Lorenzo "Larry" J. Cruz (September 17, 1941 – February 4, 2008) 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 ...

restaurateur who founded the LJC Restaurant Group, which operates several restaurants in the Philippines. Among the restaurants in the said group include ''Café Adriatico'', ''Cafe Havana'', ''Bistro Remedios'', and ''Abe'', which was named after his father, the writer E. Aguilar Cruz. Cruz was also a journalist and magazine publisher.

Career

Before entering the restaurant business, Cruz was a reporter for the

Manila Times ''The Manila Times'' is the oldest extant English-language newspaper in the Philippines. It is published daily by The Manila Times Publishing Corp. (formerly La Vanguardia Publishing Corporation) with editorial and administrative offices at 2/F ...

and the Philippine Herald. In the 1960s, he joined the staff of a Hong Kong-based magazine. In the early years of the administration of

Philippine President The president of the Philippines ( fil, Pangulo ng Pilipinas, sometimes referred to as ''Presidente ng Pilipinas'') is the head of state, head of government and chief executive of the Philippines. The president leads the executive branch of t ...

Ferdinand Marcos, Cruz was a member of the presidential press office. Cruz, who was not a chef himself, established Café Adriatico in

Malate, Manila Malate is a district of Manila, Philippines. Together with the district of Ermita, it serves as Manila's center for commerce and tourism. Etymology The name ''Malate'' is believed to be derived from a corruption of the Tagalog word ''maalat'' ...

in 1979. The venture proved successful and helped revitalize the Malate area other restaurants and cafes within the area. Cruz expanded this venture by opening of several other restaurants within

Metro Manila Metropolitan Manila (often shortened as Metro Manila; fil, Kalakhang Maynila), officially the National Capital Region (NCR; fil, link=no, Pambansang Punong Rehiyon), is the seat of government and one of three defined metropolitan areas in ...

. At the time of his death in 2008, he had opened fourteen restaurants in the Philippines. Several of his restaurants featured Filipino and

Kapampangan Kapampangan, Capampañgan or Pampangan may refer to: *Kapampangan people of the Philippines *Kapampangan language Kapampangan or Pampangan is an Austronesian language, and one of the eight major languages of the Philippines. It is the primary ...

cuisine. In the late 1980s, Cruz published ''Metro Magazine'', a city guide/political/lifestyle magazine inspired by ''

New York Magazine ''New York'' is an American biweekly magazine concerned with life, culture, politics, and style generally, and with a particular emphasis on New York City. Founded by Milton Glaser and Clay Felker in 1968 as a competitor to ''The New Yorker' ...

'' and '' Vanity Fair''. He later sold the magazine to Eugenio Lopez Jr. in order to finance his business expansion. He died on February 4, 2008, of complications from cancer. He was hailed as the leading Filipino "pioneer in theme or concept restaurants" and the man who had "shaped Philippine café society".

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cruz, Larry J. 1941 births 2008 deaths 20th-century Filipino businesspeople Filipino journalists People from Pampanga Filipino company founders Filipino restaurateurs Filipino publishers (people) Ferdinand Marcos administration personnel 20th-century journalists