The Armas connection

Even in hard times, the food business thrives. Consider Casa Armas Tapas Bar y Restaurante, which is opening next month its third outlet near the Asian Development Bank in the Ortigas Commercial Center.

Like the other outlets, Ortigas will have distinctive Spanish touches such as white walls, brick and dark wood designs, the armors and insignias or escudos. There will be a bar for those who want to unwind at night and function rooms for business meetings and other events like baptisms.

"Based on our observation, there are a lot of Casa Armas patrons within the Ortigas area, particularly those residing in Valle Verde and Greenhills," said operations manager Lorraine Lim.

Lorraine is one-third of the management team for both Ortigas and Makati. The other two are sister, Laura Lim, and chef, Jesus Armas. Armas is the founder of the original and oldest Casa Armas outlet in Malate.

The Lim sisters started out as loyal patrons of the Malate branch. "We come from a family of restaurateurs and we love to eat. Señor Armas has became a close friend of the family," said Laura Lim, finance manager of Casa Armas-Makati.

Partnership

Last year, the sisters entered into a partnership with Armas.

"We want to start out on our own and make a name for ourselves," said Lorraine. "My grandfather has this saying that the current generation should at least double what the previous generation has achieved. We do not rely on our family except, of course, for advise,"

Unlike other siblings in business together, the Lim sisters do not quarrel over how the business is run. In part, this is because each sister has distinct areas of responsibilities. Lorraine handles the "front of the house" or restaurant, including personnel. Laura handles money, including purchasing. The kitchen is the turf of Armas, who regularly checks the quality of the food in the two branches.

"It’s important to believe in the quality of the food you serve," said Armas, who keeps a core menu that includes paella and cochinillo or roast pig. "We’ve kept the menu, more or less, unchanged. Our patrons look for certain dishes that have been tried and tested."

Patronage

Armas has been in the restaurant business for 42 years. When he came to the Philippines in 1973, Armas was strongly reminded of his native Rioja in Spain. He decided to stay and continued honing his culinary skills. It was not until January 1995 that the first Casa Armas was opened.

Although franchising has been mentioned by friends, Armas is a strong proponent of partnering with people who share his vision of promoting authentic Spanish cuisine. "I am old and I don’t have time to run everything myself," said Armas. "I have partners whom I trust to manage the business."

The Lim sisters have also brought marketing savvy to the business. Because the Makati outlet caters to the surrounding business community, it offers set lunches that do not take too much preparation and are priced reasonably. Some Spanish dishes like paella, for example, take 20 to 30 minutes to take.

Because of smaller budgets and security concerns, Casa Armas also now caters for a minimum 20 people. "People are making their parties more intimate and now hold them in homes," said Lorraine. Aside from the 110 dishes in the menu, special catered dishes can be made upon request.

Aside from the standard musicians, Casa Armas will throw in flamenco dancers, again upon request.

"The restaurant business is very challenging. It’s a day-to-day experience. No one day is the same as another but it is something we love to do. Hopefully, we can pass it on to the next generation," Lorraine said.