4-hand dinner kicks off The Pen’s culinary plans in 2026

More collaborations in the works, plus a certain star is twinkling in Chef Carmignani’s eye

THE Peninsula Manila’s new Executive Chef, Remy Carmignani, has only been in his position for six months, but he already has a few tricks and big plans up his sleeve.

On Jan. 23, he hosted a two-night four-hands dinner at The Pen’s Old Manila with his former colleague in Paris, Anne-Sophie Nicolas, now chef de cuisine at Gaddi’s, the historic French restaurant at The Peninsula Hong Kong. Standing since 1953, Gaddi’s is one of the first restaurants in Hong Kong to serve haute French cuisine.

Combined, the pair has decades of culinary experience between them. Ms. Nicolas’ resume includes locations such as Le Meurice Paris, L’Atelier de Joël Robuchon Étoile, Restaurant Guy Savoy, and Ritz Paris, polishing her craft over 15 years. As for Mr. Carmignani, he can say that he’s worked with Philippe Groult (Assistant Culinary Arts Director and Head of the Cuisine Department at Le Cordon Bleu institute in Paris), Guy Savoy (Gordon Ramsay’s mentor), and Daniel Boulud (a celebrity chef with fame in New York’s Upper East Side) on his resume, with around 23 years of experience under his belt.

For the amuses-bouche, Mr. Carmignani came out with a tarama (a roe dip) stuffed in a cannoli with caviar, while Ms. Nicolas made salmon with a bavarois of Jerusalem artichoke. These were paired with a Barons de Rothschild Concordia Brut Champagne NV. The tarama was robust and earthy for a fish dish, and almost bitter in its powerful smokiness; the Champagne gave it some levity. The salmon was divine, and served as a counterpoint for Mr. Carmignani’s dish: as light as Monsieur’s was dark and heavy. The salmon was stretched over the paste of artichokes, and it felt like biting on a cloud. The salmon snapped with a bite like the skin on a drum, while the Champagne only highlighted the dish’s lightness.

Next came her Le King Crabe, a navette tart of king crab and caviar and lobster jelly. This was paired with a Grand Bateau Bordeaux Blanc Sec 2023 (the joke that the wine’s name means “big boat” paired with a little boat-tart wasn’t lost on us). The flavors of the seafood were very much alive, but otherwise elegantly restrained and not jumping out of the plate. The pairing, softly fruity, enhanced the dish’s elegance.

His Les Fagottini d’Agneau (that’s not a slur; it’s a filled pasta resembling a dumpling) was stuffed with lamb made a la Marocain (Moroccan-style), lightly simmered in a bath of lamb consommé, with winter truffles and splashed with coriander oil. It summarized all of the flavor of a tender lamb in a spoonful, and gave meaning to “tender” if it pertained to taste and not texture. The wine, a Chateau Branas Grand Poujeaux “Les Eclats de Branas” Moulis-en-Medoc Bordeaux 2017, rich with the scent of wood and incense and tasting heavily of spice, was a bit too strong for the dish; pairing it with the Grand Bateau gave the dish some hints of cream and butter.

Next came another of his dishes, Le Turbot, with the fish arriving poached with seasonal mushrooms, celeriac textures, cockles, and the Binchotan-grilled fish barbels. The fish was divine; the flesh creamy in taste and texture. This was paired with a juicy Domaine de Vernus Regnie Cru de Beaujolais 2022, amplifying the fish’s creaminess.

Her main dish was Le Pigeon, a roasted pigeon breast, a confit of the bird’s leg, and a red wine sauce made with the bird’s liver and heart. Very indulgent, and the bird tasting strongly (pleasantly) of innards, it had a very robust flavor. This was paired with a Troplong Mondot Saint Emilion Bordeaux 2021, also a bit too strong for our taste, but the wine paired with the lamb tempered the more forward qualities of the pigeon.

Due to all this indulgence, we contented ourselves with moving around the dessert, Ricotta di pecora gelato, Sicilian pistachio Chantilly, meringue drops, and lemon gel around our plate. The few spoonfuls we had were paired with a Pizzolato Moscato Dolce Muse Veneto NV (far too rich and sweet to go together, in our opinion), but it paired beautifully with the initial Champagne.

DISCUSSING PLANS FOR THE PEN
After dinner, we talked with Ms. Nicolas about her experiences working at Gaddi’s, one of Hong Kong’s most-storied restaurants. “You get a little pressure, and a push to do better,” she said. “I try to keep the style as French as possible.”

French women are said to have “je ne sais quoi”: a quality hard to pinpoint that completes them. What she brings to the kitchen might be able to answer what is there to “sais” (know). “When I create a dish, I use my memory to find the inspiration,” she said.

As for Mr. Carmignani, he told us about his plans for the hotel: he’s tweaking the menus for Old Manila, Spices, The Lobby, and completely revamping the menu at the Pen Boutique. His big plans include improving the in-room dining selections. “All of the outlets available in in-room dining,” he said, with challenges such as logistics — some dishes just don’t travel well.

He’s looking forward to more collaborations: “I’m always learning something new,” he said in a group interview. “If you don’t learn, especially in the kitchen, you can’t go that far.”

More collaborations planned this year, as part of a series, are with chefs from Peninsula properties around the region: forthcoming are collaborations with chefs from Tokyo and Bangkok.

At the same time, he’s busy planning for The Pen’s 50^th anniversary this year (he’s keeping it under wraps, but old names might make a comeback).

That should help in his goal for this year: earning a Michelin star for Old Manila. “We want to get the star,” he said, but that shouldn’t arrive at the expense of the real job at hand. “The most important part is for the guests to come back. If our guests come back, for us, it’s a big win — meaning, we have done the job well.”

Still, “I think it’s the right moment in the Philippines to come and express yourself.” — Joseph L. Garcia