Spiced Roast Duck, Braised Beef Shin: Highlights of Aussie Chef Donovan Cooke's Recent Collab Degustation in Taguig

(SPOT.ph) In today's dining landscape in the Philippines,  it's perfectly common to come across multi-course dinners and tasting menus. This dining style, where guests are treated to small bites over multiple servings, is increasingly becoming more popular as Filipino diners are now moving towards the sentiment that more isn't necessarily better. At a recent dinner at AMAH in collaboration with Australian chef Donovan Cooke, the team prepared 14 plates that had us cruising through different meats and seafood, with flavors from different parts of the world.

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Australian chef Donovan Cooke came to our shores to prepare a 14-course degustation at this restaurant in Taguig:

You probably know Chef Donovan Cooke for cookbooks, not to mention his guest appearance on Masterchef Australia. The chef's love for food came naturally as his grandmother owned a fish-and-chip shop growing up; he career working in kitchens officially started at 15 years old and he's worked for the likes of great chefs Michel Roux and Marco Pierre White. From there, he's also opened and helmed restaurants that include Ondine, Est Est Est, and The Atlantic Restaurant.

The 14-course dinner was hosted at AMAH, the recently opened Filipino-Chinese restaurant in Taguig. It was set to be a four-hands dinner featuring Cooke and AMAH's very own student-turned-Head Chef Jose Villarreal. Yup, imagine fourteen bites made by a renowned Australian chef known for his capability of extracting clean flavors from the simplest ingredients, coupled with Chef Villarreal's understanding of the Filipino palate.

The Venue

The dinner was held and hosted by AMAH restaurant in Taguig, run by Chef Villarreal. It's famous for its take on Filipino-Chinese heirloom dishes, plus its mind-blowingly scenic views. The restaurant is actually situated on the rooftop of Chef Villarreal's family home and boasts 360-degree views of the Taguig and Makati skyline. The spot is especially beautiful during sunset and nighttime as you get a picture-perfect view of the sun setting over the horizon, as well as the twinkling lights of the business districts. It's the perfect location for a romantic dinner, a special occasion, or an especially rare dining opportunity. 

The Menu

Chef Cooke and Villarreal's collaborative menu was mind-blowingly huge, with 14 courses—12 of which were savory and only two on the sweet side. It was a mix of seafood courses and meats plus two fruit-based desserts. The menu featured humble ingredients like chicken, mussels, and mud crabs, a.k.a. alimango cooked in not-so-usual ways like sous vide and slow cooking. But the menu also starred more premium proteins like duck, mahi-mahi, king prawns,  oysters, and octopus. 

Throughout the 14 plates there were definite standout dishes—particularly the Curry Roast Mahi-Mahi with cauliflowers, capers, raisins, and apple, and the Spiced Roast Duck served with a dumpling (filled with what seemed to be duck, too) and fig compote as an ode to the classic duck-fruit pairing. There was also a Braised Beef Shin, underlined with a bordelaise sauce and sweet, earthy balsamic onions.

The desserts were without a doubt the star of the show, particularly the Mango and Almond Cake with Passion Fruit Sorbet. It was the perfect light, refreshing, and tropical palate cleanser after all the heavy savory flavors. 

AMAH is at 27 F. Segundo St., AFPOVAI 4, Western Bicutan, Taguig City. For more information, visit AMAH's Facebook page.

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