AFTER several smash hit collaborations this year (there’s Manila Sushi Chef on one of their floors, a chef from their Hong Kong sister upstairs, Le Petit Chef, and The Magic Table), the Grand Hyatt Manila is showing off its latest cooperative endeavor, though the partnership already runs deep.
For the whole month of October, Michael Harris Conlin, a constant finalist at the World Barista Championship (making him the best barista in the Philippines) is showing off his coffee prowess at the Grand Hyatt Manila’s Florentine. While he won’t be there physically (we saw him at the opening day on Oct. 1), his machines and his new gadget, The Better Vessel, will be there, making it seem like it passed through his hands.
The exclusive menu begins with Better Espresso, a championship espresso course designed to highlight enhanced sweetness, clarity, and texture. Better Iced AeroChino, priced at P180 net, offers a refreshing reinterpretation of the iced Americano.
The party began with the Better Milk Course, featuring his competition-level Fusion Milk, a secret way of processing milk (there’s mixing together powdered evaporated milk, and a few more tricks) combining that with an espresso.
There’s also the Better Signature Mocktail, a World Barista Championship-inspired non-alcoholic beverage featuring clarified ube and melon-infused soda with 48-hour Liberica cold brew.
The experience also includes a limited selection of Grand Hyatt Manila coffee beans and drinking chocolate presented in tins, with selected items available for purchase.
When he says better, well, he has a little gizmo to prove it. All of the coffee served had gone through his Better Vessel, something he designed last year and has used in his coffee competitions. Resembling a standard filter operation, a ball and valve mechanism at the bottom helps filter out the crema, the foam that appears on top of espresso. While sometimes desirable (it marks a “real” espresso), Mr. Conlin said during the tasting that the crema contains carbon dioxide and other volatile oils, “Which get in the way of tasting coffee.”
“By removing it, you reveal more of the quality of the coffee,” he added.
The impetus for its design came from an observation from his son, who remarked that he would lose time (and points) by manually scooping out the crema. “It gives people a different experience,” said Mr. Conlin.
Aside from helping more coffee enthusiasts like himself, the Better Vessel is also a nice add-on to people who receive gifts of coffee (either good or bad). “This helps the bad coffee taste a little better,” he said.
Mark Hagan, director of F&B for the Grand Hyatt Manila, noted the deep partnership between the hotel and Mr. Conlin. He supplies their coffee, and at their opening, also sold them their coffee machines. Mr. Hagan remarked that in the 10 or so years that they’ve been operating, only one machine has broken down (and Mr. Conlin repaired it).
On the hotel’s part, they helped plant some of the coffee bushes that go into Mr. Conlin’s The Giving Café, which helps coffee farmers in Benguet with a portion of their proceeds.
Remarking upon the many collaborations they’ve had over the year, Mr. Hagan said, “It’s good to work with people who are passionate.”
Items in the menu are priced between P150 to P360. — Joseph L. Garcia