Inspiring, imaginative dishes
WITH her pretty looks, Sarrita Colmenares Pimentel or Sarree should be in the limelight and not spend most of her time whipping up creative dishes in a kitchen. But cooking is this woman’s real passion, to delight the palate, her mission.
At Café Sarree, located in the new Escario Central Mall along Escario Street in Kamputhaw, Cebu City, Sarree’s culinary creations (comfort foods, she calls them) are setting ripples of delightful satisfaction among diners. This homey café with catchphrase “with a side of home” opened in September 2012.
Sarree is married to Jacob Pimentel whose family and partners own Terre D’Or Realty Corporation’s Escario Central Mall, Escario Central Hotel and St. Mark Hotel. Her mother-in-law Nanette, a retired banker, was one of our top clients during my hotel career in Montebello Villa Hotel many years ago. Nanette and Sarree hosted lunch at Cafe Sarree Saturday prior to my flight to San Diego, California to visit my mother before heading to New York. The mention of New York got Sarree all excited since her mother lives in the Big Apple where she is engaged in food business. Sarree says her mother is an excellent chef who continues to inspire her. In fact, Sarree finds the time to visit her mother and always learns something new while in New York.
Lunch started with one of her best sellers–Liver Pate with Cranberries and My Mother’s Dips, which consisted of small servings of olive tapenade, humus and satocello, a delicious mix of mushrooms and garlic in olive oil. Sarree’s humus was chunky, not the usual creamy blended chickpeas (garbanzos). Enjoying the dips, I listened as Sarree relates how she’s been into cooking since she was eight years old. Her father hails from Bacolod and that’s where she lived for several years. And because she loves cooking, she thought about opening a catering business, Good Eats. But still, wanting to polish her natural flair, she enrolled at La Salle Bacolod International Culinary Arts where she obtained a two-year Diploma in 2008.
Her Grilled Shrimp and Mesclun Salad followed the dips, a refreshing bowl of mixed greens tossed in balsamic vinaigrette with mango chunks and feta cheese that complemented the grilled shrimps. The followed a French open-faced sandwich, Smoked Salmon Tartines on a bed of arugula, before a few of the entrees she selected from her menu. Sarees cooking is greatly influenced by her mother; in fact, she named a few of her dished after her, like Jambalaya ala Mama, a rich stew of Hungarian sausage and chorizo in tomato sauce, herbs and spices served with Jambalaya Rice. Sarree’s Lamb Adobo served with steamed rice was very tasty with the characteristic lamb flavor I like. Delicately crunchy was the golden Adobo Flakes on Rice, a favorite of her family. Sarree cautioned us about the last dish which was a bit spicy—White Fish Ranchera, a Cream Dory in tomato sauce with chili flakes, cumin and cilantro.
Sarree’s desserts, displayed prominently in the café, were glorious tasting. We shared three different heavenly creations, all in dainty glass cups: Chocolate Pot de Crème, classic chocolate pudding with velvety French custard; Mango Trifle, layers of sponge cake, crispy meringue, mango and mango sauce and Tiramisu, the classic Italian delight with layers of chiffon cake (instead of lady fingers), coffee liqueur and cream. A nice cup of freshly brewed coffee capped our splendid lunch.
