Hand to Mouth, A Kamayan Dinner at Lamesa

Hand to Mouth, A Kamayan Dinner

Last week, I had the pleasure of enjoying my first Kamayan dinner at Lamesa, a Filipino restaurant on Queen St W in Toronto. This was truly one of the best meals I've had in my life. A Kamayan dinner is a family style feast that is laid out on banana leaves and where guests eat with their hands.

We watched, mesmerized, as Chefs/Artists Rudy Boquila and Joash Dy 'painted' the banana leaves with dish after dish after dish to create a beautiful painting. The painting was not only beautiful but it was a delicious mix of Filipino textures and flavours. A feast for the eyes and the tongue.

First the chefs painted sauces on the banana leaves. A bagoong (shrimp paste) caramel, garlic confit puree and their own version of sriracha which is a combination of red peppers and bird's eye chilies.  To the sauce base they began layering the following dishes: a green mango salad with a citrus vinaigrette, chicken lettuce cup,  garlic fried rice, pickled adobo egg, clams & mussels ginataan, grilled corn, bok choi, kale chips, bangus fish (a fish that was deboned and fried), oxtail kare, crispy adobo wings and ube cornbread. There were choruses of oohs and ahhs from the hungry guests after each addition....our hunger building with each dish. We all dove into the feast with abandon, licking our fingers with each bite. My favourites were the bangus fish and the crispy adobo wings but really, I loved all of it.

Lamesa is offering their Kamayan dinner every Sunday ($40/person). In their words it offers you "a unique Filipino experience that promises to engage your senses and leave you licking your fingers." I couldn't have said it better myself. Hurry and try this wonderful meal.

The memory of this dinner it will linger on you tongue and heart for a long time and make you long for the next one. Enjoy the photos!


They called this Tropical Treat. So good!
Hand to Mouth Menu

Head Chef Rudy Boquila

Sous Chef Joash Dy

Mango Salad with Citrus Vinaigrette

Another layer. Chef, plating the Chicken Lettuce Cups

Smiling Chef Rudy, plating the Garlic Rice

Bangus sitting on top of the Clams & Mussels

Crispy Adobo Wings with Grilled Corn

Oxtail Kare, so tender and flavourful

Ube Cornbread

All mine!

Finished table, a work of art

Feast

Pinkies up, Ladies.

Aftermath

2 comments:

Jo said...

Looks wonderful

Unknown said...

I want to go again!

 
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