Cinema '76 Finds Its New Home in Tomas Morato. Here's What to Expect.
Cinema ’76 Café is back, cinephiles. After its original branch shut down, the beloved movie-themed café sets its sights for Tomas Morato, Quezon City. Its new-look space and revamped menu speak for themselves.
“We wanted the café to reflect the needs of our growing customer base so we made sure to incorporate dining options for them, which we couldn’t implement in our former branch," explained TBA Studios President and COO Daphne O. Chiu. "With our spacious dining area and a customizable menu, we can do so much more and be an ideal venue for different types of events.”
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Cinema ’76 Café first opened in Anonas in June 2021, which was established to celebrate the Cinema ’76 Film Society. Unfortunately, the pandemic would force the micro-cinema hangout to shut down. Now, its new location welcomes the public to a fresher, more contemporary feel, with indoor and outdoor dining options to match in one of the busiest areas in QC.
Designed by the renowned chefs of the Center for Asian Culinary Studies, the menu takes from "the cinema and theater attitude," according to Chefs Gene and Gino Gonzalez. For the latter, he says that their top consideration was to keep the spirit of Cinema ’76 Film Society alive.
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They did so with a more diverse menu that offers cocktails, coffee, and comfort food, all of which derived from the community's history. Of course, we may bring them to the theater with us, too. “We have favorite bistro dishes that are not necessarily Filipino but are very agreeable to the Filipino taste. We have American, Italian, and a bit of Asian too so everyone will have more reasons to go here,” Gino stressed. "It's a good mix of new and familiar flavors.”
Among the chef's top recommendations include TBA Studios-inspired dishes like "Luna," chicken tocino with salted egg relish and tomatoes; "Del Pilar," made with adobo flakes, cream cheese, with pickled onions; "Quezon," which is a play on the classic chicken inasal, complete with tomatoes with creamy béchamel sauce; and the TBA Studios Box-Office Pasta, an extra virgin olive oil-based chorizo pasta with sun-dried tomatoes, toasted bell peppers, and shimeji mushrooms. Food items like Truffle Fries, Mozzarella Sticks, Chorizo Chisu Croquettes, and Nachos, among others, were made to be theater snacks, they pointed out.
Chiu added: “Tomas Morato has always felt like the heart of the entertainment capital: Quezon City and we’re pleased and excited to be part of this community. We look forward to serving anyone looking for a unique place to dine.”
Cinema ’76 Café officially opens its doors on March 18.
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