Every time I hear people ask where Hotel Celeste is located, almost always, I hear this reply, “It’s that LITTLE hotel right at the Makati Avenue entrance to San Lorenzo Village.”
Ever since I discovered the hotel through its director of sales and marketing, Onelle Pacheco-Versoza, I have fallen in love with the property. It could be because of its size; it only has 25 guest rooms and five suites. It could also be because of its location; it’s right at the doorstep of the Makati Business District.
Or probably, it’s because it sits on the lot formerly occupied by my favorite entertainment venue of yesteryears, Mars Disco. That was where I have a truck load of precious memories, surviving through the years as a single parent in this fun metropolis.
Hotel Celeste is a 12-year-old property owned by the Sarabia Family and, when you take a closer look, its size betrays the many offerings it has. At Hemingway’s, the hotel’s all-day dining outlet, one can easily be mesmerized by its wide array of breakfast menus—American, French, Spanish, English, Filipino, Swiss, and Japanese. If these choices can’t please anyone, I don’t know what else can.
The hotel’s fine dining restaurant, Edward & Wallis, is where you can find the juiciest steaks and melt-in-your-mouth salmon. No wonder one has to make reservations for such an exquisite dining experience. What I find exciting is that the management will soon be making the hotel’s open-air roof deck available to guests who can order their favorite food and beverage items inside to be enjoyed while enjoying the cool breeze blowing from all directions outside.
As a personal favorite, I always enjoy the live band at the lobby because it plays the favorite songs of my youth. I never fail to jam with them, even for just one song, to remind me how much music has become a part of my growing up years.
The hotel rooms are spacious and very well designed, functionally and aesthetically, making any guest enjoy every minute of his stay.
At a recent event honoring the hotel’s top producers, I was not surprised to hear the country’s big-name tour operators and travel agencies being announced. I’m sure these establishments realized what a gem this LITTLE hotel is.
As expected, the hotel runs an enviable year-round occupancy rate of 90 percent, with businessmen, foreign and local, as its regular patrons.
When one takes a closer look at Hotel Celeste’s array of culinary delights, and opportunities to enjoy the finer things in life, one can easily see that this hotel is not so LITTLE after all. This is one instance when SIZE DOESN’T MATTER.
For feedback, I’m at bobzozobrado@gmail.com.
YOUR weekend CHUCKLE
I tried to catch the hilltop fog yesterday. Mist it!