Chef Josh Boutwood Reaps the Fruits of Change at the New Helm

Helm
3/F The Shops at Ayala Triangle Gardens, Ayala Avenue corner Paseo de Roxas, Makati City
Contact: 0915-909-8647
Facebook: www.facebook.com/helmmnl
Open from 6 to 11 p.m., Tuesday to Sunday

(SPOT.ph) The idea of change can scare some off—understandably so, if we may add. Not Chef Josh Boutwood, though. From his early days as head chef of The Bistro Group, he’d go on to challenge himself every step of the way, only getting better with every establishment he’d open: from The Test Kitchen, to Savage, Helm, and Ember.

Helm in particular showcases an especially creative side of Boutwood, peppered with theatrical fun. The restaurant—which opened at BGC’s Arya Residences in 2018, and is part of the 50 Best Discovery List—whips up tasting menus showcasing local produce, transformed into works of edible artistry (with help from modern techniques) prepared right in front of you. Almost five years after Helm made its debut, Boutwood is, once again, ready to push himself and the rest of the team as they move to a new location in Makati.

Also read: 10 Best Tasting Menus in Manila Right Now

Fine dining restaurant Helm is now in Makati with a superb new tasting menu to boot:

“I felt like we were getting to point where we had outgrown the original location,” Boutwood shares in an exchange with SPOT.ph. “In order for us to continue to push we needed a new stage. It’s given us the opportunity to see what was missing in the original, [and] put it into the new [outpost].”

Much has changed from the looks alone; the Makati location is bigger, for one, with an indoor seating capacity that’s double of the original plus al-fresco seats available for walk-ins. The L-shaped bar of Helm BGC is no more; instead you’ll find two counter tables, each with a communal setup, plus regular tables and chairs for those who prefer to dine with companions in (semi)-private. Size aside, the new space also goes for a more brooding look with dim lighting, structured columns, glossy surfaces, brass accents, and finishes of natural wood. “I wanted a juxtaposition of intention and space,” he explains. Also present, he shares, are new machinery and a larger roster of team members. “We’re very excited about being able to evolve the concept of Helm.” 

Still, Boutwood clarifies that they make it a point to maintain the “intimate and personal style” that’s a hallmark of the Helm experience. The team prepares items from their multi-course tasting menu (P5,800/eight courses, P8,800/12 courses) on the front side of the counter tables—allowing you to witness the chefs display their culinary dexterity, should you be seated there. The pace is just right that you have time to consume, relish, and digest each course fully—literally in the physical sense, but also figuratively in the mental and emotional sense if you will.

Bites, served when you’ve settled down, keep you company at the beginning. Fjord Trout, tinged with tamari and juniper berries, gives you a taste of the Norwegian Sea; a nugget of their take on Fish & Chips (an ode to Boutwood’s British roots) pairs a crisp vodka-batter exterior with a clean-tasting, rare interior of Spanish mackerel. The dry-aged beef tartare-filled Onion Tart and umami Tuna, Soybean prod the taste buds, both being framed by thin, crisp crusts that make way to deeply savory insides.

Unlike their previous seasons, which as mentioned went by focused motifs, this current tasting menu does away with a formal theme. “I didn’t wanna be within a box of thought,” Boutwood explains. Instead he chooses to highlight the ingredients: “really good ingredients. [I want to] treat them with love [through] the procedures that we use, and really not be confined in a box of thought.” (You can expect this outlook for the first few months of the Makati outpost’s opening; Boutwood aims to bring back the thematic menus thereafter.)

Theme or no theme, perplexingly, the resulting lineup is one that feels cohesive and purposeful—no course strikes us as being arbitrary or out of place. There’s great balance in the progression of the meal, with different courses showcasing different moods and stoking different emotions.

Sips of the Mussel, Lemongrass, Chili—with a mussel-broth base dotted by lemongrass and chili oils—soothe the senses before we’re vivified by the Hamachi, Coconut Lime Leaf, Yuzu. The latter’s pristine white presentation doesn’t scream for attention, but poke your fork into the thin coconut-milk film and out peek slices of hamachi—air-flown from Japan, then cured in salt, sugar, and Szechuan peppercorn—plus dill-scented cucumbers and a calamansi gel that make for a bright, zesty mix. 

You’re led back to the direction of comfort in the next course, dubbed the Egg Yolk, Barley, Kale, where a cloud of potato espuma blankets a rich egg-yolk emulsion—think lazy weekend breakfast flavors in a fine-dining caliber medium.  And just when things get too familiar, they bring out the Seabass, Mussel Emulsion, Parsley that has just enough funk and zing to call you out to party. The said fish is poached yet kept succulent, then given a duo of partners in crime: a parsley sauce for freshness, and a mussel sauce that breathes brininess and umami to the mix.

We’ve said it before and we’ll say it again: the bread alone is ample reason to drop by any Josh Boutwood establishment. The same is true for Helm in Makati, with a fair-sized slice of The Test Kitchen Bakery Sourdough served with a slab of whipped and brown butters for spreading over. The bread makes the perfect crackly sound as you tear it apart, and its moist, substantial crumb with ample air pockets absorb every last smidge of the butters beautifully—just the thing to transition you to the Pork Tenderloin, Celeriac, Cabbage. German in overall flavor profile, this plate pairs clean-tasting tenderloin medallions with a sausage of pork back fat, mushrooms, and parsley; a celeriac puree and red wine-braised cabbage balance out its richness.

With that, they introduce star of the show number one: the Duck, Soursop, Black Pepper. French duck is cooked to the perfect medium-rare center here, while soursop (i.e., guyabano!) gel—alluding to the classic tandem of duck and fruit but with tropical flair—illuminates the former’s meatiness. Go ahead and dab on some of the black pepper-specked jelly for woody, peppery balance. A palate cleanser with the flavors of Watermelon, Calamansi, Basil sweeps your tongue clean before they bring out the big gun.

That big gun, of course, is the Strip Loin, Mushroom, Sunchoke. Ain't she ravishing. Australian Wagyu striploin—cooked to supreme tenderness that it surrenders with little need for chewing—is cloaked with a mahogany sauce that’s complex on the taste front, being made with roasted beef bones. A fermented mushroom paste emphasizes the beef’s underlining savoriness; feel free to tuck into the sunchoke puree on the side for nutty-tasting balance. Note the impact the little details play in this piece—from the beef tendon chicharon crumble that lend a subtle crunch, and the green peppercorn oil drizzled underneath for zingy contrast.

Classic as cheese courses are in French dining tradition, they aren’t as common an addition to modern degustations. Trust Helm to happily prove the notion can, in fact, work with the St. Nectaire, Pear Butter that pairs the semi-soft French cheese (loved for its mushroomy, nutty taste) with a smooth pear butter with honeylike undertones—plus a beetroot lavash that ties the worlds together. Things go sunny from there, what with the Coconut, Mango, Vanilla that’s as lush from the coconut-vanilla sorbet as it is vivid from the gastrique-turned-sauce of ripe and green mangoes.

Continuing on the sweet path but bringing in the element of decadence to the roster, the Burnt Chocolate, Dark Chocolate, White Chocolate projects their brooding side, with chocolate four ways (a white chocolate foam, white chocolate cremeaux, dark chocolate crumbs, and burnt white-chocolate sauce) for a robust whole perfectly paired with their house blend coffee. Finally, Petit Fours of coffee bonbons and a beetroot meringue tie the whole concierto together.

Risky of a prospect as change can be, do it right and it brings about growth. That’s certainly the case with Helm, which has blossomed and reached a remarkable new chapter in their story. But that's not to say they're done. Heck, this is only the beginning.

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