The glorious buffet at the Diamond
A post definitely needs to be devoted to the food at my current home, the Diamond Hotel in Manila. The main restaurant here consists of a buffet of international foods that varies day to day and has a ridiculous variety of things that are both good for you and very very bad for you. (hence me deciding this post shall be tagged both naughty and nice) On one hand, it is essentially the only place I can eat salad and fresh vegetables in Manila, which is a delight. On the other hand, the chocolate fountain and massive dessert table gets me every time. Not to mention the endless sushi and sashimi. The fresh breads. The grill. The dim sum. The Indian food. I could go on but I think pictures will get my point across better.
You can start off at the raw bar, where there are fresh crabs, shrimps, and oysters. And of course there is fresh salad and lots of fresh vegetables as well which makes me happy.
Then perhaps move on to the antipasti section, which typically has a selection of cured meats and a variety of prepared salads, and also cool little Filipino delicacies like lumpia, which are like fresh rolls.
There’s a make your own pasta section, a make your own udon noodle soup section, and in the back are a variety of dim sum. Yes, this buffet is actually endless.
Fancy some Peking duck or to have a whole animal carved in front of you? Then this is your station.
My favourite station of all – the unlimited sushi and sashimi. They also always have gyoza, seaweed salad, and mixed stir fry vegetables. It’s a rare trip to the buffet that doesn’t include sushi for me. My mercury levels these days are probably off the charts.
Here is one part of the dessert table – there is an ice cream station, someone who will make you crepes to order, and about 7 different kinds of creme brulee each night.
Oh and here’s the rest of the dessert table. Please note the massive chocolate fountain the background, complete with all sorts of fruits (and sometimes marshmallows and pound cake) for dipping. Then there is a constantly changing variety of little cakes and shot glasses full of delectable mousse creations.
As you leave, you are causally treated to a view of these jars which contain fresh fruits, candies, dried mangoes (!!! worst addiction ever), and cookies which I have to admit are actually quite good. As if I was not already stuffed enough. I am slowly learning how to exercise self control here, but it’s not easy.
So yeah, this is what living at a hotel in Asia is like. It’s pretty ridiculous.
merrifood 