Muy bueno! Flavors from a San Sebastian-trained chef
Young chef Kennedy Alfonso enters towards the end of our 13-dish lunch at Bueno Tapas & Wine, red and white sangria in hand, to raise a toast. The newest branch, located at One Maridien, 9th Ave., BGC, is another chapter for the San Sebastian-trained chef, opening in December 2023 and now adding new flavors to its authentically Spanish menu.
After launching at The Grove by Rockwell in 2017, the Bonifacio Global City branch allows chef Alfonso to do what he does best offer new food explorations inspired by Spain’s Basque region. His favorite signature dishes like arroz meloso de rabo de toro, estofado de res, and gambas al ajillo are still there, served in a modern-yet-warm urban setting, but today he’s unveiling new creations: a paella Iberico served with the black-hoofed Iberico pig; the artichoke paella; plus a smoked pulpo (not on the menu) served on a creamy bed of sauce with grilled asparagus and pulpy tomatoes.
These alone are worth a delicious meal, but we started with his perfect-to-the-letter take on gambas al ajillo, and a plate of manchego croquettes that were incredibly soft and creamy; then a plate of pan-seared scallops on a bed of sweet, somewhat tangy corn purée, served with two kinds of mushrooms that were as plump as the scallops were.
We ended the appetizers with what would normally be the coup de grâce to our appetites—a decadent roasted bone marrow served with herbed dip—but it was still just the beginning. The roasted bone marrow is a river of decadent delight, perfect when served on toasted bread, sprinkled with sea salt, then dipped into the herby sauce. You can forget about cholesterol levels for a while with this dish.
Next came the off-menu pulpo, served under smoky glass and best eaten right away (damn all of our pesky phone cameras) on even more toasted bread. The smoky flavor comes through in the soft octopus tentacles, which are tender to the bite.
Again, we forgot about blood tests and escaped into the main dish of chicharron, a two-way crispy pork belly served on a demi glacé bed of whipped potatoes. The outer crunch is perfectly crispy, the inside belly delicately soft.
We made room for chef Alfonso’s signature estofado de res, a Catalan-style 8-hour braised beef dish with a wonderfully fragrant sauce of 15 herbs.
There were few pesca-friendly dishes on this menu, but the salmon al horno—baked salmon served with Bueno’s signature sauce—brought some lightness to our palate. A refresher as we headed to a pair of paella dishes plus a hybrid Spanish risotto.
The artichoke paella was lifted by a sublime vegetable stock and smoky crust below, and we couldn’t get enough. Then came the paella Iberico, which is layered with slices of hard-to-find Iberico secreto, the thin, marbled cut of pork from the tender pig shoulder. “I recently launched it because I was able to get ahold of this unique ingredient, which we were lucky to find.” The padrón peppers, not usually found here, add a burst of picante as the server swirls in an egg yolk at the table.
Most Bueno Tapas ingredients—about 90 percent—are imported, and that attention to authentic Spanish flavors is chef Alfonso’s quest.
Take the oxtail creamy risotto, which uses paella aroz, but “when you bite it, you get a risotto-like experience.” A hybrid paella? Alfonso notes, “it’s actually common in Spain to serve it this way. We’re also not so used to eating oxtail.”
Likewise, the Biscoff Tarta de Queso requires some Spanish context. “Some don’t understand why the Basque cheesecake is not cooked all the way through,” the chef says. “It’s a challenge to promote the kind of dish that’s authentic to Spain. I tweak it a bit, adding Biscoff, adjust it to suit the Filipino market and palate.”
Chef Alfonso revisits San Sebastian whenever he can. “It’s majestic, you can find every single kind of tapas in the world, everything is found there.”
From northern Spain, to your BGC plate.
