Timeline: How The Bistro Group Grew from 1 to 220+ Restaurants in 30 Years
On Thursday (October 2), A Soriano Corp. announced that it had sold its 22-percent stake in The Bistro Group, the operator of popular casual dining restaurants like TGI Fridays, Italiannis, Texas Roadhouse, and many others, for P1.914 billion. Anscor initially purchased a minority stake in TBG last year for P1.3 billion. Back then, the company said TBG is “in one of the most attractive and resilient market segments in the Philippines, the consumer sector.”
Anscor sold its minority stake to Inoza Business Holdings Inc., a newly established holding firm of the Cheng family’s Progeny Global Holdings Inc., which, in turn, owns poultry producer Bounty Fresh and roasted chicken retailer Chooks-to-Go.
That means the Cheng family now owns a majority stake in TBG. Inoza first acquired a controlling interest in TBG in August last year after the Philippine Competition Commission approved the transaction.
TBG is one of the country’s most popular restaurant groups, with brands and concepts that appeal to a wide variety of tastes and markets. When it celebrated its 30th anniversary earlier this year, it said it has over 25 concepts and over 220 stores nationwide.
Its roster of restaurant brands includes Italianni's, Denny's, Buffalo Wild Wings, Texas Roadhouse, Randy's Donuts, Olive Garden, Hard Rock Cafe, El Pollo Loco, Watami, Modern Shang, Red Lotus, Bulgogi Brothers, Secret Recipe, Fish & Co, Krazy Garlik, Siklab+, Las Flores, Tomatito, Rambla, and Rumba.
Here’s a quick timeline of TBG’s history in the Philippines:
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1994
TBG traces its roots to the opening of the first TGI Friday’s in the Philippines. Founder William “Bill” Stelton said back then that the focus was on introducing international casual dining concepts to the local market).
1996
TBG expanded with the opening of the first Italianni’s in Greenbelt, Makati.
2000s
Over the next decade TBG steadily added branches and well-known global casual brands to its roster, building a multi-brand portfolio across Metro Manila and key provinces.
2010s
TBG expanded slowly and meaningfully during the 2010s. It opened the first Krazy Garlic and Bulgogi Brothers in 2011, Watami in 2012, Texas Roadhouse and Denny’s in 2016. It also brought back Hard Rock Café back to the Philippines in 2018. It also opened Modern Shanghai, Fish & Co. and added the Spanish tapas restaurant Las Flores around this time.
By 2013, TBG had nine concepts and 53 stores, reporting almost P2 billion in revenue at the time.
It was also during this time when renowned chef Josh Boutwood joined TBG as its Executive Corporate Chef, overseeing the offerings of all of its restaurants. Later, The Bistro Group also partnered with Boutwood on his fine dining concepts, including The Test Kitchen, Savage, Helm, Ember, Juniper, and others.
2020-2021
Like most large operators in the F&B industry, TBG was affected during COVID but adapted quickly. It emphasized delivery (BistroDelivers), meal kits, operations digitization, and cost controls to retain staff and stabilize operations.
2024-2025
TBG accelerated its premium/steakhouse strategy, bringing global names to Manila, including Morton’s The Steakhouse in BGC in late 2024. By the close of 2024 and the company’s 30th anniversary in early 2025, TBG reported around 26 concepts, over 225 stores, and roughly P9 billion in revenues. The company had undoubtedly become one of the country’s largest multi-brand operators.
At the event, TBG announced plans to open a over 100 new stores within the next five years. The expansion includes the launch of several new international concepts, including Dave & Buster's and Dessert 129. It already opened LongHorn Steakhouse in April, with Fogo de Chão following just months later.
In August 2025, the Cheng family’s investment arm, Inoza Business Holdings, Inc., moved to acquire a majority stake in TBG. The Philippine Competition Commission cleared the takeover, signaling a major ownership transition and potential vertical integration between agribusiness (Bounty Fresh) and TBG’s restaurant supply chains.
With fresh investors, it seems TBG will continue on its growth trajectory and expand even more in the years ahead.
