Executive Chef Marcelo Tesalona and F & B Manager Crispian Ho
FOOD offerings can dramatically enhance guests’ approval in the hotel industry. And with consumer dining demands and trends, hotels need a food and beverage department that must be able to serve good food complemented by service of the highest standard. As such, the hotel restaurants require large-scale operations that require a good number of staff, food and planning.
At the helm of the food and beverage of the Waterfront Airport Hotel & Casino are Food & Beverage Manager Crispian Ho and Executive Chef Marcelo Tesalona who both recently assumed their respective positions.
Singaporean Crispian Ho is a seasoned hotelier who brings with him 29 years of exciting experience and a proven ability of successful sales and business development. Educated in USA at the University of Miami and Thames Business School Singapore, he has worked in Small Luxury Hotels in
The World, Luxury Hotel Cours Et Pavillon in Beijing, Wanda Hotel Group in Wanda Vista in Inner Mongolia, to name a few.
His last post before Cebu, was Asst. Gen. Manager of Fontana Hot Springs & Resort in Clark, Pampanga where he met his Filipina wife.
Tagalog Executive Chef Marcelo Tesalona hails from Mulanay, Quezon Province and holds a degree in Hotel & Restaurant Management from Lyceum in Manila.
Rising from the ranks, his first job was at Cindy’s Hamburger. His 20 years of experience with the best hotels and chefs in Manila has honed his culinary skills. He was Demi-Chef in the famous Champagne Room of Manila Hotel, Shangri-La EDSA’s Café Provencale, Sofitel Phil.
Plaza and joined the Waterfront chain, namely G Boutique Hotel, Manila Pavillion, Lahug and finally Airport in Cebu.
Over lunch at Uno, Cris shared the expansion plans of the hotel in anticipation of the opening of the new international airport close by.
More F & B outlets are in the pipeline, he added. Gen. Manager Benhur Caballes apologetically dropped by our table to say hello but had to join the hotel’s birthday celebrants for lunch. Cris Ho’s stay in Pampanga exposed him to rich Kapampangan cuisine, a good reason to work with Executive Chef Marcelo to serve genuine Filipino cuisine in the hotel’s Uno buffet spread.
They plan to make Uno the Filipino cuisine destination in Cebu.
I was extremely pleased when Chef Marcelo left the kitchen and sat down with us for lunch.
His specials for the month of February are his original creations. We started with bacon bagnet and mango salad with greens and honey-calamansi dressing.
The Ilocano bagnet (lechon kawali in Tagalog) was sliced thinly, bacon style, crunchy and sinfully delicious.
The Kapampangan sisig has a twist—crispy sisig topped the french fries with diced tomatoes, siracha and mayonnaise. His Carcar spring rolls are stuffed with local longaniza, goat cheese, zucchini and sundried tomatoes.
I enjoyed it dipped in spiced vinegar. The turkey gets a local touch with his sinampalukan turkey—marinated in tamarind, special condiments and spices and oven-roasted. The succulent turkey was exciting with its tamarind-based dip.
The steamed seafood: mussels, crabs (alimasag or lambay) and swahe (medium-sized shrimps) are so fresh and appetizing.
Dessert is always a glorious ending. So many choices but I singled out Viva Piñacillada cake—pandan cake with caramelized pineapple and yema
filling.
