Restaurateur to the stars tries hand at politics

The last time I saw Florabel Co Yatco was three months ago when we both attended the Food Fair sponsored by the Department of Trade.

- WITH PAT-P

We vowed to get-together soon for some long delayed catchup.

Last week, we finally had lunch at Florabel's in Estancia, a restaurant I don't get to visit as often as I would like. The establishment is owned by Florabel, restaurateur and caterer to many showbiz stars and politicos. I was not really surprised that Florabel remembered all my favorites, because she has a photographic memory where her clients are concerned. And so, the gambas with chorizo, baby squid with olive oil and garlic, French onion soup, watermelon with goat cheese and almond salad were all there. For my main course, I had the spaghetti Bolognese I was craving, but left room for the famous pork barbecue, which happened to be the employees' meal that day (with half a cup of rice on the side).

Florabel is also the owner of the Florabel Group of Restaurants, which employs 770 workers and operates 23 restaurants scattered in the National Capital Region (NCR) and Laguna. The list includes Florabel (1), Crisostomo (13), Corazon (1), El Corazon (1), Market on 5th Avenue (1), Lighthouse (1), Mr. Franks (2), Sisa's Secret (2) and Love-ABowl (1).

Her success story is truly remarkable and worth-retelling.