Post-Anniversary Lunch at 7 Corners, Crowne Plaza Manila Galleria

Along with Christmas and birthdays in the family, our anniversary is one of our "dedicated to family" dates. But this year, it coincided with the observance of Holy Week, so we decided to just celebrate it a week or two later.

Just before our anniversary came up, I was browsing through an online buying site when I chanced upon a deal for lunch buffet at 7 Corners Crowne Plaza Manila Galleria. Now, I'm really not into buying stuff online, but sometimes I see some deals that really pique my interest. And with our anniversary coming up, I thought, why not celebrate it with a bit of posh? Still, it took a lot of procrastinating and waiting until the last moment before I finally purchased those coupons since even at a discount, it was pricier than our usual buffet fare. I could almost hear the "ka-ching!" of the cash register as I clicked that button to finalize my purchase, haha!

Two weeks later, off to Ortigas we went with the little boss (who fortunately was having another free meal due to his age *wink*). As we entered 7 Corners, I noticed that the place was not even half-full and looked like it could use some improvements in decor. But then, I'm no interior decorator, so for all I know the old feel could be part of the place's charm.

7 Corners Crowne Plaza Manila Galleria

Guests will be greeted by this wine display at the entrance

The hostess led us to our table, verified our coupons, and wished us a nice lunch. As my habit whenever I'm trying out a new buffet place, I took the little boss with me to make a survey of the food selections while hubby clicked away with his camera. I have read reviews about 7 Corners, and I already have an idea of how big their spread was. Still, I was a little surprised at what I saw. Bearing in mind the regular price of their lunch buffet, I was expecting more than what they had that day. Now, I always make it a point to veer away from saying negative things about a place, but in this case, I think a little constructive criticism wouldn't hurt.

Their famed US Ribeye, which was touted to be worth more than the price of the buffet, was there, along with a few side dishes and three or four other cooked dishes. Then there was the pasta station, the Mongolian, Indian, seafood, and Japanese sections. There was also a section for bread, pizza and some appetizers and cheese, and another section for dessert composed of cakes, fruits and ice cream.

The carving and cooked dishes section

US Ribeye, said to be worth more than the price of the buffet

Mongolian section

Japanese and seafood sections

Seafood with an array of sauces

A small assortment of cheese

Bread

Dessert Section

Although the buffet can be considered complete (all the basics were there), it still felt like the selection was limited. Aside from the ribeye (which was as good as they claimed it to be), the only items I got were a lobster, a couple of shrimps, some soup, teeny slices of cheese, and a bit of cooked fish for the little boss. I was actually looking forward to the lobster since I haven't tried it due to my food allergy, but after asking the chef to grill it with lemon and butter and getting plain grilled lobster that tasted like it had been boiled in water and lost all flavor, I didn't bother getting another one. Hubby got some Japanese fare but didn't go back for seconds which told me he wasn't impressed with what he got. And this is the only Japanese section I've seen that didn't have tempura.  (I was informed much later that it was only served during weekday dinner and weekends. Huh?). Nearing the end of our meal, we saw the lechon at the back counter of the section directly in front of us, but by that time we were quite disappointed with what we had that we didn't bother getting any. 

US Ribeye, good but not really worth all that hassle

Lobster and shrimps. Didn't get any more after this.

At the dessert section, we were in for more disappointment as the sever informed us that the chocolate cakes in the chiller were for display purposes only. Guests are allowed to get only those at the open counter. So we settled for a couple of little cakes which we weren't able to finish despite their teeny size, and a cone filled with chocolate mousse that didn't really taste like chocolate mousse but the little boss enjoyed as he thought it was ice cream in a cone. Hubby managed to cajole one server to give him a mousse in a shot glass for his photos, though. (Days later, he management clarified that the cakes in question were for ala carte orders and not part of the buffet offering. But as it was displayed in the chiller along with cakes that were part of the buffet, how was I to know that? Plus the server said the cakes were for display only.)

The dessert plate that hubby and I shared but didn't finish, with
the little boss enjoying his chocolate mousse cone in the background

At the ice cream section, I asked for two flavors of ice cream to be mixed with toppings at the teppanyaki board, as this was one the features that merited special mention in the details of the 7 Corners buffet. But after scooping out one flavor, the server handed the cup to me and turned to the next guest who was still contemplating what to get. After a long pause, I decided not to make a fuss and just take my plain ice cream. 

However, it seemed that my patience was to be tested some more. I requested for our coffee to be served and waited 10 minutes before we realized that the server forgot our coffee. So I asked another server to follow it up. He smiled, said he will get it, and promptly forgot about it, too. The third server finally went to the bar after my request, poured out the coffee and brought it to us. I then asked for the check, since I was not familiar with 7 Corners and some restaurants issue receipts that show coupon transactions. The first two servers that I asked never got back to us, so I called a third server to follow it up. He asked if we had coupons and if we ordered ala carte items, then explained that we do not need to wait for the receipt. Why oh why didn't the other servers bother to tell me that? 

So that was how the "posh" anniversary lunch went. We went to 7 Corners expecting to be wowed by an amazing hotel buffet, and left with the opinion that the ribeye, no matter how good, wasn't worth the money and the long drive from home. To be fair, the buying site where I got the coupons have apologized and promptly relayed all my comments to 7 Corners. The restaurant's management have also extended their apologies along with a promise to make improvements based on my feedback.

So will we dine there again? For now, I'd say no. But then again, the management has been gracious in accepting feedback, so we just might give it another try, but not anytime soon.

Update: Purchased a couple of coupons from Deal Grocer as I have been convinced to give 7 Corners another try, this time for a weekend lunch. Hopefully improvements have been made in the food selection, particularly the desserts section. Will post a follow up after our visit.

Photos by Myk Esguerra