{"id":3780,"date":"2013-01-04T01:49:51","date_gmt":"2013-01-04T01:49:51","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/kathycasey.com\/blog\/?p=3780"},"modified":"2018-03-15T16:19:59","modified_gmt":"2018-03-16T00:19:59","slug":"dishing-with-kathy-casey-the-newsletter-10","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/kathycasey.com\/blog\/dishing-with-kathy-casey-the-newsletter-10\/","title":{"rendered":"Dishing with Kathy Casey: The Newsletter"},"content":{"rendered":"

So long 2012\u2026and a big hello to 2013!<\/strong><\/h2>\n

This year has flown by so quickly! It’s been a whirlwind of a year with lots of d’lish experiences, client trips and new friends. I\u2019m looking forward to the New Year and know it\u2019s going to be great! In the meantime, here’s a sneak peek of what I’ve been up to since my last Newsletter<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\"KC<\/a><\/p>\n

Tasty Travels \u2013 I LOVE the Philippines!<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Maraming salamat po, Philippines! (A very formal way of saying “thank you” in Tagalog)<\/strong>
\nI recently got back from opening the new Fairmont and Raffles hotels<\/a> in Makati, Philippines with my Liquid Kitchen associate D\u00e4nny Ronen. What a great trip! Lots and lots of hard work but it all pays off to see these amazing hotels open with such a bang. I can\u2019t even describe how amazing the crew was from the fabulous management team to the enthusiastic bar staff.<\/p>\n

We trained over 35 people and did the menus for 7 different venues, created d’lish drinks such as the Panutsa Old Fashioned, made with housemade syrup that we crafted from local sugar\u2014dark, rich and formed into coconut halves. Another great favorite was the Pineda Mojito, inspired from Journey’s Arnel Pineda<\/a> and made with local mandarin, Thai basil, fresh mint and rum. The bars all opened with a bang and were really busy. The Pacquiao<\/a> Punch is of course very popular, honoring the famous Filipino boxer and using the delicious local Don Papa Makati Rum then topped off at the table with a grating of locally-grown cinnamon sticks. They are HUGE!<\/p>\n

\"Cocktails\"
\nThe Pineda Mojito and the Pacquiao Punch\u2026 I told you the cinnamon sticks were huge!<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"Anna,
\nA quick photo during my meeting with the amazing Food & Beverage team:
\nAnna Derygo & Joern Schwaiger of Fairmont Makati – Raffles!<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"Fresh
\nThe Fresh Bar Display at the Fairmont Lounge<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"Giant
\nThe lemongrass was pretty big and very flavorful;
\nbig enough for D\u00e4nny to hide and peek through!<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"Eager
\nOur eager students at the Raffles Long Bar<\/strong><\/p>\n

Between developing all the beverage menus and setting up the bars for both hotels, we tried to squeeze in some fun\u2026 from $8 massages (Yes! Spa junkies take note \u2026 and they were open till 4 AM!!) to the most amazing shopping ever at the big market, to attending Savoroso Inc.’s (local Monin Importers) family party\u2014we had a blast! The Filipino people are so hospitable and love to party as well as make new friends!<\/p>\n

We even had enough time for a quick stop at the mall for an old fashioned shave and haircut for D\u00e4nny while I was off to cruise around and check out the local sips and nibbles. My fave was Happy Lemon<\/a>\u2014a little drink
\nkiosk that is found in most of the local malls. They had the weirdest things on
\nthe menu, so of course I had to order the strangest thing I saw\u2026<\/p>\n

\"Happy
\n\u2026Green Tea topped with \u201cCheese\u201d and Rock Salt and then sprinkled with Matcha powder!
\nIt was really good – I swear!!<\/strong><\/p>\n

Then it was back to work. During my stay, I met some great chefs like the BBQ Chef at the Fairmont. Check out his amazing pre- and post- work:<\/p>\n

\"BBQ\"
\nThe BBQ Chef (before and after): a master at suckling pig and crispy duck!<\/strong><\/p>\n

We did squeeze in some visits to local bars too! Here are our new local friends Tina and Brady with us at the Ice Bar. Yes, we had a couple of shots while wearing our parkas in the ice room.<\/p>\n

\"Ice
\nMe, Tina, Brady and D\u00e4nny doing ice shots in our fur coats\u2026 while it was 85 degrees outside\u2026 (with 100% humidity) so, the chill felt great!<\/strong><\/p>\n

The Savoroso team were amazing hosts on our days off; Mel & Sheila Macatulad and their daughter Danica made us feel like family. They invited us over to a family party (which they have every Sunday) and family members all made traditional Filipino foods from a ceviche-like dish made with white fish and coconut milk to lots of pork dishes, and one of my favorites: local ferns lightly saut\u00e9ed with shrimp! Oh and did I mention the fresh guyabano juice? Yum! They made us feel right at home.<\/p>\n

\"Family
\nLocal ferns with shrimp and fresh squeezed guyabano juice!<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"Dinner\"
\nDinner with the Macatulad family and Anna from the Fairmont!<\/strong><\/p>\n

Then it was back to the US\u2026<\/strong>
\n\u2026to a bit more travel then to finish out the holidays back at home. Stay tuned for my next newsletter all about my delicious holiday trip to Portland!<\/p>\n

Serious Sippin’ with the Liquid Kitchen<\/a>TM<\/span><\/sup><\/strong><\/h2>\n

During the holiday season and in the spirit of giving, my team and I love to give back to the community when we can. During my far-off travels, my team helped shake up a signature Liquid Kitchen cocktail for the annual Silver Bells Luncheon<\/a> in November! Proceeds from this event went to help the Providence Senior and Community Services, supporting those in need through healthcare, housing and hospice. It was a fun event, which included a hip fashion show and great prizes!<\/p>\n

If you are a cocktail enthusiast then make sure you try my winter-themed cocktails using PAMA Pomegranate Liqueur! The Blinker #3<\/a> is a rift on the Golden Era drink: rye whisky, fresh grapefruit juice and traditionally made with grenadine (originally made from pomegranate juice), but I made it with PAMA, a sophisticated full-flavored liqueur. Or how about a Sparkling PAMA’Rita<\/a>, with a splash of bubbly\u2014it\u2019s a great cocktail for all kinds of celebrations.<\/p>\n