A sweet harmony

A BEAUTIFUL G cleft chocolate centerpiece greeted us as we made our way inside the Feria of Radisson Blu Hotel Cebu in the SM commercial complex. A closer look revealed an intricately crafted work of art made of pure chocolate.

Janarie Vasquez, Radisson Blu Hotel’s marketing program coordinator, met us and apologized for the slight delay of pastry chef Sonny Joanino who was wrapping up an important meeting. Assistant marketing communications director Mina Gervacio was having a late lunch so I took the opportunity

to thank her for the toothsome box of assorted

pastries that included

my favorite French macarons, all made by Pastry Chef Sonny, that was delivered at home.

Pastry chefs are artists whose creativity creates a feast for the eyes and the senses. This is the artistry that is best expressed in the dessert course of culinary arts. We all know that while expressing their creativity as artists, pastry chefs must adhere to an exacting procedure in baking and making pastries. Precision is the key to baking cakes and pastries, right temperature for making frostings and innumerable critical details that determine the success of preparing desserts.

Pastry Chef Sonny gave up a college degree in exchange for work as a casual waiter in The Manila Hotel where he started to hone his artistry. He moved up as a chocolatier in 1987, one of the sensitively delicate tasks that need skill and experience to master making confectioneries and desserts made out of chocolate. His work with The Confiserie Inc. for three years prepared Chef Sonny for his pastry career in five-star hotels. He joined the Shangri-La group and eventually became sous pastry chef in its Makati hotel.

During our pleasant afternoon tete-a-tete, Chef Sonny revealed that he is a musician, too. A devout Christian and a family man, he uses his musicality to play the base guitar in their church services. His musicality is reflected in his pastry creations like the beautiful G cleft centerpiece. Chef Sonny says he derives inspiration for his pastry creations from his love for music. He is also a native of Pampanga so his culinary roots are deep. He loves what he does and this paved his way up in a few more five-star hotels until he became pastry chef of The Intercontinental Hotel Manila in 2008. His course at the Condirama, a training center for confectioners and pastry chefs in Schywz, Switzerland, honed his natural flair for desserts. As his pastry career progressed, he garnered so many culinary awards in prestigious culinary competitions like the Philippine Culinary Cup Chocolate and Ice Cream Melee’s Live Chocolate Decorating, Philippine Culinary Cup’s Live Cake decorating and National Food Showdown’s Plated Dessert, to name a few. He was also named Intercon’s Employee of the year (Managerial level) in 2010. He joined the Radisson Blu Hotel Cebu last February.

The afternoon was sugar-loaded as we

indulged in a few of his exquisite dessert

creations—White Chocolate Passion Fruit Mouse, Pistachio Opera Cake (French cake with layers of pistachio sponge cake soaked in coffee, ganache and covered with chocolate and pistachio glaze), Sugar-free Chocolate Mueslix Mousse with Vanilla Sauce Topping, Chocolate Hazelnut Tartlets, the Profiteroles (cream puff) filled with strawberry ice cream.