An enhanced photo of the original The Plaza building in Makati Commercial Center. Handout
MANILA — For six decades, The Plaza has been part of the Filipino celebration — from weddings and anniversaries to corporate gatherings and state functions.
As the Manila catering institution marks its 60th anniversary this October, The Plaza is looking both backward and forward, bringing together heritage recipes and longtime favorites with new offerings designed for today's diners.
The anniversary menu features a mix of classic and contemporary Filipino-inspired canapes and desserts, including Salad Manileña cups, crispy kangkong with garlic dip, mixed mushroom bouchee with mushroom pate, The Plaza's signature smoked tanguingue pinwheels, spicy tuyo aglio olio pasta and lumpiang Shanghai.
But food has always been only part of The Plaza's appeal. The company has built its reputation on service, with generations of the Reyes family remaining closely involved in the business.
The Plaza was founded by husband-and-wife team Jose “Joe” and Imelda “Meldy” Reyes, who established a restaurant complex in 1966 with five themed restaurant concepts, eight small conference rooms and a Presidential Hall that could accommodate up to 800 guests.
Joe handled the back of the house, while Meldy focused on the front of the house, including guest relations, public relations and marketing. Both became influential figures in the Philippine restaurant industry. Joe was among the founders of the Hotel and Restaurant Association of the Philippines, while Meldy was an early pioneer of the country's catering industry.
The Reyes family. Handout
Meldy also worked with The Plaza's Swedish master chef, Gosta Pettersson, to develop what would become one of the company's signature products: The Plaza Premium Baked Ham.
Their daughter Millie, the eldest of the Reyes children, eventually carried the family business forward, expanding its catering operations to serve thousands of guests, including delegates to international conferences at the Philippine International Convention Center in the 1970s.
In the early 2000s, Millie's vision also helped transform The Plaza Premium Baked Ham into a retail brand, allowing one of the company's best-known products to reach customers beyond its catering operations.
Today, the business is in its third generation, with Karla Marina Reyes overseeing operations from menu development to service.
“Living up to the legacy of our founders, my grandparents, Joe and Meldy Reyes, is not an easy task,” said Karla, now the chief operating officer of The Plaza Catering. “However, they have instilled both business and family values which serves as my guiding light in running the company. The heart of The Plaza is the strong family values, from our own, to caring for our team, and serving our patrons.”
That hands-on approach has continued even as The Plaza's offerings have expanded. The company provides full-service catering, live food stations, carvery stations, party trays and frozen products, as well as its premium retail items, including boiled and roast corned beef, New York-style hot pastrami and its signature baked ham.
Live stations, in particular, have been part of The Plaza experience since the 1970s, when carvery and flambé stations brought an element of tableside theater to events.
The tradition continues today with offerings such as The Plaza Roast Corned Beef, burrata stations and Mongolian barbecue.
Karla Marina Reyes with The Plaza Team at the Likhang Habi Fair launch. Handout
At its 60th anniversary celebration, guests can see the concept in action with The Plaza Premium Baked Ham and New York-style Hot Pastrami carved on-site. The Truffle Cream Pasta served in a Grana Padano wheel remains a popular live station, having been introduced for The Plaza's 50th anniversary a decade ago.
A newer addition is a “choose-your-own-adventure” gnocchi station, where guests can select from cream, pomodoro or pesto sauces and toppings such as bacon, chistorra and fresh mushrooms.
Desserts also balance tradition and contemporary tastes. The anniversary offerings include ube cupcakes, ube tapioca with coconut jelly and calamansi meringue bites. Meanwhile, The Plaza's classic bibingka and puto bumbong, based on heritage recipes, remain available for catering.
After 60 years, the Reyes family says the milestone is not simply a celebration of longevity. It is a reminder of the responsibility that comes with carrying a family business across generations.
From the original restaurant complex established by Joe and Meldy Reyes to the catering operation it is today, The Plaza has evolved with the times while holding on to the food, service and family values that shaped it from the beginning.
For the Reyes family, that may ultimately be the most important ingredient in keeping The Plaza on the table for generations to come.
Orders for The Plaza Premium Baked Ham and other premium products, party trays and catering packages are available through The Plaza Catering.