a journey through Spanish heritage. We want to bring you Spanish food beyond what you already know. Our menu connects you to what we consider our traditional food, dishes that remind us of our childhood. Once you’re there traveling with us in different regions of Spain through our various food offerings, we then elevate your experience with trivias and even in-depth history of the dishes,” Felipe Díaz de Miranda, managing partner, told Stylish Magazine.
We were delighted to be invited to try Singular’s newest À la Carte Menu, focused on the tapas selection, created by Michelin Guide Chef Fernando Alcalá.
As most foodies would tell you, tapas is the Spanish tradition of small savory plates. It could be appetizers, or in Spain, can be served in both bars and cafes. Singular Manila promises to cater its clientele the authentic Spanish dining experience, and that extends to its collection of light starters.
“The thing is we try to bring you what people in Spain actually eat and enjoy all over the country, and tapas is something that appears everywhere there from afternoon ‘til night, with beers and wines,” Sylvia Sagawe, manager at Singular Manila.
Our night started with a couple of glasses of drinks of our choice called Albero, a refreshing, light, floral cocktail inspired by Andalusian rebujito. Along Albero, we started digging into the first two tapas dishes presented to us so nicely at the bar area: the Ensaladilla Rusa, and Pincho Moruno.
Ensaladilla Rusa is a typical tapas in Spain but this one, of course, is Chef Fernando’s personal recipe, and favorite. Okayyyy, first of all, I did not expect at all that basically a potato salad dish could go really well with a sweet-ish cocktail drink. With tuna, egg, carrot, mayonnaise, and alioli in the mix, Ensaladilla Rusa feels like a good ol’ comfort food you’d love to prepare during afternoon siestas, easy on your palate but would leave you craving for more.
Pincho Moruno, or grilled lamb skewers with roasted veggies, is the perfect pair for this appetizer duo. The meat is flavorful, in an “Oriental exotic way still,” as Singular described. This one really brought out the flavors of our Albero drinks.
The third tapas we were served with was the famous Patatas Bravas, which is another potato tapas, a mouth-watering plate of spicy fried potatoes. This one, we paired with glasses of Marianito, a strong, bold, bittersweet cocktail but equally delightful. This drink is the Northern Spanish answer to the Negroni.
We also tried the Buñuelos De Marisco, or seafood fritters. This fried delight comes with sumptuous, salty leafies, also obviously a uniquely traditional tapas not served just anywhere.
Other delicious tapas dishes in the selection include Bikini de Pringa, or melted slowed-cooked meats sandwich, as well as Carpaccio de Lengua, or beef tongue carpaccio. Bocado Cesar Con Pollo or chicken caesar salad bite, and Pan Tumaca or homemade bread with grated tomatoes are also some of the options. Matrimonio or anchovies is also one of the Spanish classics part of the new ala carte selection.
You can experience your own authentic Spanish dining experience at Singular Manila, located at The Palace, 11th Avenue corner 38th Street, Uptown Bonifacio, Taguig, Metro Manila. You may follow Singular on Instagram @singularmanila for updates, and book through https://singular.ph/reserve.
Lorin Gutierrez-Bektas is on the cover of STYLISH Magazine right now. In our latest cover story, discover how she’s carving her own path and challenging what success looks like for today’s generation.
Read the current Stylish Magazine cover story here.
Our #StylishPodcast episode featuring our September-October cover girl Jasmine Curtis-Smith is out. Watch it on Facebook and YouTube.
Stylish Magazine is “your source of self-love, style & inspiration” first introduced in June 2020. Our television series format, Stylish TV, once ranked one of the Top 50 Most Watched Multicultural Shows in the USA, can be streamed on iWantTFC and be watched on TFC (The Filipino Channel) in more than 50 countries. Watch it online here.
Style Visionary Network is a lifestyle-business online platform where #WeCreateVisionaries. Also introduced in June 2020, Style Visionary Network is also the digital home channel of media brands Stylish Magazine and Stylish TV.