AFTER 17 years, I finally set foot on Davao soil again Thursday last week (September 19, 2013), and it was upon the invitation of The French Baker’s founder and chief executive officer Johnlu Koa, who was opening his 51st store at the posh SM Lanang Premier in Davao City that evening. Johnlu, whom I have known since I was just starting in my publishing career, was very proud and excited about this new store, and so he wanted his media friends to be there to personally witness its opening. His publicist, Rosbel Buñag, thus organized a group of Manila-based media people, and my husband Raff and I were lucky to be part of it.
The French Baker had actually opened its first store in Mindanao 10 months ago, also at SM Lanang Premier, but it’s a much smaller store, located inside the mall in an open-air setup. This new French Baker store, which was opened last week, was a bigger store, occupying 384.47 square meters of floor space, and it’s at the Fountain Court of SM Lanang Premier, where the longest fountain in the Philippines can be found. So there’s a little bit of outside seating, where diners can enjoy the mall’s vibrantly colorful and enchantingly musical dancing fountain show outdoors while having Le The D’Apres Midi (Afternoon Tea), dinner or coffee for a night cap . The sight is equally magnificent during the day, with huge letters in big, bright colors standing in front of the fountain and spelling out the word ‘DAVAO’ to constantly remind you that you are, indeed, in Davao.
With its opening, the new store also introduces both a new look for a French Baker store and a new concept with two new features.
The new store’s interiors had been inspired by Johnlu’s many trips abroad, especially his regular trips to France and the rest of Europe to continuously update himself on the latest in French baking and café dining. And so the dining areas of the new store are made up of dining nooks and areas that resemble lounges, waiting areas in an airport, hotel lobbies and even French gardens. So guests can just go and find a table that exudes the ambiance they like and enjoy a good meal in the company of family and/or friends.
The store’s new concept is anchored around two new features – the Patisserie and the Salon de The (Tea Salon). Yes, The French Baker now has a Patisserie capable of producing delectable pastries at any time of the day. It has expanded beyond its comfort zone – that of baking breads – and ventured into cake and pastry making. The new store at SM Lanang Premier’s Fountain Court showcases a Patisserie, where diners can find a showcase of specialty pastries, including Swan Puffs (decoratively formed swan-shaped puffs baked from cream puff dough, filled with traditional pastry cream and dusted with powdered sugar), Charlotte (lady finger sponge cake with petite gateau (mini cake) filled with diplomat cream, strawberry coulis and fruits in season), Chocolate Concorde (chocolate meringue wafers sandwiched with concorde cream made with chocolate ganache), Le Gateau Sans Rival (crunchy meringue discs sandwiched with pure traditional buttercream icing and topped with toasted cashew nuts), moist and delicious Carrot Cake Bars, Pear Tartlet (sweet custard tart topped with slices of pears and almond frangipane cream), Fruit Tartlet (with assorted fruit cubes set on top of traditional pastry cream on a chocolate sweet-crusted tart pastry), and more.
The Patisserie of course has French Macarons available in Rose Scented, Chocolate, Pistachio, Fleur de Sel, Lemon Lavender, Orange Ganache, Chocolate Ganache, Raspberry and Mocha flavors.
A number of these specialty pastries were made available to guests during opening night. After the formal rites of ribbon-cutting, symbolic presentation of a giant French baguette by The French Baker founder to Department of Tourism’s regional director Art Boncato, and a short speech, Johnlu even took to the Patisserie and conducted demos on making Swan Puffs, French Macarons and the craze of the hour, Cronuts.
As for the other new feature that the new French Baker store has just introduced, the Tea Salon, the place comes equipped with a gold-plated Samovar where fresh water is warmed to its ideal temperature before infusing the tea leaves. The French Baker sources its tea leaves from the best estates in the world, including China, India, Sri Lanka and Taiwan, and it also uses blended tea leaves from the famous tea houses in France.
The wide selection of teas available include Jasmine Flowers, Sencha Extra Special and Moroccan Mint (Green Teas); Tie Guan Yin and Dragon Pearl (Oolong Teas); Brilliant Breakfast, Singles Estate Assam and Darjeeling (Black Teas); Original Earl Grey, Rose with French Vanilla, Blueberry & Pomegranate, and Italian Almond (Flavored Black Teas); and Pure Chamomile Flowers, Black Forest, Fruit Tea and Pure Peppermint leaves (Infusion Teas).
The new French Baker store is also equipped with an in-store Hot Bakery, which churns out fresh batches of breads at different times of the day.
More than just breads and pastries, though, The French Baker is now also remarkably strong in savory dishes. There are all-day breakfast choices, including Panof Pancakes, Croque Madames, French Toasts and Eggs Benedict, freshly prepared by the kitchen staff in the Open Kitchen upon order; as well as rice and pasta meals whose sumptuous choices include Roasted Spanish Garlic Chicken, Beef Burgundy, French Classical Chicken Fricassee and Squid Ink Pasta.
During the formal opening rites of The French Baker at SM Lanang Premier last week, guests feasted on a sumptuous dinner that began with a Bread Basket Served with Chicken Liver Paté, Chutney and Relish for appetizer; Tuna Salad and Sweet Corn Chowder served at the table; and buffet selections of Squid Ink Pasta, Ravioli, Cochinillo, Fried Chicken, Beef Burgundy and Salt Crust Baked Bass with Herbed Rice and Chorizo Rice.
Everyone in the media group had his fill of The French Baker’s A French Night to Remember before calling it a day and heading back to Park Inn by Radisson, which was just across SM Lanang Premier, for a peaceful slumber after a busy day.
