A taste of Provençal in Manila: Mireio introduces new Chef de Cuisine
Provençal cuisine has long been known for its focus on fresh, seasonal ingredients prepared in ways you can replicate at home. It’s about your grandmother’s delicious, home-cooked meals with an emphasis on Mediterranean flavors.
One restaurant in Makati looks to infuse its dishes with the simplicity and elegance of Provençal cuisine, and they’re bringing in a native to help them pull it off.
Meet Provençal native Chef Hervé Clair, Mireio’s new Chef De Cuisine. His first foray into the world of food was as an apprentice at Les Pins Penchés, a gourmet restaurant in the port city of Toulon. He later trained under his culinary idol, Alain Ducasse, manning the kitchens at the La Bastide de Moustier in Provence, the Aux Lyonnais, and the Le Relais du Parc in Paris — all known for their classic and innovative take on French cuisine. He became the sous chef at the Michelin-starred Les Fables de La Fontaine after seven years under Ducasse.
His first taste of the hotel industry was as the chef of the Hôtel & Spa L’Alta Peyra in Saint Veran. He joined the kitchens of La Maison 1888 in Danang, Vietnam, working closely with its creator, Pierre Gagnaire.
Chef Clair served up a storm at the recently-concluded Lunch with Hervé Clair, a clear indication of things to come at Mireio.
The 5-course meal started off with a pleasing appetizer, a slow-cooked octopus with white bean salad, lemon confit, and kalamata olives. The octopus was cooked to perfection, and the lemon confit tied everything together into an apt appetizer.
The Traditional Provençal pesto soup that followed was the perfect palate cleanser (apart from the accompanying wines, of course). It had the right amount of zing that prepared us for the mains that would soon fill our stomachs.
Chef Clair gave us two main courses that will not be leaving our memories anytime soon: a crispy braised pork belly and a succulent pan-seared salmon.
The pork belly was cooked to perfection: skin was crispy as advertised, the fricassée elevated the flavor of the pork to a different level, and the François Labet 2015 Pinot Noir helped bring out the pork even more.
The winner for us, though, was the pan-seared salmon. The simplicity of the dish made it stand out, with the salmon clearly standing head and shoulders above the dish. It served with wilted spinach, a tangy tomato confit, and virgin citrus sauce which only made things more interesting. The La Larme D’Or 2015 Chardonnay only added to how delicious the salmon was.
After a couple of filling mains, Chef Clair sent out what might be a dessert you will not forget. It may be a simple cream puff filled with salted caramel ice cream sprinkled with nougatine, but Manila’s dreaded summer heat only makes this dessert stand out from anything that doesn’t involve pastry and ice cream. (We wanted to ask for seconds, but held back because it might force us to loosen our belts even more.)
By the way, each of the dishes he served for lunch could be done in your own kitchen. He was kind enough to share his recipe for the pan-seared salmon!
All in all, Chef Clair has managed to take what Mireio is so good at and elevate it to new heights, all with the simplicity and elegance that Provençal cuisine highlights. Expect these and more the next time you step through the doors of Mireio, located on the ninth floor of Raffles Makati.
Written by Andronico Del Rosario
