Engracia Cruz-Reyes (April 16, 1892 — July 6, 1975) was a

Filipino Filipino may refer to: * Something from or related to the Philippines ** Filipino language, standardized variety of 'Tagalog', the national language and one of the official languages of the Philippines. ** Filipinos, people who are citizens of th ...

chef and entrepreneur. She was an active promoter of

Filipino cuisine Filipino cuisine ( fil, lutong Pilipino/pagkaing Pilipino) is composed of the cuisines of more than a hundred distinct ethnolinguistic groups found throughout the Philippine archipelago. A majority of mainstream Filipino dishes that compose Fi ...

, especially through the restaurant chain she founded, The Aristocrat.

Early life

She was born to a poor family in

Navotas Navotas, officially the City of Navotas ( fil, Lungsod ng Navotas), is a 1st class highly urbanized city in the National Capital Region of the Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 247,543 people. It is known as the ...

in April 16, 1892. Her mother was a street peddler who sold food sauces and fruits, and who later managed a small neighborhood eatery popularly known in the Philippines as ''carinderias'' . She developed her cooking skills at a young age, having to prepare the meals for her five younger siblings while her parents were out working for a living. She was able to complete only four years of primary education.''Filipinos in History Vol. III'', p. 228 In 1912, she married a young lawyer from her hometown, Alexander Reyes, who in 1948 would be appointed as an

Associate Justice Associate justice or associate judge (or simply associate) is a judicial panel member who is not the chief justice in some jurisdictions. The title "Associate Justice" is used for members of the Supreme Court of the United States and some sta ...

of the

Philippine Supreme Court The Supreme Court ( fil, Kataas-taasang Hukuman; colloquially referred to as the ''Korte Suprema'' lso used in formal writing is the highest court in the Philippines. The Supreme Court was established by the Second Philippine Commission on Ju ...

The Aristocrat restaurant

To augment her family's income as her husband struggled to establish his legal practice, Cruz-Reyes set up in 1928 a small ''carinderia'' at ''Calle de Marques de Comillas'' in

Ermita, Manila Ermita is a district in Manila, Philippines. Located at the central part of the city, the district is a significant center of finance, education, culture, and commerce. Ermita serves as the civic center of the city, bearing the seat of city ...

. She named her eatery Lapu-Lapu (after the Mactan chieftain who defeated

Ferdinand Magellan Ferdinand Magellan ( or ; pt, Fernão de Magalhães, ; es, link=no, Fernando de Magallanes, ; 4 February 1480 – 27 April 1521) was a Portuguese explorer. He is best known for having planned and led the 1519 Spanish expedition to the Eas ...

in battle), adopted a native motif as interior decor, and served primarily Filipino fare. These nationalistic manifestations especially stood out considering that the Philippines was then under American colonial rule. By the 1930s, Cruz-Reyes was selling

adobo or (Spanish: marinade, sauce, or seasoning) is the immersion of cooked food in a stock (or sauce) composed variously of paprika, oregano, salt, garlic, and vinegar to preserve and enhance its flavor. The Portuguese variant is known as . ...

sandwiches at the

Luneta Rizal Park ( fil, Liwasang Rizal, es, link=no, Parque Rizal), also known as Luneta Park or simply Luneta, is a historic urban park located in Ermita, Manila. It is considered one of the largest urban parks in the Philippines, covering an area ...

out of a car loaned to her by a future son-in-law.''Filipinos in History Vol. III, p. 229'' Her reputation as a cook had also grown due to the home dinners she had cooked for many of the leading political figures of the day, friends of her now-prominent husband. By 1936, Cruz-Reyes operated a rolling store — a mobile restaurant featuring a menu stacked with traditional Filipino dishes — which she named "The Aristocrat". The first Aristocrat operated out a Studebaker van. Within two years, Cruz-Reyes opened a permanent restaurant at Dewey Boulevard in Manila. It is one of the oldest restaurants in Manila. The choice of name was ironic and pointed, for during that period, Filipino cuisine was not considered as appropriate fare in the homes of the Filipino elite. The restaurant was immediately successful, its original menu featuring adobo, a chicken sandwich,

dinuguan ''Dinuguan'' () is a Filipino savory stew usually of pork offal (typically lungs, kidneys, intestines, ears, heart and snout) and/or meat simmered in a rich, spicy dark gravy of pig blood, garlic, chili (most often '' siling haba''), and vin ...

and

arroz caldo ''Arroz caldo'', also spelled ''Aroskaldo'', is a Filipino rice and chicken gruel heavily infused with ginger and garnished with toasted garlic, scallions, and black pepper. It is usually served with calamansi or fish sauce (''patis'') as con ...

. In the 1940s it was a popular venue for its sandwiches and snacks, and it was frequented by personalities such as Jose W. Diokno and his future wife Carmen ''Nena'' Icasiano, who would arrive riding Diokno's old car when they went out together on group dates. By the 1950s, the menu had expanded to feature such present-day specialties such as chicken and pork barbecue skewers,

Kare-Kare Kare-kare is a Philippine stew (''kare'' derives from "curry") that features a thick savory peanut sauce. It is generally made from a base of stewed oxtail, beef tripe, pork hocks, calves' feet, pig's feet or trotters, various cuts of por ...

, Chicken Honey, Crispy Pata and even a variation on the adobo sandwiches Cruz-Reyes used to sell at the Luneta. The popularity of Aristocrat also helped usher a renewed popularity of Filipino cuisine as worthy "first-class" fare, a reputation Cruz-Reyes enhanced by her insistence of serving such dishes in the dinners she was often called to cater at Malacañan Palace.

Honors and legacy

Cruz-Reyes is acknowledged as a pioneer in the Philippine food and restaurant industry. Her clan has remained active in the food industry, not only through The Aristocrat Restaurant, but in the manufacture of mass-market processed food products. One her daughters, Teresita, became the inspiration behind the Mama Sita's brand of condiments. In 2008, the family opened the Culinary Institute of Aristocrat, a cooking school. Cruz-Reyes was active in the cause of

women's suffrage Women's suffrage is the right of women to vote in elections. Beginning in the start of the 18th century, some people sought to change voting laws to allow women to vote. Liberal political parties would go on to grant women the right to vot ...

until Filipino women were granted the right to vote in 1937. Cruz-Reyes died in 1975. During her lifetime, she was the recipient of several honors, including the "Mother of the Year" award from

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university * President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ...

Ramon Magsaysay Ramon del Fierro Magsaysay Sr. (August 31, 1907 – March 17, 1957) was a Filipino statesman who served as the seventh president of the Philippines, from December 30, 1953, until his death in an aircraft disaster on March 17, 1957. An automo ...

. In celebration of the centenary of her birth in 1992, she was honored with a commemorative stamp and the renaming of a street in Ermita after her.

Notes

References

External links

History of The Aristocrat Restaurant
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cruz-Reyes, Engracia 1892 births 1975 deaths People from Navotas Filipino suffragists Businesspeople from Metro Manila Filipino chefs Women chefs Women restaurateurs Filipino restaurateurs Recipients of the Presidential Medal of Merit (Philippines)