The return of Casa Marcos

MANILA, Philippines - It’s open for breakfast and becomes a bar at night. But this restaurant also offers its traditional Spanish cuisine cooked the way a pelotari with a passion for good food used to make them

Those who remember Casa Marcos from years past weren’t the only ones celebrating when their favorite Spanish restaurant resurfaced in early 2011 after over a decade of silence. Now situated among the rows of restaurants of Bonifacio Global City’s hip Burgos Circle, the place has been raking crowds in anew with a menu that spans generations and eating habits.

Open as early as 7 a.m., Casa Marcos attracts early birds from the nearby residential condominiums with its hefty pandesal, an oversized breakfast staple made fresh from its own pugon. By midday, lunch, and snack time, it becomes the go-to place for a quick order of its Bread Bag, pandesal packed with the likes of kesong puti and pesto, corned beef, chicken schnitzel, and other irresistible fillings. As neighboring restaurants call it a day, Casa Marcos continues to operate as a hangout for night owls, serving wines, spirits, and appetizers till the wee hours of the morning.

Authentic Spanish cuisine, such as the Paella Valenciana, remains Casa Marcos’ biggest come-on. Casa Marcos Restobar is at F121 Forbeswood Heights Rizal Drive, Bonifacio Global City.

Of course, authentic Spanish cuisine remains Casa Marcos’ biggest come-on. Long-time patrons of the restaurant’s original branch on Roxas Boulevard swear that the dishes they have come to love and miss — from the garlic-rich almejas (baked clams) and mildly spicy gambas (shrimps) to the generous serving of Paella Valenciana and juicy steak a la pobre—still taste the way they did decades ago. Even the complimentary soft bread rolls and refreshing Casa Marcos iced tea (brewed and mixed with calamansi juice) are captured to perfection.

Marisa Galvez, daughter of Casa Marcos’ co-owner Benjamin del Rosario, and mom to Eugene “Jigger” Galvez, who was responsible for its latest incarnation as a restobar, is proud of the fact that her family has immortalized the flavors first introduced by Spanish national Señor Marcos de Guisasola in the 1940s.

The Galvez family has immortalized the flavors first introduced by Spanish national Señor Marcos de Guisasola in the 1940s. In photo with Marissa Galvez, daughter of Casa Marcos owner Ben del Rosario, are her children Muffin and Michael.

“We have a good name,” she says, beaming. “From Day One when we opened, we were already full.”

Marcos de Guisasola had always enjoyed a full house whenever he cooked. A pelotari, he also had a passion for food, and when he wasn’t playing jai alai, he’d been serving his array of appetizers along Roxas Boulevard, piquing joggers’ interest by serenading them with Spanish songs on his guitar.

De Guisasola would find a lifetime friend in Benjamin del Rosario, a regular of the eatery and the only one who spoke fluent Spanish. When the Japanese Occupation shut down the jai alai, the pelotari asked the veteran banker Del Rosario to help him finance a restaurant, which he would eventually pay in installments. The restaurant took off and along with its growth came the menu’s expansion. Appetizers made way for main courses and Casa Marcos was hailed as one of the finest steakhouses of its time. “People have always tried to copy Marcos’ cooking but no one could ever do it,” says Nena del Rosario, Ben del Rosario’s wife.

When Del Rosario was asked by government to head the GSIS, Landbank of the Philippines, and National Housing Authority, running Casa Marcos went to daughter Marisa in 1978. The restaurant eventually closed in 2001.

Marisa’s son Jigger vowed to revive Casa Marcos. He and business partner Kevin Khoe would make good on that promise in February 2011.

“People have always tried to copy Marcos’ cooking but no one could ever do it,” says Nena del Rosario.

“Jigger kept an original copy of the Casa Marcos menu,” says his mom. “He was also able to find the original cook from Roxas Boulevard. He was in his 20s when he started with us as a bus boy and he’s now in his early 60s training new cooks. That’s how we’ve been able to retain the original taste of our food, and make it possible for the younger contemporaries to try our famous dishes for themselves.”

Casa Marcos Restobar is at F121 Forbeswood Heights Rizal Drive, Bonifacio Global City Taguig, Metro Manila.

For information, call 703-7784or 552-3781, or log on to casamarcos.ph.