Juan Carlo the Caterer: Press Conference for Wedding and Debut Fair 2012

Juan Carlo the Caterer: Press Conference for Wedding and Debut Fair 2012
by Nicole

As an ambassador of the Manila Foodistas (muwahahaha! :D), I went to the press conference for the Wedding and Debut Fair 2012 held at Plaza Ibarra in Timog last January 12. One of the major highlights of this event was a taste of the food from Juan Carlo the Caterer.

Born in 1995, Juan Carlo the Caterer is a Batangas-based catering business. They are known as the "caterer to the stars." I'm not a star hence it's no surprise that it was the first time that I've heard of them. Anyway, their clients included Regine and Ogie (when they got married), Sharon Cuneta (a regular customer), and the most recent were singer Kyla and basketball player Rich Alvarez also on their wedding. (Wow! I didn't even know that those two got married already! Yes ladies and gents, I live in a different kind of world).

So okay, let's get down to food.

Hors d'oeuvres (I'd rather call 'em munchies)

For the starter, they had this interesting chicken croquettes. Oh I liked their croquettes! Their version was not the usual oily, tasteless fried food but rather it was flavourful, not dry, and how I liked that it had a hint of spicyness.

Chicken Croquettes

The other munchies served were these mini tacos. I'm not a caterer so perhaps my comments would not be that much reliable but that won't stop me from commenting ha ha! In my opinion, tacos are really challenging to serve in any kind of catering because tacos, when served like this in this photo, go soggy right away.

Mini tacos

Salad/Vegetable

In a western setting, salad is served after the main course (except for the United States and England where I read it's normally served in between the appetizer and the soup). They didn't have salad at the event but I sure loved this buttered vegetable! Not overcooked (vegetables were still crispy)  and the butter was not overpowering - just the way I wanted it.

Buttered Vegetables

Main Course

Here comes the meat! How do I summarize these entrées? Three words: tender, juicy, and flavorsome!

Goat Kalderetang Batangas

This kalderetang kambing (goat) was a sure winner! The meat was very tender, juicy, and it's not swimming in oil. I really, really liked this dish! Really good! So happy to find a Filipino dish on the menu too.

Chicken Masala

It's the first time I ate this Chicken Masala. After googling it, I found out that this is an Indian food - no wonder it tastes like Indian curry. I like this one too because it's savory - not bland neither pungent. The chicken is very tender.

Salmon

 Okay, I forgot to note the name of this dish. One thing is certain - this is salmon, a perfectly cooked salmon - you would love how beautifully pink it was! This is yummy! I'll ask my mother to cook this. :)

Pork Geneva Style

Geneva - a city in Romandy, the French-speaking part of Switzerland. This pork dish has cheese, banana, and topped with parsley.

Ox Tongue with Buttered Mushroom

I can't remember the last time I ate lengua or tongue in English. The lengua was also tender. I liked the sauce! It's not salty - just right for my taste buds. And that cute cake icing-looking design (?) surrounding the meat is actually mashed potatoes :D

DESSERTS

I'm not into sweets so it's a little bit hard for me to comment on these desserts. I'll try my best though.

I forgot to try this one! Those cherries and grapes looked fresh! It has kiwi on it too.


Sansrival with Pistachio nuts

Not a fan of their sansrival. I guess this would be yummier if served chilled.

This dessert is the most unforgettable! All along I thought these were little brownies BUT NO! What a sneaky dessert! Ha ha! The base was like that of a bar of chocolate with lots of sugar topped with cherries, cornflakes, raisins, and nuts (I believe almonds).



Fruit Jelly

Aside from fruit jellies, they had buko pandan too - the one I chose to try. It was sweet.

Buko Pandan

My plates

When I was growing up (well actually until recently) my eating habit was eat everything that's edible but. . . times have changed. I've turned myself into a picky eater basically because of  all those diseases that you could get from eating the wrong food. I remember one sage said, "people don't die of terrorism and violence. We kill ourselves by a spoon and a fork." So why on earth am I saying this? Well, this was the reason why on my plate, as you can see, I only got tiny servings - just to taste actually and not to waste if I didn't like it.

At any rate, I sure liked the food! The service was okay too. Now I know why Juan Carlos is famous among the celebrity people.

The Venue

This was one of the rooms in Plaza Ibarra where the press con for bridal and debut fair of 2012 was held. The set-up was very western.

Juan Carlo the Caterer is a major sponsor to the Weddings & Debuts 2012 Bridal Fair. This event will be held from February 17 to 19, 2012 at the SM Megatrade Halls 1, 2, and 3. Their press release says that anybody can get free entrance to this event by simply logging on to www.weddingsanddebuts.com.ph or texting your name to 0915 811 7839.

The souvenir

They gave each attendee these goodies - Chile red wine, press release stuff (photos, print info and a CD), aaannnddd gift cheques!



Speaking of gift cheques, Manila Foodistas will be giving away these gift cheques worth 500 pesos to the one fantabulous winner! :D

Here's how:

a Rafflecopter giveaway


Juan Carlo the Caterer
Address and Phone Number

Manila Office
24B 11th Jamboree St. Tomas Morato Quezon, City
Tel No. (02) 929 - 3674 |(02) 416 - 5134    
Telefax No.(02) 920-8068