Radio exec ventures into the restaurant business

Juan Elizalde, prominent scion of Fred Elizalde, who owns Manila Broadcasting Company (MBC), has vivid memories of the pristine paradise called Boracay as a little boy.

"I’ve been coming to Boracay since I was a boy, when there was not even a single foreigner on the island, no person on the beach, no bicycle or not a dog in sight," recalls Juan during a laid-back interview over lunch in Boracay. "Back then was magic. The place was simply incredible. Private planes used to land here on a dirt strip in Caticlan and there was no electricity until 1993. In the mid-’90s, Aerolift started flying here on a chartered basis. I saw how this place grew."

As he was growing up and kept coming back to Boracay, where his father had brought a large tract of land 30 years ago, Juan dreamed of putting up a business in the island. So when an opportunity came for him to get into his first venture, he thought of no other place but Boracay.

With business partner Paolo Occhionero, Juan invested a sizable amount in a posh Italian restaurant along the beach. For someone who works as vice president for radio operations at MBC, the biggest radio network in the country, Juan’s undertaking may be surprising to most people. But for this Elizalde scion, the restaurant Aria is a dream-come-true.

"I‘ve been an employee in Manila for nine years," says the 34-year-old Juan, who holds a Mass Communications degree from the Menlo College in California. "When I was in college, I saw myself working for the family business, which is MBC. The radio network has been there since 1946. But there’s nothing like putting your own money in your own business venture."

Aria opened only last April in time for the onslaught of Holy Week vacationers in Boracay. "We opened with a bang," Juan beams. "We were able to fill up the restaurant everyday during that week. Our guests were 70 percent Filipinos and only 30 percent were tourists."

"Aria means air," Juan continues. "It’s also a verse in the opera when you hit the high notes. It sounded nice for a place along the beach, that’s why we adopted that name."

Aria boasts of cozy, wooden interiors by Gill Coscoluella. The wooden bulols displayed on the walls were commissioned by noted Baguio-based painter BenCab. The boat lamp that hangs over the bar was done by Tamawans.

The restaurant has a wood-fire pizza oven which was handmade and built by Cebu-based Italian chef Giuseppe Genco, formerly of Peninsula Manila’s Mi Piace.

"That’s how they do pizzas the traditional way in Italy," explains Juan. "Our refrigeration equipment was also customized from Manila."

From the time Aria opened last April, Juan was confident the place would do good business, what with a partner like veteran restaurateur Paolo, who has been in the restaurant business for 18 years now. Paolo also owns the Indian restaurant, True Food, along the same footpath on the seashore in Boracay.

"It’s about time Boracay needs an upgrade from the usual run-of-the-mill restaurants," maintains Juan, who is first and foremost, a lover of good food and fine dining. "I believe there’s a need for a good Italian restaurant in the island. We want to up the ante and make the tourist experience a little bit more enjoyable by offering stylish, friendly and sophisticated dining."

Getting a chef who will prepare authentic Italian dishes didn’t turn out to be tough for Juan and Paolo. While they were constructing the restaurant early this year, Gino Amodio, who was connected with another Italian restaurant along the beach, happened to pass by and asked Paolo what they were building.

"It was by stroke of luck that we got a chef in an instant," Juan shares. "Gino simply asked Paolo if we needed a chef and Gino applied right away. It helped that he came from another Italian restaurant along the beach."

Juan developed the Aria menu with Gino after several food tastings. "We decided what should go and what should not go into the menu," Juan grants. "Every dish is Gino’s labor of love. He also develops a special entree every month. We really serve very good food."

Studio 23 veejay Bianca Araneta, Juan’s girlfriend, also helped in the creation of the menu, development of the drinks and even in getting art work for the restaurant.

Juan attests having a restaurant in Boracay is tough. "Now, I have no weekends off," he says. "I have a heavy workload at MBC during the week, but I make it a point to help Paolo manage the restaurant, so I often spend my weekends in Boracay."

Juan says Aria has been doing good business even during off-season like these past months. "You’d be surprised because there’s a steady stream of people coming here on weekends. I guess they avoid going out of the country because of the dollar upsurge. We’re pretty lucky."

Aria is at Station 2 in Boracay, at the entrance of D’Mall, also owned by the Elizaldes. Beside Aria is Café del Sol, a modern stylized café that offers a full range of world-class Italian espressos, coffee, cream and tea frappes, tea infusions and brewed coffee on the menu. Juan also owns the café, which opened last May.

Asked why he decided to put up a restaurant in Boracay and not in a more popular place like Greenbelt in Makati, Juan reasons out, "Greenbelt is so competitive. Besides, the ambiance and atmosphere being on the beachfront in Boracay, with the white sand, the waters and the beautiful sunset, cannot be equaled by any restaurant in Manila."