Thus it can be said that a similar ethos drove his granddaughter, Margarita “Gaita” Araneta Forés, who passed away suddenly on Feb. 11, 2025, to put up Cibo in Glorietta in 1997 with the mission of bringing authentic Italian cuisine to Filipinos.
It was Don Amading who encouraged Gaita, Asia’s Best Chef of 2016, to take up accounting, graduating magna cum laude from Assumption College. Unbeknownst to many, she was a certified public accountant — a skillset that would later serve her well as a restaurateur.
Prominent parentage
Margarita was born on March 23, 1959, to Dr. Raul Geronimo Forés, one of the founders of Makati Medical Center and the physician who attended to former President Fidel V. Ramos during his carotid surgery in 1996.
Dr. Forés’ maternal roots can be traced back to Grace Park in Caloocan, where the Geronimos manufactured Elpo rubber shoes. Inspired by this heritage, Margarita named her farm-to-table Filipino restaurant Grace Park, which she launched in 2013.
Her mother was the iconoclast Maria Lourdes “Baby” Araneta Forés, the second daughter and youngest child of Don Amading. A renowned fashion plate and a fixture at the legendary Studio 54 in New York, Baby provided Margarita with the seed capital to start Cibo, under the expressed condition that she involve her siblings in the venture.
A life of privilege, a life in exile
At age 11, Margarita’s sheltered life in Cubao abruptly changed when her family went into self-exile in New York. The decision was strongly influenced by Don Amading and his wife Ester, who chose to remain in the U.S. after former President Ferdinand Marcos declared Martial Law in 1972. A longtime Liberal Party supporter, Don Amading also had political ties—his son-in-law, Sen. Gerry Roxas, was married to his elder daughter, Judy.
“New York in the seventies was exciting,” said Margarita in a video produced by FEATR. “It was the time when a lot of young Italians moved to the city and changed the whole scene in fashion, food and retail.”
After three years of studying political economics at the Mt. Holyoke College in Massachusetts, Margarita briefly worked for the Italian fashion house, Valentino, where she gained insights into building strong brands. The passing of Don Amading in 1985 prompted the Aranetas to return to the Philippines.
Hong Kong to Italy
While applying her accounting background while working at a finance company in Hong Kong, Margarita — living alone in a small apartment in what she described as a major food hub — realized she had to start cooking for herself to avoid spending her earnings on dining out and rent.
It was in 1986 when Margarita asked her mom if she could go to Italy to fully immerse herself in Italian cuisine. From September to December, she took crash courses at the Masha Innocenti School, at the Ada Parasiliti L’Angolo dela Gastronomia, and at the Jo Bettoja Lo Scaldovivande.
While quietly serving as consultant for the family-owned Trattoria Uno in Ali Mall, Margarita made herself known by participating in the 1987 Nuovo Cucina Italiana festival of the Hyatt Regency Hotel. It was a smash hit, leading to an encore soon after.
“I shocked the daylights out of the people at the Hyatt when I told them I had no measurements for my recipes, “ she told the Probe Team in 1989.
It was also around this time that she first ventured into catering, handling intimate affairs in private homes.
Cibo and more
Following the success of Cibo which now has over 25 outlets, Margarita established restaurants that were considered ahead of their time.
There was Cafe Bola, which she described as offering dishes “designed to chase the rainy-day blues away,” and Pepato, whose menu Maurice Aracache said “consisted of secret Italian recipes from the Fores-Araneta clan and, most importantly, Margarita’s ingenuity and prowess.”
Always attributing her resilience to her motherly instincts, Margarita —a two-time cancer survivor— was undeterred by the closure of these establishments. She went on to pursue other ventures, such as Cibo di Marghi Signature Caterer (now known as Margarita Signature Caterer), Lusso, and Grace Park.
She also forged key partnerships, including Alta with Ascott Bonifacio Global City, The Loggia at Palacio de Memoria, and Islas Pinas, a “Food and Heritage Village” with DoubleDragon Properties. In 2024, she launched Arete in Tagaytay.
In 2016, she was invited by Harvard University’s Department of Engineering and Science to its public lecture series, where she delivered a talk titled “Confluence.”
“I’ve chosen the title Confluence actually for my presentation because I think that, first of all, my personal experience is a real confluence of many influences, decisions, that let me take this journey and let me arrive in front of you today,” she said. “And of course the confluence of the cuisine of my country.”
An emotional Margarita closed her talk by revealing how she got waitlisted at the Radcliffe Institute of Advance Study at Harvard University in 1976.
“People always say that dreams don’t always come true,” she said, holding back tears. “They do come true not at the time you might want them but they come and spring a surprise on you sometimes 40 years down the road.”
Filipino food advocate
Margarita became a staunch advocate, using her influence and talents to promote Filipino cuisine and sustainable agriculture.
“Working with the farmers, for example, was also born out of a personal experience that I had, “ she told ANC. After battling cancer, she discovered “healthier eating, healthier sourcing of ingredients” and the importance of “working with farmers who were doing amazing things in the country today.”
“Our world is in such danger,” she further said, “that if we don’t awaken people today to doing things in a more sustainable way, then we lose that chance to be aware and be part of this movement.”
Before her death she was working on her swan song, the signature restaurant Margarita, which is set to open at the Ayala Triangle Gardens.
“We worked together on getting Slow Food out there—but you went not slow but fast!!!” wrote Chit Juan, a long-time supporter of the Global Slow Food Movement. “You taught us a lot about Slow Food and about Turino. Terra Madre will never be the same again. Thank you for everything you have shared with the industry and, most of all, for bringing our food to the world’s stage. Farewell GAF. Gaita. Margarita.”
Margarita is survived by her son Amado, also a restaurateur, and her siblings Veanna, Bledes, Joe and Oye. Dr. Fores died in 2019 and Baby in 2023.
Features Reporter
