Amado Fores
“Pragmatic” sums up the management style of Amado Forés, Cibo’s new president and chief executive officer. He is better known as the único hijo of the late founder and culinary icon Margarita Araneta Forés.
Edgar Allan Caper
“We’re still targeting 50 restaurants by 2027. It’s just that Amado is very prudent about expanding,” says Edgar Allan Caper, Cibo’s managing director. Under the company’s new structure, Margarita’s niece, Mercedes Forés, has taken over Caper’s previous post as chief operating officer.
When expansion plans are presented to Amado, the approach is always a balance of ambition and prudence. “It’s not about saying no,” says Caper. “It’s about being very deliberate in strategy.” In past board meetings, Amado often stayed quiet while Margarita and his uncle, Jorge “Oye” Forés, now Cibo’s executive vice president, led the discussions. Those years were marked by Cibo’s bold moves.
“Now that Amado is on top, he brings in a different energy—more hands-on with details and deep involvement in planning. He makes sure that we’ve done the due diligence so that every decision is both enterprising yet strategically sound for the brand’s long-term growth,” says Caper.
So far, there has been no redirection—only a push to review and refine the expansion priorities, with the current focus on entering more developed and progressive cities. “We’re still assertive with our growth plans,” adds Caper, “but we make sure each branch strengthens the brand’s presence and sustainability.”
Bledes Fores-Legarda, co-managing director
Cibo continues to post double-digit growth, but the expansion slowed after Margarita’s death last February. Originally, the brand aimed to open six restaurants by June; it managed two, both exceeding expectations. The new branch at SM San Lazaro has quickly become one of Cibo’s top performers, matching the sales of its flagship at Greenbelt 5 in its first four months. With 65 seats and a table turnover of four, “it’s our ideal size,” says Caper, noting the area’s strong spending power. The Estancia branch, with 55 seats, is also flourishing.
Looking ahead, Cibo has signed leases at SM Marikina and SM Fairview and will reopen its TriNoma location once the mall’s redevelopment is completed by year’s end. A pop-up at Market! Market! will test the waters for future openings.
Nduja Pizza
The brand is positioning itself not only for expansion, but for greater recognition in the global dining scene. “We want to cement our name as one of the best pizzerias in the country,” says Caper. “We’re 95 percent certified for all the pizzaiolos across 30 Cibo restaurants.”
Last year, Italian master pizzaiolo Stefano Canosci, reputed for his precision in dough-making and long-fermentation techniques, worked closely with Cibo’s chefs. He refined recipes, improved procedures, and advised on oven upgrades, which helped secure Cibo’s no. 44 spot in the 2024 50 Top Pizza ranking of the world’s best artisan pizza chains. After Margarita’s passing, Canosci vowed to push Cibo even higher on the 2025 list. His contract was extended for another year, and the brand has been invited to the 50 Top World Artisan Pizza Chains guide awards on November 27 at the European Pizza Show in London.
Caper recalls working with Amado since his start at Cibo, as a fresh graduate, inn the digital marketing team about a decade ago. “Back then, he had many ideas but couldn’t push them forward because Margarita’s role was to navigate the brand. I just fine-tuned and executed those ideas. Now, Amado is hands-on. He’s very spontaneous. When he thinks of something and calls me, I write it down. He’s like his mom. Margarita had an eye for detail, and the family is like that. It’s the small things that count. Across all our brands, the common denominator is attention to detail and consistency. I still get calls every now and then about product quality. Margarita made the rounds of the restaurants to ensure everything was in order. If not, she would pound us on our lapses. That’s my role now,” he says.
Last July, a press conference formally announced Amado’s role at Cibo alongside his restaurant group, AF Hospitality. “We’ve had strategic meetings about the brand and discussed where to invest in expansion, upgrades, and the commissary. Amado is also very particular about the people he works with, especially on the creative side. Everything has to pass through him. Cibo has an established DNA, but he’s infusing new ideas. With Margarita, it was easier because her soul was in the brand. With Amado, there’s new blood and a different creative approach. I like it because young people are bringing fresh technology and creativity to how we do things at Cibo.”
‘With Amado, there’s new blood and a different creative approach. I like it because young people are bringing fresh technology and creativity to how we do things’
Caper says the challenge is that with Cibo now having 34 branches, integrating changes will take time. “We will soon be forming a creative council where we will reprocess creative items, and the taste and soul of Amado will be there. Still, Amado listens. We are still working with the dynamic of executive and boss, but we have been getting our groove.”
Amado’s wife, Carmela, managing director of AF Hospitality (AFH), handles all its brands—a mano, Steak and Frice, Margarita Florals, Lusso, and Grace Park. She also attends Cibo meetings because she and Amado are always together. “Before, we worked in silos. We have always envisioned consolidating all the businesses under a Forés brand. We speak the same language when it comes to consistency of food, quality, and service, and there is synergy in sharing resources. Now, even with different brand identities, there is one head—the president—so there is more unison and harmony in sharing resources from people to infrastructure and everything in between,” says Caper. “This makes us a better organization in terms of optimizing whatever we have across all brands.”
Caper, who is like a brother to Amado, is also involved in AF Hospitality’s other businesses, and even in Oye and Malu Forés’ Mamou, though it is a separate entity. “I was used to the Margarita way of doing things. The right brain came from the Margarita side and the left brain came from Oye (then the chief finance officer). Oye and I were on the business side, while Margarita was more like the creative director.”
Having worked for Pizza Hut, whose franchise is owned by Margarita’s uncle, the patriarch Jorge Araneta, Caper sees similarities with Amado. “He’s visionary. He knows what he wants. That’s what makes a good boss. It’s hard to second guess bosses who are not clear about their vision. Amado is very organized and has a direction in navigating the brand. My role is to organize those ideas. We have had plenty of meetings lately,” he says.
Amado continues his mother’s tradition of hosting Cibo’s incentive travel program. Last June, he brought the business development and operations head and managers of top-performing areas on a 10-day tour of Italy, immersing them in the country’s finest restaurants. “Experiencing the real thing in Italy made a huge impact,” says Caper. “They came back with a fresh perspective and are now executing what modern Italian truly is, because they’ve lived it themselves.” For Amado, the trip was also a chance to understand the leadership team better. “He was happy to know how they think because they are the frontliners,” Caper notes.
Turon Bomboloni
Ube Halaya Maritozzo
The spotlight this year is on Cibo’s 28th anniversary, marked by special offers, raffles, and fresh culinary creations. Executive chef Jorge Mendez, now director for research and development, introduces two Southern Italy-inspired limited-edition dishes: Tubettoni alla ’Nduja is a creamy, spicy pasta with ’Nduja sausage, burrata, tomato tsukemono, and stewed tomatoes (₱649 solo). The ’Nduja Pizza is topped with tomato sauce, mozzarella, burrata, and ’Nduja sausage (₱799). The dessert is infused with Filipino flavors, such as the Turon Bomboloni with banana cream custard and caramelized banana, and the Ube Maritozzo with ube custard, cream, and caramelized coconut (₱129 each, or ₱549 for a mixed box of six pastries).
On August 22, Cibo’s one-day ₱28 Anniversary Favorites deal offers select bestsellers with a ₱1,500 minimum dine-in spend; ₱28 signature iced teas with no minimum purchase, dine-in only; and 28 percent off delivery orders placed via Cibo’s website or hotline with a minimum ₱2,000 spend.
As a family restaurant, Cibo is relaunching Club Bimbi, its program for diners aged 12 and below, complete with coloring placemats, crayons, and “Cibots” characters designed to make vegetables fun. Benefits include the “Bimbi, You Eat Free” deal: a complimentary set meal worth ₱599 for every ₱2,000 minimum dine-in spend and a customizable Italian menu for kids. At age 13, members are upgraded to the LEALTÀ Loyalty Program, ensuring continued perks.
Until September 30, 2025, nationwide anniversary promos include the “Always Cibo” raffle, where every ₱2,800 dine-in spend is a chance to win prizes such as a Vespa, Smeg appliances, or a year’s worth of Cibo fare.
From its first branch in 1997 to 50 stores by its 30th year in 2027, Cibo’s story is one of steady growth, staying power, and the kind of Italian comfort food that keeps generations coming back for more.
