The sister of President Bongbong Marcos is rumored to have bought a stake in a Spanish tapas restaurant chain.
A Babbler said Senator Imee Marcos has reportedly made an investment in Bar Pintxos founded and operated by Miguel Vecin and Martin “Tinchu” Gonzalez.
Babbler said Marcos swooped into Bar Pintxos to help the owners get through the pandemic which brought the entire restaurant industry to its knees.
The Basque-inspired restaurant made an ill-timed expansion right smack in the breakout of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Based on a report by ANC, Vecin and Gonzalez – together with their partners Carlo Calma Lorenzana and Bobby Tenchavez – opened three Bar Pintxos’ branches in March 2020 – Greenbelt 5 in Makati, Cebu (its first outside Metro Manila), and an asador or Spanish grill restaurant, Txoko, in Legaspi Village.
(Lorenzana also owns Argentinian steak restaurant La Cabrera and Boca Juan Filipinas winery.)
Since it started in 2015, Bar Pintxos had only three branches (the original in Alabang, Bonifacio Global City, and Salcedo Village in Makati) before its massive expansion in 2020.
“It was bad timing and the owners needed cash to keep the business alive through the lockdowns. Imee, who is a fan of the resto, came to the rescue,” Babbler said.
Babbler could not confirm whether Imee is a majority or minority owner of the business or just one of its branches.
Bilyonaryo.com tried to get the side of the senator but she has yet to reply to our query.
