Chef Chele González shows how bespoke catering is done

In an alternate universe of Manila, Chef José Luis “Chele” González would be regaling kith and kin with his culinary innovations in the parties that Korean actor Gong Yoo and I host. It’s a wonderful chance to savor the famed Chele “heaven in the bellies” experience because he has made his culinary expertise — initially reserved for a chosen few — available to everyone. 

The parties are imagined, but not Chele’s catering brands Deli by Chele Event Catering and Chele Catering, which he launched in March. On August 19, he held an exclusive dinner to showcase the brands at The Fifth at Rockwell.

Earlier Chele said,“I don’t know (public speaking) but I know how to cook. We started out catering for our friends’ parties, showing them the slow natural way of cooking. Now, my main goal is to create many different experiences through catering.”

Assisting Chele in his new venture are his wife Teri Echiverri, who brings 25 years of F&B experience; his partner-kitchen collaborator of 14 years Chef Carlos Villaflor; and beverage connoisseur Cyril Addison. 

Chele, who’s from Torrelevega in northern Spain, has been a Philippine resident since 2013. He started working locally in 5-star hotels like Shangri-La and Sofitel, where he handled high-profile banquets and celebrations. Apart from his new catering venture, he owns and operates Gallery by Chele, Asador Alfonso, and Deli by Chele.

Appetizers 

Chele opened the showcase with cocktails at 6 p.m., allowing his guests to shake off the early-evening-traffic vibe while whetting their appetites with welcome bites of Deli by Chele. (The bespoke casual dining brand features artisanal deli products that go into its popular signature sandwiches and Chef Carlos’ take on Filipino favorites.)

Half of The Fifth’s dining room was transformed into a garden with a beautiful mix of flowers and greenery. The other half was hidden behind a white curtain. There were two live stations on opposite sides of the room. (Sandwich bars and grazing tables were alternative setups.) The first station had gambas al ajillo and cured salmon carving on brioche toast. A chef stir-fried prawns in extra virgin oil, garlic, and chilies, then ladled them on the serving plate, while another placed sliced salmon on the square toasts, topped them with fish roe, and arranged them on the marble-like platform. 

That freshness is crucial to salmon and prawns obviously isn’t lost on Chele. The firm salmon partnered well with the crunchy brioche and pop-in-your-mouth ikura, while the fiery, succulent gambas was every spicy-loving foodie’s dream. (I’d like the piquancy brought two notches down.)

Station Two was popular among the guests who liked the Cebu lechon tacos — lechon with pickled onions, jalapeño, and cilantro in bite-size tortilla taco shell. I went for the juicy octopus inasal skewers, of which a stick wasn’t enough.

Drinks were calamansi juice or Aperol spritz for those who wanted a little buzz. Apart from the cocktail treats of cheese puff (creamy), scallop tartlet (tangy), and black truffle macaron (sweet), my imagined party would have a pasta station serving Carbonara (crispy pancetta, egg yolk, and Percorino Romano). Another option would be a grazing table with a cornucopia of cold cuts; manchego cheese; mango basil and spiced Palawan honey jams; sourdough toast and crackers; chicken pâté; tuna canapé; and quiche Lorraine.

Plated dinner 

Before 7 pm, Chef Chele told his team that the four-course dinner would start in five minutes. The lights dimmed and the white curtain parted, revealing elegantly set tables. Soft instrumental music played while everyone walked in. Billowy white fabric loosely crisscrossed the ceiling. The casual dining ambience had turned formal down to the table setting — plate card, numerous cutlery, napkin with a menu on top, and wine glasses. 

My gaze landed on Ryan Villamor (@ryanvillamormusic) playing the harp. The music wasn’t piped-in or looped, as I’d originally thought. Villamor was playing a medley of songs — Phil Collins’ You’ll be in my Heart, Frank Sinatra’s Fly Me to the Moon, Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons’ Can’t Take My Eyes Off of You, etc.

(In a brief DM exchange, Villamor said he learned to play the harp through online tutorials and has been playing it for more than a decade, leading him to build an extensive repertoire for his two-hour performances. Interestingly, he plays not only at social events. He’s a certified therapeutic harp practitioner and performs bedside therapeutic harp music for those in poor health. He received his certification from the International Harp Therapy Program in the United States.)

Signature menu 

Chele Catering, the premium arm of the catering brands, showcased signature menu dishes starting with tuna sashimi kinilaw in tiger’s milk, shisa and ikura. I knew about ikura but tiger’s milk was baffling, which soon became a learning moment with Google: Tiger’s milk is made from lime juice and used in ceviche.  

Wines paired with the dishes were Chilean Valdievieso Brut Rosé with the kinilaw; Argentinian Acordeón Torrontés 2022 with the grouper; and Spanish Chapillon Cuvée Harmonie Petit Verdat and Tannat with the tenderloin.

The second course was pan-seared grouper with uni, crab risotto, and cilantro emulsion. It was a wonderful balance between browned fish and creamy rice. Not that there’s anything wrong with grouper, but Gong Yoo and I like the dishes from the classic menu: seafood bisque with tiger prawn or blue crab (aligue emulsion with mushroom and herbs).

For the third course, Chele served grilled tenderloin with smoked kamote purée, potato fondant, and truffle beef jus. Gourmands delighted in the tenderloin’s buttery flavor, smoky notes from the grilling, and melt-in-your-mouth texture, but not with the medium-size serving portion (bigger was preferred). The tenderloin would remain on the menu in my fantasized party but there’d be a second option of seared duck breast with hibiscus sauce.

Chele’s sweet coup de grâce was coconut streusel with Chantilly and lime, which was fine. Frankly, my imagined party would have a dessert quartet of mini burnt basque cheese cake, mini bibingka cheesecake, chocnut tiramisu, and matcha and white chocolate macaron.

Undoubtedly, food brings people together, but innovative food plus refined atmosphere all the more make dining occasions enjoyable and memorable. Now, in the next party Gong Yoo and I would host in the parallel universe, Chef Chele can perhaps accede to my request of getting everyone to have fun on the floor with house and electronic sounds after dinner. I read somewhere that he was a DJ in another life.

For inquiries, contact Chele Catering at events@chelecatering.com or +63 9171602382. Follow their Instagram account @chelecatering.