BIZ BUZZ: Sizzling from the courtroom to the kitchen
This new food and beverage group has an unusual genesis. It was conceived by a top lawyer who loves dining and entertaining.
We’re talking about veteran lawyer Nilo Divina, dean of the University of Santo Tomas Faculty of Civil Law and founder of Divina Law, one of the country’s leading law firms. In just a span of two years, Divina has developed several F&B outlets and brands in the pipeline.
In January 2023, he debuted as a restaurateur with the opening of Restaurant Aurora at Pacific Star Building, where Divina Law also holds office.
Restaurant Aurora, developed with chef Mark Sanchez, offers pan Asian cuisine and targets the more upscale Makati crowd. It’s a suitable spot for corporate/client meetings, discerning foodies and dining for special occasions.
Divina then realized it would be great if more people could try Aurora’s food. In May, he launched Bistro Aurora at the new Podium Social area—one of the only five F&B names invited by SM to set up shop at this highly curated new area (6th or topmost floor of Podium Mall).
For Bistro Aurora, the group wants to tap a more diversified market, including the younger crowd. It’s an all-day dining concept—serving anything from breakfast to after-dinner drinks, Ginger Ann Fabella, Aurora president, told Biz Buzz.
Like its mother resto in Makati, Bistro Aurora has space for intimate meetings. But it has an edge in terms of capacity as its al fresco area expands seating by additional 60 pax, from just 40 in indoor setting.
Aurora is a tribute to Divina’s late mom. As he would like to equally pay homage to his dad, Norlando, who is still very much around, he aims to open by October a new resto concept named after his old man. Located at Eton Tower on Dela Rosa St. in Makati, Norlando’s will offer all-Filipino dining in a cozy setting, targeting the mid-market Makati lunch and condominium resident crowd.
But Divina isn’t leaving out the mass market in his growing F&B enterprise. At the food court of Enterprise Makati, he launched in November 2024 another brand, Mr. Bogchi, a food kiosk that sells quick meals for under P200, mostly to employees and building staff.
Fabella said Mr. Bogchi is the brand that can easily scale up and is indeed now being developed for franchising, while Norlando’s is the brand that the group plans to bring to more shopping malls.
Aurora, on the other hand, is a “very special” brand that will be brought only to select locations, Fabella said.
Most recently, Fabella shared that culinary guide Michelin had written Restaurant Aurora Makati, sort of notifying them that it’s under consideration for their upcoming guide.
There’s no certainty whether Aurora will make the cut, but to be on the radar as a Michelin candidate is sufficient honor for the F&B newbie.
