Hotel Celeste, the
boutique hotel at the corner of San Lorenzo Drive and A. Arnaiz Avenue in
Makati City, closed down its main dining outlet and opens a new restaurant run,
along with the hotel’s whole fodd and beverages operations, by the Cravings
group of restaurants.
The new restaurant,
called Lucia, features select Italian dishes by chef Davide Lombardi, who is
know his restaurant Lombardi’s Authentic Italian, which is part of the Cravings
group.
“When the invitation
came from the owners of Hotel Celeste (the mother-and-daughter tandem of Cely
and Tricia Sarabia), I immediately thought that the dishes that should be
served in a fabulous hotel like this should also exude the same elegance and
flavor,” said Lombardi.
“With Lucia, I want to
share real Italian flavors,” her further said. “We do classic Italian dishes.”
Lomabardi
explained that in northern Italy, the
dishes are richer, with more butter and cream, while in southern Italy, they are more
Mediterranean and have olive oil, fruits, vegetables, seafood. He selects the
best dishes among them to serve at the restaurant especially those he had
exeprienced eating at hme.
“I grew up with my
grandmother and mother. On weekends, the family comes together. We all help in
the kitchen to prepare the food. Since I’m married to a Filipina, we also do
the same in the province, in Mariveles, Bataan,” reveled Lombardi, who added
that adobo is his favorite Filipino.
The name of
restaurant itself is a homage to the chef’s mother.
“It is my mother’s name, Lucia, and this is my
way of honoring and thanking her, for passing on to me the passion of cooking
authentic Italian meals,” he explained.
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| Chef Davide Lombardi |
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| Lombardi doing a cooking demo |
The name
complements the name of the hotel derived from the name of a woman and the
founder, Cely Sarabia, mother of Tricia who is now at the helm of the hotel.
The semi-fine dining Lucia
Ristorante has more meat offerings along with Italian favorites such as pizza
and pasta. It also boasts of a wider range of premium Italian wines.
For starters, diners
can choose from a sampling of cold (antipasti
freddi) or hot (antipasti caldi)
appetizers. Cold appetizers include carpaccio
di manzo sedano e grana or beef carpaccio marinated with lemon and olive oil
and fresh parmesan (P480); mozzarella di
bufala ai tres pomodori or mozzarella bufala with theee tomatoes (P660); insalata mista or salad with cherry
tomatoes, shallot and balsamic vinaigrette (P240); the antipasto all’Italiana or Italian ham with Italian vegetables
(P780); and the carpaccio di salmone
or salmon carpaccio marinated with lemon, olive oil served with dill and fennel
bulb (P490).
For the antipasti caldi, Lucia is offering two
special selections: minestrone di verdure
con pastina or hearty vegetable soup with fresh pasta (P220), and the parmigiana di melanzane or roasted
eggplant with mozzarella cheese (P260).
The pizza
selections are limited but satisfactory. The menu includes the Napoletana pizza
with tomato sauce, Mozzarella and fresh basil (P290); the quattro formaggi with Provolone, Fontina, Gorgonzola, Mozzarella
cheeses (P490); the pizza ai salumi (P490)
with tomato sauce and Italian hams; the quattro
stagioni (P365) with ham, mushrooms and artichokes; and the prosciutto di parma, funghi (P385) with tomato
sauce, prosciutto and mushroom.
The pasta is
made fresh here,a nd it is used in its five dishes—the ravioli di magro (P290),
Italian dumpling with ricotta cheese and spinach; the taglierini tartufati (P440), homemade taglierini with mushroom and black
truffles; the lasagne della casa con
crema de porcini (P320), lasagna with bolognese ragu and porcini sauce; the
tagliatelle alla carbonara (P340),
tagliatelle with pancetta and egg; and Lomabardi’s own creation for the
restaurant, the Spaghetti Lucia (P590),
a subtle spaghetti dish with seafood that
includes clams, mussels, squid and giant prawns.
A good selection of
fish and meat dishes makes up Lucia’s entrees. The dentice alla pugliese (P460), roasted snapper with pancetta and broccoli;
and the orata all’ ortolanala in crema al
basilico (P440), roasted white fish with pesto cream sauce, are worth
trying, but the stars of the menu are the meats—coscie di pollo tartufate in salsa ros, boneless chicken thigh
stuffed with mushrooms with pomodoro dolce; the scallopine alla Milanese (P480), thinly sliced pork loin, breaded
and served with fresh salad; tagliata di
manzo (P1,200), thinly sliced beef tenderloin baked with olive oil and
rosemary and served with caramel balsamic sauce; and the bistecca di manzo arrosto (P990), fillet of roasted beef with
truffle sauce.
If you still
have room, they have a trio of dessert offerings—tiramisu (P210), the panacotta
del Piemonte (P160), and the crostatina di frutta fresca (P260)—that puts an elegant finish to a filling meal.
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| Bistecca di manzo arrosto |
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| Mozzarella di buffala ai 3 pomodori |
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| Spaghetti Lucia |
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| Taglierini tartufati |
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| Tiramisu |
Lucia Ristorante is at
the Hotel Celeste at 2 San Lorenzo Drive corner A. Arnaiz Avenue, San Lorenzo
Village, Makati City. For more
information, call 887-8080 or check the Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/luciaristoranteph.
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