At Makati's Le Feu, Chef Kevin Villarica Serves A+ Steaks in a Charming Space

Le Feu Steak House 
Hotel Celeste, San Lorenzo Drive corner A. Arnaiz Avenue, San Lorenzo Village, Makati
Contact: 0917-852-6541; 8887-8080 
Instagram: www.instagram.com/lefeu.ph

(SPOT.ph) Dining in Makati can fall anywhere between a regular treat and an “am I really going to risk it all in traffic for this?” kind of endeavor; with the number of places we’ve recommended in that neck of the woods, we’re not unaware of the very legitimate gripes. But when you’ve got some time to kill and a nice outfit that hasn’t seen the light of day in a hot minute, there’s a place here to get your bougie on, most unabashedly.

And, it’s true, we don’t dress up hard for the malls or the weekend markets—lovely as they are—but there’s something about a hotel that draws out a little extra from the patron, even if they’re not a full-fledged guest. Hotel Celeste has been a Makati mainstay for years, starting out as the city’s first boutique hotel that barely feels boutique; it’s the French-ity of it, a low, quiet vantage point from which to look out at a small slice of the bustling metropolis and not feel clogged and cornered by its demands for once.

But even something as pleasantly old-fashioned as this place needs to have a foot in the modern era, however shiny it’s managed to stay. Chef Kevin Villarica, formerly of Hapag fame and now the mastermind behind Ginza Gyu, was brought on to reignite guests’ gastronomic interest with Le Feu Steakhouse—whether he’s accomplished that feat is something only the food can really answer.

Also read: 
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What to try at Le Feu Steakhouse in Makati:

Le Feu’d—er, The Food

Most would think that they’d be starting off easy with the Wild Mushroom Truffle Soup (P290), and they’d only be partially mistaken. The thing to understand about Le Feu—and, generally, the way Villarica himself works—is that any dish that could possibly have some platonic ideal can either be improved upon or take a sharp left into purposeful fancy. There is something deeply comforting about a good bowl of mushroom soup, and truffle, while adjacent in both biology and earthiness, contributes that luxurious oomph that some people can’t seem to get enough of. This version doesn’t travel too far off the beaten path, but we can say it’s a favorite of the chef’s for a reason. A good mushroom soup is always—and we mean always—greater than the sum of its parts, and this one certainly is.

What does leave us confused, but in the best way, are the WX Wagyu Burger & Truffle Fries (P980). Let’s break this down: You get half a pound of the springiest meat known to man, gussied up with what’s essentially a caramelized onion jam, served up with crisp veggies and the house brioche bun. It’s a lot of layers of soft and savory-sweet, almost as if a really good burger was somehow inspired by a really good cake; it’s one of those things you’ll just have to order to believe.

The same goes for the fries on the side, served with a smooth, tangy aioli. Yes, we know, truffle again, but that’s weirdly not the star ingredient—it’s the fry itself, chip-crunchy on the outside yet cloud-fluffy on the inside. And they stay that way for so long—not that you’ll let them sit—thanks to Le Feu’s diligent use of the fry-freeze-repeat. “We didn’t want to have great steaks next to sides that were just okay,” reveals Villarica. “I think when it comes to a steakhouse menu, there’s a temptation to ‘balance it out’, but I wanted everything to be as good as it could be, even if it’s just fries.” If you can’t get enough—we certainly couldn’t—they’re available in greater quantities on their own (P340) to enjoy with just about all the other items on offer.

We’ve said it before and we’ll say it again: if there’s hamachi on the menu, you’ve got to go for it at some point. The Hamachi & Chimichurri Crumbs (P2,250) features the collar of the coveted amberjack, all buttery meat and rich, on-the-bone flavor. The all at once bright, acidic, and lightly pungent chimichurri crumbs lend a welcome crunch and herbaceousness, while its oil base sinks and blends right into the fish; the reappearance of the aioli adds a little more of that soft garlicky touch that wraps it all up in a way that makes you want some white rice if you know how to live right. (And you’re reading this, so you probably do.)

But the clincher is that this place is, above all things, a steakhouse; the Picanha Black Onyx (P1,990)—not even the most high-end cut—makes sure that the diner is fully aware of that fact. This fatty, tender rump cut is a Brazilian favorite for reasons that become painfully apparent from the moment you first stick your fork in a slice. To give the full steak flavor, Villarica steers away from strong, smothering sauces and instead has you choose from compound butters; we loved the simple Garlic Confit here, along with Paella and Japanese Sweet Potato Purée on the side. The latter is fluffy and smooth, with minimal starch; the former is not only a flavorful, fun, and unusual companion to steak, but also a respectful homage to the restaurant that Hotel Celeste housed for years prior to Le Feu.

Among the desserts, the Dark Chocolate Cake (P290) may be the richest and most classic. With the salted caramel filling and crushed nuts, it lies somewhere between a Snickers bar and a Twix, but in cake form, with a dense crumb but high aeration. It’s a slice to cry into, which sort of speaks to the irony of this menu—it’s in a hotel, but the way you want to inhale and savor all this food is not hotel-friendly behavior. It’s that kind of good. 

What We Recommend

Truth be told, the easier question is what we wouldn’t recommend, which can be summed up thusly: tight clothes and a stomach that’s anything other than empty. The short but stacked menu still leaves you spoiled for choice; where other menus can feel padded out and like a bad decision is imminent, Le Feu’s feels like everything you don’t order can and should be enjoyed next time—it’s all just a matter of delayed gratification.

We can’t believe we’re recommending a salad either, but here we are with the Wagyu Bresaola Caesar (P845). The name only partially explains the price tag, which may feel a little steep for a salad, that much we can admit; thankfully, it’s one of those dishes that proves itself from the first bite. It is, of course, an almost utopian version of your classic Caesar salad (or cae sal, and if you know, you know) turned up to full volume with the fresh, crisp lettuce; that anchovy-briney, lemon-dijon-zesty dressing, and here it’s neither runny nor chunky; and card-thin, air-dried, well-aged Wagyu strips in place of bacon, adding a hearty depth that you may or may not search for in your salads forever after. Consume at your own risk, we suppose.

Between that and the Roasted Pepper Prawn Bisque (P295), you have the perfect “light” lunch… if you care about that sort of thing, that is. But the wonderful part is that even if you didn’t, the two would still make a fantastic meal. The thick, velvety soup is dotted with chunks of grilled prawn, while basil oil adds a sort of perfumed top note to the blended red peppers that could almost read like curry if you closed your eyes. We love the evergreen nature of this bisque; the prawns and basil scream summer sunshine while the roasted peppers and the overall texture feel appropriate for sweater weather, and you’d be right to order it either way.

The same goes for the Grilled Prawn Aglio Olio (P485), which we loved both on its own and as a mop for some post-steak compound butter residue. (You can’t say we don’t know how to eat, okay?) The pasta itself ticked all the boxes of a good aglio e olio and then some; big slivers of just-cooked garlic and perfectly infused oil on al dente spaghettini meet an in-house secret that purists might not necessarily give their stamp of approval to, but since when was absolute rigidity any fun? Paired with the smoky and seaside-sweet grilled prawns, this dish feels like everything you should theoretically be able to do at home but never will, and probably never as good—and that’s what dining out is all about.

On that note, we return to the star of the whole Le Feu production. The especially beefy Flank Steak Black Onyx (P1,790) absorbs so much flavor that the chimichurri compound butter sinks in like they were made for each other—and, on several levels, they were! One would never remember that flank is a notoriously tough cut to work with, given the way this steak goes slack under a knife. To both cushion and emphasize the rich flavor, we loved this with the stretchy and lush Pommes Aligot—potatoes made in the regional style of L’Aubrac—and the powerful yet classic Garlic Steak Rice. (Or, the truffle fries. It only feels natural.)

On a warm Metro Manila night, the Poached Apple Tart (P390) is a sharp yet aromatic end to the meal, the mulled quality of the wine-poached fruit and lemon cookie base softened with crème Chantilly. For some, it may be too scent-forward of a dessert, but for the adventurous among us who seek out the sensorial, this is a real treat.

And for all that we’re making recommendations here, you can ignore them completely. The thing that stands out most about Le Feu is that you can actually order anything in any order—courses be damned—and still love each item the same way. Having the steak before the salad doesn’t make the salad any less good, where it might wilt in comparison at other establishments.

Fire From Ashes

It wasn’t always a strength-to-strength journey for the chef, however. Villarica’s initial success with a then-Quezon City-based Hapag quickly drew enough attention for him to take a stab at a tasting menu up in Tagaytay, only a number of weeks before the eruption that kicked off 2020. The events that followed—and turned the dining scene in general completely on its head—need not be rehashed.

“I’m thankful I was able to take some of my team with me,” he says, “and they look out for me, too. Opening [Le Feu] was delayed for a little bit because of this year’s typhoons, but my staff rescued what was essential, so we didn’t have to start from the bottom again. So what you see is nothing less than a team effort, and I’m proud of it.”

Leave your ride with the valet, make one immediate right turn from the entrance of Hotel Celeste, and there’s Le Feu. The hotel’s go-to Interior Designer Andrew Galutera was also looped into the steakhouse project, and the continuity of the generally European theme does not go unnoticed. The result is a soft, muted extravagance of almost-royal blues and dense velvet textures, offset by metallic accents and tables that echo stone slabs, lending a necessary though muffled kind of coarseness. It’s an easy but refined atmosphere, and paired with an impressive menu that doesn’t overwhelm, it’s no wonder that the weekday lunch rush is largely composed of corporate groups wining and dining their clients.

Guests that stay at the San Lorenzo Drive staple don’t make up the biggest demographic of Le Feu’s diners, but not for lack of desire; they are simply outnumbered by the walk-ins from either the residential village around the corner or the fringes of Makati. And, really, when you can get excellent steak for under P2,000, it’s practically criminal to refuse the opportunity.

The temptation, of course, is to wait—wait for the next anniversary, for the next milestone, for the next big victory, for any ‘good’ occasion to go. But the name alone—French for ‘the fire’—seems to suggest that, sometimes, desire can be reason enough. “It all seems fancy, and I guess it is,” admits Villarica, “but when I make food, the aim is always that it’s at its best, that it’s enjoyed. I don’t think you need a reason to enjoy your food.”

Photos by Hans Fausto