Regina Troy Barrios

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Margarita Fores and her legacy

What happens to a legacy when its heartbeat is gone? When Margarita Forés passed away, the loss was deeply felt—but it also raised an urgent, unspoken question: What would happen to the world she built? The restaurants, the ideas, the teams she nurtured. The flavors that told her story.<div><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1752147429475Chef Margarita Forés and Amado Forés.jpg" style="width:900px" class="fr-fic fr-dib"/>Margarita and Amado Forés in Paris | Photo: AF Hospitality</div>Five months on, her family has made a quiet but resolute decision. Led by her son, Amado Forés, the group she inspired is moving forward with grace and purpose. His company, <a href="https://www.instagram.com/afhospitality.ph/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">AF Hospitality</a>, now brings together not only his original restaurants—<a href="https://www.instagram.com/amano.ph/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">a mano</a>,<a href="https://www.instagram.com/ramenron.ph/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"> Ramen Ron</a>, and <a href="https://www.instagram.com/steakandfrice/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Steak &amp; Frice</a>—but also the brands closest to his mother’s heart: <a href="https://www.instagram.com/ciboph/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">CIBO</a>, <a href="https://www.instagram.com/graceparkdining/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Grace Park</a>, <a href="https://www.instagram.com/lusso.ph/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Lusso</a>, <a href="https://www.instagram.com/margaritaflorals/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Margarita Florals</a>, and <a href="https://www.instagram.com/margarita.signaturecaterer/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Margarita Signature Caterer</a>.“This has been a time of deep reflection,” Amado said. “And I carry with me not only grief, but also the profound honor of continuing what she built.”Amado’s wife, Carmela Fortuna Forés, now joins the company as Managing Director, bringing with her years of experience in retail and marketing. Also stepping forward is Mercedes Forés, Margarita’s niece, who now serves as Chief Operating Officer of CIBO.<div><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1752147442534Carmela Fortuna Forés and Amado Forés.jpg" style="width:900px" class="fr-fic fr-dib"/>Amado and Carmela Forés leading the next chapter of the family legacy | Photo: AF Hospitality</div><h2>At a Glance: What’s Taking Shape</h2><div> </div><h4>The Family Steps Forward</h4><ul style="list-style-type:disc"><li style="margin:0px;line-height:normal;color:rgb(0, 0, 0)">Amado Forés is now President &amp; CEO of CIBO.</li><li style="margin:0px;line-height:normal;color:rgb(0, 0, 0)">Mercedes Forés, niece of Margarita, is named Chief Operating Officer.</li><li style="margin:0px;line-height:normal;color:rgb(0, 0, 0)">Edgar Allan Caper, a longtime executive, becomes Managing Director.</li><li style="margin:0px;line-height:normal;color:rgb(0, 0, 0)">Carmela Fortuna Forés takes on the role of Managing Director at AF Hospitality.</li></ul><div> </div><h4>The Kitchen Holds Steady</h4><ul style="list-style-type:disc"><li style="margin:0px;line-height:normal;color:rgb(0, 0, 0)"><a href="https://www.instagram.com/hosehorhe/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Chef Jorge Mendez</a>, trusted collaborator of Margarita, continues as Executive Chef and now leads Research &amp; Development at CIBO.</li><li style="margin:0px;line-height:normal;color:rgb(0, 0, 0)">Mendez also heads acclaimed restaurants <a href="https://www.instagram.com/modan.mnl/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Modan</a> and <a href="https://www.instagram.com/somethaiph/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Some Thai</a>, and will open <a href="https://www.instagram.com/makanai.mnl/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Makanai</a>, a Japanese restaurant inspired by staff family meals, in August 2025 at BGC.</li></ul><div> </div><h4>New Directions, Same Heart</h4><ul style="list-style-type:disc"><li style="margin:0px;line-height:normal;color:rgb(0, 0, 0)">Margarita Signature Caterer is now under the CIBO group.</li><li style="margin:0px;line-height:normal;color:rgb(0, 0, 0)">The planned flagship restaurant Margarita at Ayala Triangle will not push through. The family has chosen to honor her vision in more personal, creative ways.</li></ul><div> </div><h4>Growth and Momentum</h4><ul style="list-style-type:disc"><li style="margin:0px;line-height:normal;color:rgb(0, 0, 0)">CIBO will open new branches in Iloilo, La Union, and Baguio.</li><li style="margin:0px;line-height:normal;color:rgb(0, 0, 0)">a mano ranked among the <a href="https://www.50toppizza.it/referenza/a-mano-3/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Top 10 in Asia-Pacific</a> in the 2024 World’s 50 Top Pizza Awards; Amado and Carmela will attend the ceremony in Naples this September.</li><li style="margin:0px;line-height:normal;color:rgb(0, 0, 0)">Ramen Ron and Steak &amp; Frice are each set to open additional branches by 2026.</li><li style="margin:0px;line-height:normal;color:rgb(0, 0, 0)">Grace Park, known for soulful heirloom cooking, was recently featured on Netflix’s <a href="https://www.philrosenthalworld.com/cities/manila" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Somebody Feed Phil</a>.</li><li style="margin:0px;line-height:normal;color:rgb(0, 0, 0)">Lusso, now in its 16th year, will expand its Greenbelt 5 location.</li><li style="margin:0px;line-height:normal;color:rgb(0, 0, 0)">Margarita Florals will launch a new digital platform to better serve clients online.</li></ul><div> </div><h2>A Moment of Pause</h2>During the press briefing, Amado addressed a quiet but pressing question: Would the family continue with the much-anticipated Margarita restaurant at Ayala Triangle?Gently, he said they had chosen not to pursue it.Just as he spoke, the microphone cut out.Amado smiled. “That’s my mom,” he said. “She turned it off.”The room, filled with family, friends, and colleagues who had known Margarita for decades, shared in the moment. It was brief, funny, and quietly moving..<div><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1752147810870Amado Forés.jpg" style="width:900px" class="fr-fic fr-dib"/>Amado Forés now leads the culinary legacy his mother built with heart and flavor | Photo: AF Hospitality</div><h2>Lunch at Lusso</h2>After the announcement, guests were served lunch at  Lusso at The Podium , the last restaurant Margarita had opened. To those who knew her, the menu felt like a tender, emotional tribute—thoughtful, nostalgic, and unmistakably hers. It included many of her signature dishes: barquillos with chive mousse duetto, linguine all vongole with bottarga di muggine, her famous foie gras burgers, deviled eggs with espelette peppers, insalata di straccetti di manzo, truffle cacio e pepe potato chips, and tuna and foie gras carpaccio.That sentiment carried through the guests, many of them longtime friends and creative partners including<a href="https://www.instagram.com/raulmanzano79/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"> Raul Manzano</a>, who had filmed multiple shows with Margarita for Metro Channel, including her final series, <a href="https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLlk4ImO_U2I4skVil4ITh0d_FvGQP9wCC" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">My Italy with Margarita Forés</a>. His first visit to Lusso at The Podium was exactly five months earlier—when Margarita herself was launching the restaurant. He later returned to film <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MeGL_m9CwJ4" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">A Taste of Legacy: The Metro Family Remembers Margarita</a>, a tribute to her life, work, and enduring presence.<div><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1752148083234Ms. Veana Forés, Jose Forés, Alfonso Forés, Amado Forés, Ms. Bledes Forés Legarda, Carmela Fortuna Forés, Mercedes Forés, Mr. Oye Forés, Jorge Mendez, Edgar Allan Caper, Mr. Jo Forés.jpg" style="width:900px" class="fr-fic fr-dib"/>The Forés family with close friends, united by a legacy of food and love | Photo: AF Hospitality</div><h2>A Family Moving Forward</h2>As the lunch wound down, the Forés family gathered on the steps of Lusso for a photo. Not just the company’s new leaders, but also siblings, cousins, and longtime colleagues, many of whom had built these businesses side by side with Margarita.There were friends, too, who had become family over the years. It wasn’t ceremonial, or staged. It simply was.That’s the kind of legacy Margarita Forés left behind—not only restaurants or recipes, but a spirit of hospitality rooted in love, joy, and care.And as her family now takes up the mantle, it’s clear: her story isn’t ending. It’s still being written.

In the months after Margarita Forés’ passing, her family quietly steps into leadership, preserving her legacy while thoughtfully shaping the next chapter of her beloved culinary brands.

In the months after Margarita Forés’ passing, her family quietly steps into leadership, preserving her legacy while thoughtfully shaping the next chapter of her beloved culinary brands.

After Margarita: How The Next Generation Is Shaping The Forés Legacy

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After Margarita: How The Next Generation Is Shaping The Forés Legacy

Troy Barrios

Published Jul 10, 2025 08:00 PM PHT

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Updated Jul 12, 2025 01:49 PM PHT

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