Not really. The chateau I am talking about here is Chateau 1771, a fine dine resto located in Makati. But the driving up the chateau bit was just too good to pass for a blog title.
On my way to Manila on board a plane last August 13, I read this feature in The Philippine Star about Chateau 1771′s latest offerings, lunch boxes, they are called. And since it would be around lunch time that I would be landing, I thought why not?
The Chateau in Greenbelt, Makati is located right at the corner of G5 (where Zara is) but facing the chapel and park. I got myself a corner table sometime after 1 pm, the room was packed and abuzz with lunchers, mostly executives, foreigners and middle aged gents and ladies. I’m sure there were far more interesting items on the menu but I was there to discover if these lunch boxes really work and so I ordered the Hunter’s chicken with linguine or vegetables (P450) for myself and the Chilean seabass with chorizo sauté (P750) for my friend plus a Choco Banana Smoothie and a Yellow Mango Shake.
French Bread with Eggplant Compote
While waiting for my order (and my friend who was out parking the car), I was given a serving of sliced bread with what they said was eggplant compote. The bread was french and rather tough. The compote, well, I love eggplant in my sinigang, salad, omelette and pinakbet but this compote thing, I didn’t like. Tasted like mashed eggplant with garlic, no more no less, and it just didn’t go well with the bread at all.
Choco Banana Smoothie
I was already a few sips into my Choco Banana Smoothie when my friend arrived. There’s not much one can do with shakes and smoothies so these tasted alright but I found myself pining for those super tall glasses others (notably hotels) use when serving such drinks, as Chateau 1771 chose to serve theirs in plain looking goblets. These coolers cost P140 each. Sodas cost P110, if I remember right, and wine, expectedly, was on the menu too. The caucasian guy seated in the table almost behind mine was enjoying a small bottle with his plate. I worried briefly if I would be able to get good blog pics with just my cellphone, forgetting altogether that the Nokia 6700 has a 5MP cam. It was a hot day. The sun had its rays fully extended into my part of the resto and the glass window was warm to the touch when I caught a glimpse of Imee Marcos (dressed in a casual shift dress) darting the corner right before our lunch boxes were finally served.
Chateau 1771 : Chateau deserves credit for coming up with these lunch boxes. For P450, you get the while-you-wait bread and dip, salad, canape, soup, entree and dessert. Best for those who want a little of everything gourmet for a small price.
Rating: 4 Plutos
Chateau 1771 - Hunter's Chicken Lunch Box
My hunter’s chicken lunch box consisted of a tuna mini-wich palate teaser, some leafy greens tossed in balsamic dressing, a tomato based soup, grilled chicken and linguine pasta in white sauce and a tiny slice of coffee pastry. The Chicken was tender and tasty and was a good match with the creamy sauce of the linguine pasta. I took a small bite of the mini-wich and put it down immediately. I like my fish not to take like fish, if you know what I mean. I also didn’t really like the soup but I blame this on my preferring clear soup that particular time. The pastry was superb, albeit very, very small, I so wanted another slice. My friend, on the other hand, ate everything in her Chilean Seabass lunch box.
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