Asports facility, lifestyle haven and food destination in one

For Pinoys looking for a quiet getaway but don’t really want to go too far, there’s an oasis located inside an exclusive subdivision in Batasan Hills, Quezon City, called the Tivoli Royale Country Club.

Mention Batasan Hills or Congressional Avenue and one thinks of bottle-neck traffic or an underdeveloped area. But today, things have vastly changed. There’s been new development in terms of infrastructure and there are a plethora of shops, restaurants and other modern facilities now dotting the landscape.

One of the newest and most exciting places to open in the area is the Tivoli Royale Country Club, which used to be the old Tivoli Royale Sports Club. The club underwent a P300-million facelift and is now branded as a sports and lifestyle haven and foodie haunt as well.

Ensconced inside The Tivoli Royale subdivision along Yakal street, Tivoli Royale Country Club offers diverse, family-centric experiences with its wide array of amenities. With the abundance of activities and must-dos in the club, 24 hours is not enough.

“It’s a sports facility, lifestyle haven and a food destination rolled into one,” says Tivoli Royale general manager Cherryl Ann Go.

“When you enter the club and if you look at it from the lobby, you’ll think that it’s just the pools, but we go up to the fifth level so there’s really a lot to explore here,” Go says.

She emphasized that, beyond the amenities that the club has to offer, Tivoli Royale adheres to providing a safe environment, higher levels of personalized hospitality, and specifically caters to the diverse tastes and preferences of members and their families.

Club amenities include adult and kiddie pools, a Jacuzzi and pool bar where they serve power bowls, shakes and smoothies. There’s also a gaming center for billiards, darts other arcade games.

One of the amenities that make the club unique is its Airsoft firing range. During the club’s recent launching, some bloggers and journalists tried the Airsoft and were thrilled by the experience of holding and firing a gun.

Of course, families who come here to bond over sports can play and enjoy table tennis, volleyball and tennis at the club’s indoor facilities. And for golf enthusiasts, there’s a golf complex and an indoor driving range. If you are a golf newbie, there are even coaches who will teach you how to play the sport.

“The coaches will help members check out their swing, posture, flight of ball, speed and strength when it comes to hitting the golf ball and pitching,” Go says, adding that they also have the latest state-of-the art golf simulators.

For actual athletes, there are courts for basketball, tennis and volleyball. Tivoli Royale Country Club ambassador, beauty queen and volleyball star Michelle Gumabao says she used to practice and join tournaments at the old club when she was young. Gumabao is happy that Tivoli Royale was renovated and is now open to those who want to be members.

Additionally, the club holds dance, yoga and swimming classes for kids and adults, complete with trainers that will help members achieve their health goals.

For the moms, dads and young professionals who just like to chill and relax, there’s a gym, spa and derma clinic located on the club’s second level. The clinic offers both surgical and non-surgical procedures and adjacent to the clinic is a nail spa and hair salon.

Surely, engaging in all these activities will make guests and members hungry. Not to worry because at the club, the management made sure that dining at Tivoli Royale is an altogether different experience.  Go says that Tivoli Royale’s food-and-beverage team came from different five-star hotels, bonded by a common goal to offer a standard of excellence in dining.

“We want people to know that we have a lot to offer in terms of our cuisine,” Go says. “Our culinary team came from five-star hotels and we wanted to bring that type of service here. Here we want our members to experience that even if this is only a simple country club that is like an extension of their house, the service is really topnotch and at par with the best hotels.”

At the launch, the invited media were treated to sumptuous food, which started at breakfast.

Members who come for breakfast are treated to a spread of breads, pastries and cold cuts at the coffee shop, like a hotel-style buffet. Go enthuses that all the breads and pastries are made by the chefs at the club. There are two restaurants run by five-star hotel chefs, the Royal Lounge, which is the all-day dining restaurant, and the Grand Royale restaurant, where they serve fine dining or degustation.

“The Grand Royale is where the chefs transform the highest-quality local ingredients into artful degustation dishes,” Go says. “Its elegant atmosphere makes an ideal venue for intimate events, luncheons, cocktail parties or gala dinners.”

Executive chef Emmanuel “Jonnel” Cruz Roxas said that his concept for dining at Tivoli Royale is to level up familiar and comforting flavors of family favorites such as kare-kare, grilled salmon or Carbonara.

“The drive for creating the food was fueled by basics, and not by fancy ingredients or décor,” Roxas explains.

According to Go, Tivoli Royale was renovated this year and acquired by New Creation 101 realty development, which infused P300 million to fully modernize the club. When the club’s former founder passed away, the son took the reins and revitalized the club to continue the legacy of his father.

So, how does one become a member? Residents of the Tivoli Royale subdivision just have to pay the monthly dues and the joining fee is already waived.

“But outsiders are very much welcome and we offer a very irresistible P25,000 for the membership fee that is already good for a family of four,” Go says. “It’s an annual joining fee and one-time payment only for a year.  And if they just want to renew, subject for a renewal fee na lang, and then the monthly dues are P3,000, P500 of which is already consumable for food, beverage and sports facilities.”

Since opening last May, Tivoli Royale already has 250 family members and is growing.

“Right now, what we want is for them to feel that this is a place where they can enjoy,” Go continues. “Part of our mission is really to establish a country club that is well-maintained and well-operated. We want to be number one in leisure and recreation venues here in Quezon City.”