As diva Diana Ross sings: “When I think of home, I think of a place where there is love overflowing…” one cannot help but smile and remember why home is where the heart is.
When we tweak the lyrics of this ditty and add a sprinkling of: “Where good food is served and shared,” that is when a home becomes not just a house but a slice of heaven on earth.
Many agree that the tweaked lyrics of Miss Ross’s iconic anthem from The Wiz, figuring on the top spot as the best example is Limbaga 77 – the home away from home that serves and sets the standard of umami for Filipino dishes. Named after the address in which the century home is situated and adaptively reused as the restaurant that not only evokes but feels like home.
Since its opening in December 2014, many have chosen to celebrate the milestones of their lives big or small, meeting place for bonding and catch-up time for colleagues athe premium guarantee of glorious food and impeccable service – this has become the stamp of Limabaga 77.
The First Gentleman of Limbaga 77 is Rex Tiri. He expands the reach and reign of the Tomas Morato-based restaurant with business manager Sonny Fortuna, with the opening of its newest branch.
“I wanted to try a second branch and the challenge of bringing it to a mall excites me,” begins Tiri. “It took us two months to decide and to realize this. Familiar na rin kami, especially with all the preparations that we needed to do.”
“The prime consideration of course is the location, that is why we chose the Trinoma mall,” carries on the First Gentleman. “I am not daunted by the fact that there are so many restaurants in the area. Ganun rin naman ang kaso sa Tomas Morato. Competition is good and healthy for any business. I think what leaves a mark on people are the food and the service. What we offer in the Morato restaurant, they are all here. We want people to experience the trademark food. The food is of course the biggest attraction of the restaurant, Tried and tested, approved by many, may word of mouth na, and reasonably priced. And, the courtesy, hospitality, and first-world manner of service given by our staff is another Limbaga 77 premium.”
Tiri and his team put up the second branch because the first branch is teeming with events. They are finding it difficult to accept walk-ins, which is a happy problem, of course.
“I believe this is the opportune time for a second branch. Let us see what can we do to make the brand bigger. We are bullish about this development.”
Adding more boost to his confidence, Tiri avers: “The people with purchasing power are back. We feel it. We see them, They visit, dine, and we welcome them. Slowly but surely, the cocooning and staying-at-home phase I believe is now reaching its concluding cycle. This thing call revenge spending is for real and happy to report that Limbaga 77 gets a good share of the revenge spending pie.”
Limbaga 77’s most delicious dishes are kare-kare, baked lechon paksiw, and adobong tadyang ng baka, to mention a few. The First Gentleman’s favorites are: “Definitely kare-kare, with its sauce made from scratch. We do not use peanut butter, talagang mani. Beef parts and the crispiest of vegetables with the signature bagoong, and stuffed laing continue to be our best sellers.”
Tiri is the Force of RP Hepatagon Holdings which is into food and restaurants, health care and equipment, real estate, aesthetics, and beauty, logistics, and entertainment.
With regard to what will be in store for T-Rex Entertainment, which has Mudrastra, the Roderick Paulate headlined movie in the can, Tiri avers: “There will be exciting announcements about the film and new developments are going to be made public soonest.”
“Kailangan naming tumulong sa pagbangon ng Philippine economy in our own little way. That is not just a goal, but my purpose – to assist, to be of service. We should all be positive and we must trust our country, the leaders, and their governance. Dapat may tiwala tayo sa kapwa Pilipino natin. Let us do our share in nation-building so that there will more people who live happy, healthy, and secure lives.”
The second branch of Limbaga 77 is located at Level 1, Garden Restaurants, Trinoma Mall.