Nostalgic music with good food at The Pen
MILLIE: The Christmas Concert at The Pen ushers in, for me, the real feeling that Christmas is here! It became an annual tradition when my dad was still around. We would attend the late-afternoon concert at the majestic lobby of The Peninsula Manila.
This year, on the first Sunday of December, Karla and I joined friends for a magical afternoon and were welcomed by The Peninsula Manila managing director Kevin Tsang. The annual Christmas spectacular presented Philippine musical theater star and Aliw awardee Bituin Escalante, Hong Kong Disneyland actor, singer and musician David Ezra, the Ateneo Chamber Singers with the Manila Symphony Orchestra under the helm of National Artist for Music maestro Ryan Cayayab.
KARLA: The moment I was asked if I wanted to attend the Christmas Concert at The Peninsula, I immediately confirmed attendance. December is our busiest month in the entire year. This is the time that we are faced with a full workload and busy consecutive days and nights ahead. It is always nice to sit back and enjoy the festive season however we can and definitely right before we get too busy with work. This year, the concert was packed with a total count of 760 guests!
The concert, to my delight, was opened by a nostalgic medley from Beauty and the Beast. The first half of the repertoire was a collection of Broadway musicals, music from Hollywood hits and a medley from the ’80s. The second half was dedicated to Christmas tunes, both from OPM and around the world.
MILLIE: As we listened and were entertained by the melodious sounds from the Manila Symphony Orchestra, we were guessing, humming or singing along. We enjoyed the culinary bite-sized creations served at High Tea, specially crafted for this season of joy.
For starters, we were served a fine foie gras terrine with fig jelly on a tiny brioche—I so wished I could have a second piece. The prawn cocktail with Marie Rose, scallop and caviar was absolutely divine. Next bite was a shepherd’s pie with oxtail and truffle mashed potatoes followed by a delightful slow-roasted Wagyu ribeye served with caramelized onion. We were also served hamon Serrano on a focaccia toast, and a tartare of ahi tuna mille-feuille.
at The Pen
KARLA: The next plate was a cheese and charcuterie plate with cubes of sage derby, a wedge of brie, emmental and cheddar. This was arranged with some charcuterie, walnuts, apricots, raisins, a sour cherry jam, Palawan honey, and the Pen’s lavosh crackers.
For dessert, we were given a selection of three cakes. Buche de Noel is a French Christmas dessert with a layer of sponge cake, rolled like a log and covered in chocolate. In this case, it was coated in passion fruit-flavored white chocolate and topped with soft caramel star-shaped chocolates. A fruit rouge tartlet is a chocolate tartlet with raspberry jam and cremeux. And lastly, honey mousse coated in almond glaze, then topped with a chocolate Christmas ball and chocolate kiss-shaped ganache.
MILLIE: The evening filled our hearts with the spirit of peace, love and joy as we looked back to reminisce about 2024. We are grateful for the happy moments and some, even #PenMoments that we were blessed with and whispered a prayer for friends and loved ones we lost.
