Yes, it was a lovely night to go out on a dinner date. No occasion. We just want to spend the evening surrounded with good food and good ambiance. So when we got our reserved table in Seven Corners Restaurant at the Crowne Plaza Hotel, that’s what we exactly did.

It was our date night with Raffa— our newest favorite sparkling white wine. Between red and white, vino blanco is our jam. Don’t get us wrong, we still love red wines but we love the clean and light feel of white wines which, in our opinion, doesn’t mask the flavors of food so much. Before we checked the buffet stations to see what the restaurant has to offer, we poured ourselves a glass and just enjoyed our chilled Raffa Sparkling while inhaling the cozy vibe of Seven Corners.

When our glasses were empty, we decided to make a bee line to the different stations. We saw a pretty good selection of meat, noodles, vegetables, fresh seafood, cheeses, and desserts. We like the fact that the selection didn’t overwhelm us and just let us enjoy our dinner more without putting pressure on ourselves that we have to try almost everything in the line-up.

The first things that touched our tables were our plates filled with sashimi, sushi, rolls, and tempura. We love Japanese food so every time we go to a buffet that has a Japanese cuisine station, that’s always our first stop. Priorities. The freshness and lightness of the sashimi went perfectly well with the fruitiness and slight spiciness of the sparkling white wine. Rafa’s vibrance almost made the sushi sweeter.

Keeping up with the Asian theme, we got ourselves some piping hot Seafood Pho from Seven Corners’s create-your-own-noodle-soup station. We asked the chef to throw in shrimps, squids, vegetables, and 3 types of mushrooms in the bowl along with some flat rice noodles. Surprisingly, when we paired our soup with Raffa, it felt refreshing.

After going Asian, we decided to go American and European. Upon seeing the selections of cheese, cheese plate was the first thing that came to mind. The friendly staff of Seven Corners Restaurant told us that they’ll get us some cheese and cold cuts and other good stuff to make a decent cheese plate so when our plates arrived, we were all smiles when we saw the blocks of cheese! They got us some brie, camembert, blue cheese, gouda, edam, and cheddar along with dried fruits, nuts, prosciutto, salami, pastrami, olives, and portobello. They served us heaven on a plate! Best of all, they were fantastic with our sparkling wine! We could’ve wiped out the plates but we want to take our indulgence to the next level.

Enter next level— fresh oysters, boiled crabs, and shrimp cocktails. We enjoyed our seafood and wine so much that we felt like we were in our colorful maxi dresses with our perfect beach curls being blown by the breeze coming from the sea while savoring the feel of the white fine sand against our bare feet.

Still on a seafood high, we got Seafood Marinara. Since we could choose the type of pasta, we opted for penne. The chef threw in squids, mussels, and clams to the dish. It was simple yet hearty. It was like a warm loving hug on a cold day.

For our delicious finale, we got ourselves some meat— slow roasted beef, lamb chops, and rib eye. The beef and lamb were so flavorful that we barely needed a sauce or gravy to slather the meat with. We even did a little this-food-is-delicious dance in our seats while stuffing our faces with glorious food and sipping our wines. At this point, Raffa already got us delightedly buzzed and glowing with that Asian flush of happiness.

We decided to skip dessert because sometimes you just want to end a lovely dinner on a high note. From the company to the vibe to the food pairings— it was undoubtedly a sparkling night.

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Check out Raffa Sparkling Wine on Instagram and on Facebook.

Check out Seven Corners Restaurant on Instagram and on Facebook.

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