A foodpreneur’s journey: From carinderia to restos

CEBU, Philippines — The story of ilaputi restaurant is a testament to the famous saying that great things usually start from small.

It is probably one of the most inspiring entrepreneurial stories out there.

Some 13 years ago, entrepreneur Jan Rodriguez started ilaputi as a small air-conditioned carinderia in Talamban.

Moving forward since it started, ilaputi has eventually become one of Cebu's well-known restaurant brands today.

It was in 2002 when Jan and his wife, Karen, took up a small space — located across the street — which used to be an Internet cafe to sell home-cooked meals to students of University of San Carlos in Talamban.

"I came home after working in the US in late 2001. At that time, rice-in-a-box was popular among the university students, and thought that I could do better by serving gourmet quality dishes with flavors that you would only experience in bigger and more established restaurants, or from restaurants overseas. However, I couldn’t find space along the road fronting USC-TC. I walked that strip for a few weeks until one day, an internet cafe posted a closing-sale sign on their window. Feeling desperate for a space, I went in, asked for the lessor’s contact information," Jan shared to The FREEMAN.

Jan and his wife invested P50,000 to start the business and it was just the two of them who prepared the food for the eatery.

This was to be Jan's first venture into the food business.

"With little budget, we built the 'karenderya' ourselves, designed the interiors, painted and fabricated tables and counters. I also installed an air-conditioner to turn it into a space to retreat from the heat during lunch and school breaks."

Since then, Jan's small eatery gained a following because of his modern twists on comfort dishes.

Jan is a hands-on to the business as he is behind every single dish on ilaputi 's menu.

The restaurant's original branch in Talamban eventually closed years later after he found a better location at the Cebu IT Park.

Today, ilaputi is also present in Axis in Escario St., Cebu City and at The Greenery in Pope John Paul II Ave., Cebu City.

"We currently have a staff of 40 and we’ve serve thousands of people in the course of 16 years. Weekend recently celebrated our one year in the business, and we’ve served thousands of guests as well, with a staff of 18," the Cebuano entrepreneur further shared.

Just as the business has been in the industry for nearly two decades now, Jan is looking at expanding outside Cebu.

Along the way, Jan also established Irie back in 2004, Gotham Burgers in 2005. He opened Irie again in 2014 and currently, Weekend Kitchen & Taproom located at The Greenery.

He is now setting his sights on bringing the Cebuano restaurant brand outside its home base and he'll do this through franchising.

The entrepreneur has already completed its franchise development for the brand and is now planning to bring it to other key cities outside Cebu.

While expanding outside Cebu is deemed a priority, the business is still keen on branching out here moving forward.

"We focus on building our brand forward by constantly innovating. We offer signature products you’ll only find at our restaurants while providing service that aims beyond satisfaction," he asserted.

As an entrepreneur, Jan said taking risks is a must and learning from mistakes.

"Persevere, yearn to innovate, and be resourceful," he shared.

"We want to elevate the dining experience in Cebu by providing the best quality product and service at the best value. Expansion is always in the works, and we’re also excited about launching out new concepts very soon while ilaputi is open to franchising outside of Cebu," the restaurant owner said.

Cebu's restaurant scene continues to flourish, with homegrown brands — ilaputi is among them — supporting this growth.

A number of Cebuano restaurant brands have been aggressively expanding to take advantage of Cebu’s robust private consumption.

Cebu in particular is enjoying a robust spending from its growing middle class.

As a result, restaurant businesses are also taking advantage of this opportunity through solidifying their presence in the local restaurant sector.

In Cebu alone, restaurants are mushrooming in key city centers.

Based on the Philippine Statistics Authority data, it is estimated that food consumed outside home now exceeds P500 billion annually.

Out of the budget for food of the typical middle-income household, some 20 percent goes to food consumed outside the home.

It is expected that the restaurant business will remain to be robust this year buoyed by fast food and dining outlets. (FREEMAN)