Last week everyone was talking about the opening of Solaire Resort & Casino at Entertainment City along Manila Bay.
They say it’s Las Vegas in Manila. Because I missed the opening and media previews, I asked to be invited to a more intimate tour with Solaire’s marketing group.
It took us more than an hour to get there from Pasig on a Friday night.
Upon arrival, I was imagining what it would be like if our international airport looked like this.
Since it opened only last March 16th, I was quite surprised to see the place buzzing with activity, though some of the photos might not reflect that.
Our tour began with a dinner at StripSteakhouse
We met Katrina Razon, lovely daughter of Chairman and CEO Enrique Razon, Jr.
My dinner consisted of the freshly baked bread from Solaire’s in-house bakery
Grilled Hokkaido scallops
and this 350-gram ribeye steak, which Jeroen helped me finish 
All the head chefs in Solaire are imported, including baker, pastry chef, and many food items.
After dinner we began the walking tour to burn some of the calories we ingested.
Yakumi Japanese restaurant was right next door.
We met Japanese chefs Norimasa Kasaka and Shinobu Endo.
Prior to working at Solaire, Mr. Kasaka (L) has prepared sushi for celebrities like Mariah Carey, Beyonce, Dolce and Gabbana, Michael Schumacher, Naomi Campbell, and Nicole Kidman.
The fact that Nicole Kidman came back for more and Naomi Campbell didn’t throw chopsticks at him, probably means his sushi is worth a try
Busy that night
I was quite interested on who would get to taste this giant Hokkaido crab (Hi Ana!)
At Finestra Italian fine dining restaurant, we met Executive Chef Salvatore de Vicentis (L) with Finestra manager Giulio Gongarini
It felt like walking into a dream—or a movie set
My first thought upon seeing this was: We’re not in Kansas anymore. Seriously it felt like I had traveled abroad.
Red Lantern, the Chinese restaurant next door, brought me back to earth
with beautiful flowers flown in from the Netherlands
There’s the Lucky Noodle Bar
and the popular Fresh buffet restaurant
Very affordable compared to many buffet spreads in Manila
Some of the offerings: cheese spread
Seafood bar
Dreamy desserts!
Here’s Chef at work
Celebrity sighting: Liz Almoro and Victor Aliwalas
(To be continued)
Originally published at Chuvaness.com. You can comment here or there.