Tony Roma’s main dining at Glorietta

Starting next month, the two outlets in operation, one in Glorietta 4 in Makati and another at Alabang Town Center in Muntinlupa, will be converted into dine-in galleries featuring framed photographs taken by some of the most revered local lensmen.

There will be a variety of themes wherein the pictures to be hung fall into: Travel for May, Flowers for June, and Fine Art for July. Each month around 130 photographs, (mostly in 12x18 size) will be put on display, with about 30 photography artists participating in this project being made possible through the partnership of Tony Roma’s and the Federation of Philippine Photographers Foundation, Inc. (FPPF).

"We’d like to celebrate our 12th anniversary by giving tribute to Filipino photographers. With photography becoming a very popular medium nowadays especially that even our cell phones have cameras, paying a salute to the guys who have done so much to carry the torch of this art is significant and poignant in both ways," expressed Tony Roma’s general manager Rosa Eugenio who is on board the restaurant for a decade now.

To run for at least the next three months, the dine-gallery will serve as added attraction for diners who are expected to find their way staring at the sensible and magnificent works of famous photographers including John Chua, Jaime Zobel de Ayala, and many others. The frames will be up for sale as majority of the proceeds go directly to FPPF, the photography industry’s umbrella organization headed by its matriarch Eduviges Huang who’s known to many as the amiable Mrs. Huang. The Foundation has earned a reputation of being a premier promoter of Pinoys behind the camera and this project is certainly a boost to its cause.

photo by Sam Molina

Basic photography workshops, including a session on cell phone imaging, are likewise part of the sideshows, practically making photography blend with the quality food and service Tony Roma’s is known for.

"This is a worthy endeavor for both Tony Roma’s and FPPF, the fact that we’re both trying to elevate the status of Pinoy artists," reflected FPPF project director and topnotch photographer himself, Lito Beltran who has spent years promoting deserving artists out there. So humble is this man he begs off from getting featured in this page, feeling the space to be allotted for him would mean he is taking the slot of someone whose works and story are worth being shown and told.

The irony that an American restaurant (which is following a standard owing its essence off the American taste) would want to highlight Pinoy artists is a delightful twist that Tony Roma’s is really proud of. While there are about 30 to 35% foreign tourists frequenting the place, majority of the customers are Filipino families, big-time business people, politicians, and celebrities. The postulation is that, Pinoys simply love the food and big servings at Tony Roma’s, as well as its ambience.

Of American origin that can be traced back to Dallas , Texas in 1972, Tony Roma’s is a high-end restaurant famous for its offers of ribs, seafood, and steaks. A master franchise based in Singapore came out in the early ‘90s and paved the way for the birth of its first Philippine outlet in 1996.

"The conversion to dine-in gallery is our way of fulfilling our social responsibility and to show our appreciation to the Filipino community who has been supporting us for so long," Eugenio said.

Considering that great photographs are described as appetizing to the eyes, diners at Tony Roma’s are surely in for some extra treat with the Pinoy talent at the core of it all.