Buffet at Spectrum in Fairmont Hotel Makati, Philippines

When Manila opened its door in welcoming prestigious name Fairmont Hotel which was built in Makati City decades ago, food lovers got excited with the premium buffet restaurant that comes with it.  This new addition to five star luxury hotels in the Philippines gave birth to Spectrum Restaurant, one of the new hotel buffet dining places in Manila.

Weeks after its opening, we paid a visit at Spectrum in Fairmont Hotel Makati to sample their dinner buffet right after our leisurely pre-dinner cocktail at the famed Long Bar at Raffles Makati.

Spectrum’s ambiance exudes comfort and classy flair without overbearingly so.  Considering it is an in-house restaurant of a luxurious hotel, the place has a welcoming vibes as oppose the usual intimidating bordering into snobbish look of hotel restaurants. 

In reference to its name, Spectrum offers range of flavors distributed in different spreads and buffet stations for the diners’ delight.  It does not just boast of variety of dishes, but of open kitchens in some of the stations as well. This kind of setting encourages an interactive dining experience for the guests.

Food variety at Spectrum is not as wide as other well known hotel buffets here in Manila, but it carries decent choices meant not just to satiate one’s hunger but to satisfy the palate even more so.  

Some of the food stations included are; Cheese and Cold Cuts Station, Salad Station, Bread Station, Seafood Station, Tandoori Station, Carving Station, Hot Dishes Station, Pasta Station, Noodles Station, Sushi Bar, Dimsum Station, Dessert Station, Honey Station, and others.

Since Spectrum encourages interactive dining experience, there are some dishes prepared as ordered and will be served by the chefs on the guests’ tables. This will give chance for guests to interact with the assigned chef regarding the food and the preparation itself.   

While spreads of savory dishes are noteworthy, Spectrum’s dessert stations are certainly not to be missed. They boast of using local ingredients in preparing some of the delectable sweets included in the spread.  

One remarkable thing that separate Spectrum from other hotel buffet is their fresh Honey Section where guests can see live bees at work alongside fresh honey infused with different flavors such as French vanilla, star anise, fig and apricot, local cinnamon, sunflower, and more.  When visiting the station, there are two things that you should not miss; honeycomb on chocolate cups and pistachio mascarpone with honey drizzle.

I am not really crazy about extremely wide variety of buffet spread, especially those that will take you a lifetime before sampling every station. I am more particular with the quality of food as compare to the quantity so Spectrum fits the bill for me. No, I was not able to try everything on each stations but what I have devoured were all satisfying.

My feasts:

My first plate which I would like to call "downright pretentious plate" composed mostly of fish. There were assorted sushi, smoked salmon which I am crazy about, and the savory fish pastry dish which name escaped my mind, sorry. 

Second plate was all about cold cuts. I was tempted to thrown in some variety of cheese but I down another cup of the pistachio mascarpone so, I skip the cheese.

This plate of sinful goodness was shared with some of my foodie friends because well, I fear for my life yah know? I have a long way to go on other stations so this one, I'd rather share. Suckling pig, lechon macau, and peking duck. 

Seafood plate was also shared because I heard prawns are high in cholesterol and I am not really crazy about clams.

Trio of pasta which wasn't my plate but I do get to sample couple of spoonful each. I love the pesto, but I'm not crazy about the other two.

My plate of Caprese Salad lacked some greens but I really don't mind because the buffalo cheese were so good that I could eat this salad forever even on my death bed.

Personalized pizza although very good was also shared with others because carbo loading is not good at night time, believe me.

I have already stuffed myself silly by the time we reached dessert time but I cannot leave Spectrum without having a taste of these cute and yummy little cakes. I would have to say that Spectrum is really good in dishing out desserts.

If you're not into cakes, Spectrum also has crepe station where chef assigned can whip up great tasting crepe concoction that will blow your mind away. Photo below wasn't my plate, I just grab a bite or two from ms. dekaphobe's.

When we were at The Long Bar, one of the attendant mentioned that Bloody May at Spectrum was good and we should try it.  I've had enough drinks during the pre-dinner cocktail so, I just took a sip from Mr. Hefty Foodie's glass and I could say that it was good.  

Aside from dinner buffet, Spectrum also offers breakfast and lunch buffet which I will definitely try soon. Food choices are not as big as other hotel buffets I have been to but the quality of food is impressive. Service is warm and welcoming but still very professional.  As a new player in the field, Spectrum started strong and I am impressed. I am looking forward to trying out more of their dishes and having some of my favorites again the next time I visit.

Spectrum Buffet Prices and Business Hours
 

Breakfast:     6:00am to 10:00am, Mondays to Fridays
                   6:00am to 11:00am, Weekdays and Holidays
                   PHP 1,336 net (inclusive of service charge and applicable taxes)

Lunch:          11:30am to 2:30 pm daily
                   PHP  1,596 net (inclusive of service charge and applicable taxes)

Dinner:         6:00pm to 10:00pm daily
                   PHP 1,842 net (inclusive of service charge and applicable taxes)

*Buffet is inclusive of coffee and tea.

Spectrum at Fairmont Hotel Makati
1 Raffles Drive, Makati Ave.
Makati City, Philippines
Contact No.: 555-9750

Website: www.fairmont.com/makati
Facebook Page: www.facebook.com/FairmontMakati
Twitter: www.twitter.com/FairmontMakati