Friday, June 10, 2016

Shangri-La at the Fort: High Street Lounge

A fun evening with the folks over at Shangri-La at the Fort! :)



I am so honored to have been one of the foodies chosen to attend the Zomato Meetup at Shangri-La at the Fort's High Street Lounge recently.
High Street Lounge
Shangri-La at the Fort opened its doors to the public last March 1, 2016. Currently, it has two outlets, which are High Street Lounge and High Street Cafe. But in a few weeks, Canton Road, their Chinese restaurant will be opening as well. Following that is their steakhouse, the Raging Bull, and finally, Samba, which will be offering South American/Peruvian dishes.
High Street Lounge
The High Street Lounge is a chic yet relaxing space where one can enjoy a variety of drinks, from afternoon tea to alcoholic beverages, accompanied by the sound of smooth jazz music. During the day, natural light brightens the entire room through its floor-to-ceiling windows. At night, it exudes a cozier, more romantic atmosphere perfect for nights when you just want to lay back and chill.
High Street Lounge
The night began with some drinks created personally by the head mixologist, Ulysse Jouanneaud. Here he is doing what he does best:
High Street LoungeHigh Street Lounge
He even gave us the background on each gin, like how Monkey 47 uses 47 botanicals, and Brooklyn is made in small batches - about 200 to 300 liters per batch - compared to others which are made 8,000 liters at a time.
High Street Lounge
He also educated us on which garnishes go well with the drinks. For Portobello Road No. 171, it's star anise and galangal.  For Botanist, it's basil and strawberry. I personally got to try the latter, and it was really good. I had asked Ulysse pick for me because, to be honest, I wasn't familiar with any of them. The Botanist tasted very light and mellow, and since I'm not a big drinker, it was perfect! It's actually the type of drink I would order when I'm out with friends.
High Street Lounge
High Street Lounge
Here's a complete list of drinks available on their Gin & Tonic Trolley:
Filliers | Hendrick's | Botanist | Portobello Road No. 171 | Martin Miller's | Brooklyn | Monkey 47 | Boodles
High Street Lounge
High Street Lounge
And, of course, the available garnish:
Rosemary & Pittaya | Basil & Strawberry | Cucumber & Kiwi | Thyme & Lemon
Star Anis & Galangal | Sage & Grapefruit
High Street Lounge
All that's left to do now is run the garnish around the rim of the glass, stir it, and drink up!
High Street Lounge
I appreciate how Ulysse took the time to talk about each gin. Most if not all of the gins that High Street Lounge offers aren't readily available in the market. They get it from places like Scotland, London, and Germany, so if you want to get a taste of these, better drop by Shangri-La at the Fort soon!
High Street LoungeHigh Street Lounge
The High Street Lounge is not just about the drinks though. They actually offer delectable dishes that can go well with their assortment of beverages, and we got to try some of them!

Croquettas (P425)High Street Lounge
This really set the bar for me. Made from fontina cheese, mushrooms, and foie gras, these Croquettas are easily my favorite dish of the night! I honestly love mushrooms in anything, but the fact that it was actually creamy on the inside made all the difference. Other croquettes come out dry and need to be paired with some kind of dipping sauce, but this one is perfect the way it is. It's also interesting how they decided to add some mangoes in there because it gives the dish a more vibrant look - not to mention mangoes are one of my favorite fruits!

Crispy Duck Spring Rolls (P475)
High Street Lounge
These spring rolls reminded me so much of the two-way Peking duck in Chinese restaurants. But here, it's already wrapped and prepared for you, so all you got to do is bite into it. For this, they made use of a rice-based wrapper and stuffed it with generous amounts of crispy roasted duck, plum sauce, cucumber, and spring onions. I'n glad they put in a good balance of each of the ingredients and just the right amount of sauce, so it wasn't too overwhelming.
High Street Lounge
High Street Lounge
Prawns Manila Escabeche (P525)
High Street Lounge
This combination of roasted prawns, garlic, chili, turmeric, and pickled vegetables on flour tortilla disk was one of the dishes that really stood out for me because of its slightly sour flavor. If you didn't know, escabeche (Spanish word for pickle) is a style of cooking where fish, meat, prawns, or vegetables are marinated in a vinegary/acidic mixture. It can get a bit messy though, so be careful when eating it, and try not to let it get on your clothes!

The Board (P980)
High Street Lounge
Now for the most talked about dish of the night! The Board is a mix of Salami Milano, Spanish Iberico ham, smoked duck breast, manchego, St. Nectaire Camembert, and toasted farmer’s bread. Honestly, I don't eat platters like this often, but wow, what a way to start, right?
High Street Lounge
So, I, being the naturally curious person that I am, went online to find out what's so special about the items included in The Board. I found out that the Iberico Ham is the finest ham in the world. Just the process of curing the meat takes three years! Imagine that! The Salami Milano, on the other hand, is one of the most well-known Italian salami and is usually seasoned with salt, pepper, and garlic. Shangri-La's High Street Lounge serves only the most exquisite items, and The Board is the perfect dish to show that.
High Street Lounge
Tataki of Yellow Fin Tuna Loin (P650)
High Street Lounge
Tataki is the method of cooking meat or fish briefly over a hot flame or pan. Here, the yellowfin is seared on the outside and left raw in the middle.
High Street Lounge
It is then served with sesame seeds crust, beansprouts, cucumber salad, ginger soy vinaigrette, and grissini. This yellowfin is honestly one of, if not, the freshest tuna I have ever eaten. It doesn't have that overwhelming fishy taste either. Everything was on point, up to the grissini (breadsticks).
High Street Lounge
Teriyaki Glazed Glacier 51 (P575)
High Street Lounge
Glacier 51, also known as Patagonian toothfish, is one of the world's most sought after fish. Apparently, it can only be found in the Australian sub-Antarctic territory around Heard Island (4,109km from mainland Australia). On the southern tip of this spectacular geographical feature, Glacier 51 (Fiftyone Glacier), which pours into the surrounding treacherous icy waters creating the ideal environment for the highly prized toothfish found patrolling the underwater volcanic crevices 2,000 meters below sea level. (source

I know, I know, I could've just said that it's really difficult to acquire, but then you wouldn't have understood just how difficult.
High Street Lounge
The Teriyaki-Glazed Glacier 51 is served with grilled Patagonian toothfish topped with green soybeans and orange segments, then glazed in teriyaki sauce. The fish is soft and tender, almost melts in your mouth. The dish itself is a mix of sweet, salty, and sour, so make sure to get everything all in one bite!

Bruschetta (P450)
High Street Lounge
I didn't expect to like this so much since it's just bread. Bruschetta isn't as unique as the other dishes that we were served, but even this was exemplary. I'd have to admit though, I only ate the toppings since I was already feeling full, but that small first bite I took packed a whole lot of flavor!
High Street Lounge
If you're wondering what's in it, it's buffalo mozzarella, tomatoes, crispy prosciutto, and basil oil.
High Street Lounge
For dessert, we were served an assortment of pastries!
High Street Lounge
I'm not exactly sure what they're called or if you can order it like this, but the chocolate cake and the pastry below are my favorites.
High Street Lounge
High Street Lounge
The entire time we were eating, we were drinking as well. We were served various alcoholic beverages - some even off the menu - which we extremely enjoyed with the appetizers. Here are just some of them:
High Street Lounge
High Street LoungeHigh Street Lounge
High Street Lounge
Probably the most unique ones that we got to try were these two. One is spicy, while the other tasted like ginger ale; Ulysse even coated the glass with cinnamon. Strangely, it turned out to be one of our favorites that night.
High Street LoungeHigh Street Lounge
We capped the night with the Singapore Sling. This classic cocktail consists of eight items namely Hendrick's Gin, Peter Heering cherry liqueur, Dom Benedictine, Cointreau, Fresh Lime, Pineapple, Grenadine, and Angostura Bitters.
High Street Lounge
Thank you, Shangri-La at the Fort, High Street Lounge, and Zomato, for the wonderful evening!
High Street Lounge
High Street Lounge is located at the second level of Shangri-La at the Fort, 30th Street corner 5th Avenue, Bonifacio Global City, Taguig City
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High Street Lounge - Shangri-La at the Fort Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato