by Allain Dumon Fonte

Christmas is unstoppable; and, as we draw closer to Christmas day, the scent of this joyous season fills the air, and the sounds of celebrations fill the homes and streets of Cebu. Invitations for pre-Christmas celebrations are overflowing; from intimate soirées to grand gatherings. Yet, one invitation came that I could not miss, and would not dare to miss. It was the bai Hotel Cebu’s Glistening Christmas.

The University of Cebu Chorale serenaded the guests with timeless Christmas carols.

bai Hotel Cebu is one of the Queen City’s newest hotels, with modern-designed interiors and world-class facilities; plus, the Instagram-worthy views of the deck pool and pool bar, it is truly the next destination for your ‘staycation’. The hotel’s most accommodating and friendliest staff are led by a hospitality and tourism veteran, Mr. Alfred Reyes, who is the hotel’s general manager and vice-president for operations. Hence, the hotel is branded as Cebu’s friendliest. And true to their standards of excellence, the hotel has yet surprised all of its guests and partners with a glistening Christmas celebration.

FROM LEFT Alfred Reyes, Angelie Lua-Domingo, Danilo Lua and Mandaue City Mayor Jonas Cortes

The Glistening Christmas welcomed about five hundred guests, and was attended by Cebu City’s elite personalities. The celebration started with the symbolic lighting of the Christmas tree in the lobby area. The Christmas tree was lit by bai Hotel Cebu’s general manager, Mr. Alfred Reyes; bai Hotel Cebu’s founder, Mr. Danilo Lua; and the mayor of the City of Mandaue, the Hon. Jonas Cortes. While everyone was enjoying the cocktails, canapés, and the Christmas carols by the University of Cebu chorale, our gracious hostess, the president of bai Hotel Cebu, Miss Angelie Lua-Domingo, invited everyone to the Lapu-Lapu Grand Ballroom for the celebration’s formal reception.

“In bai Hotel, we always innovate to create something special because the guests that we serve are special.” -Chef Mel Lopez

The ballroom was magical, as it was adorned with flamboyant centerpieces and an array of cheese selections. It felt like I died and went to cheese heaven. The guests were treated with selections from cheddar cheese, American cheese, provolone to gruyere, rogue river blue, caciovallo podolico, bitto, and white silton selections. And if there is cheese, wine flows. Although, I am not a big fan of wines, but how can I say no to a fine chardonnay when there is a gruyere; neither to a quality sauvignon when there is an aged gouda. The chef really knows how to please his guests. While I was looking for the talented chef to personally congratulate him; little did I know that the chef was busy preparing for a show. bai Hotel Cebu’s corporate executive chef, Mel Lopez, presented a one-of-a-kind gastro-orgasmic exhibition when he formally opened the cheese platter buffet by subliming the solid carbon dioxide. What happened next was magic; the cheese buffet station was covered with crawling mist, making the cheese platters appeal to be floating on the mist. I stood in ovation and congratulated Chef Lopez; he gratefully responded, “In bai Hotel, we always innovate to create something special because the guests that we serve are special.” I could not agree more, as I can feel the incomparable hospitality from the moment I walked in to the hotel.

The night continued with more canapés and non-stop service of beverages. However, I broke my strict diet routine with the egg and bacon canapés. I have to commend Chef Lopez again for the extraordinarily delicious egg and bacon canapé. It may be commonly served in most events that I have attended; but this one truly tastes different and has set the bar higher in the canapé category.  While I was particularly noticing the details of the intricacy of the food preparations, the rest of the ballroom was entertained by the Broadway Youth Cebu. The performers took us from Broadway to West End with their renditions of songs from our favourite musicale theatre shows. I am impressed with the great pool of talents that Cebu has to offer. Perhaps, Mel Brooks, David Geffen, or Cameron Mackintosh should stage their next productions in Cebu with these amazing talents. It was just disappointing that they did not perform any song from the musicale, “the Christmas Schooner”; yet, their total performance was of class A standards.

The night concluded with the awarding of bai Cebu Hotel’s business partners. This is a very good gesture of acknowledging the people who made bai Hotel Cebu a-must-visit hotel in the span of two years. I, however, ended my night with a big smile on my face; perhaps it was the wine, or may be the cheese; but, there is one thing that I am sure of, I know it was the smiles of the staff of bai Hotel Cebu that also made me smile. Yes! It was indeed a Glistening Christmas.