Dencio's Bar and Grill Restaurant The Old is new Again

When it first opened it doors, Dencio's Bar and Grill brought the eclectic flavor of the barrio to the urban metropolis. Twenty-tree years later, the homegrown brand is revisiting the same idea that made it one of the country's favorite dining traditions.

Now a member of the Max's group family of brands, Dencio's- on of the Philippines first provincial-resort type restaurants - recently unveiled a new store cocept in its branch in Harbor Square at the Cultural Center of the Philippines.

"Dencio's remains a beloved restaurant among Pinoy's," said Jim Fuentebella, BRanding Director of Max's Group Inc. (MGI). "To stay top of mind, we refurbished the store look to better reflect the core values that built the brand. And we couldn't do this without the help of the original founder."

Dennis Nakpil who founded Dencio's in 1991, has been working closely with MGI in taking the brand to the forefront of the country's highly competitive casual dining segment.

"Dencio's was established under the premise of providing Filipinos with a place that is strictly local and original," shared Dennis, who is currentlty a partner at three Dencio's branches. "That is what we are establishing now in a stronger, effective way.

Dennis and MGI are focused on renewing the following for the brand, and this entails taking the restaurant to the next level with upgrades in its theme as well as operations.

Staying truly Filipino

"We wanted to stay true to the Filipino Feel, both with our food and ambiance," said Dennis. We kept the native materials in our designs and we retained the dishes that our loyal diners kept comming back for."

All time favorites - like the sisig - are now complemented by the new interiors to delover an even dining experience for customers. The bar area now features walk-in chillers, while the function room has been decorated with novelty items including a dart board.

While balikbayans are the brand's biggest followers, the new stor concept strives to welcome a virety of diners - including families, sports enthusiasts, and barkadas. The new design scheme in Dencio's CCP will be cascaded to the brand's nine branches across the Philippines.

"We are all about improvement but we stick to our core. At Dencio's we continuously try to improve our food and their pricing. We want to deliver value," Dennis added.

Building lived brands

The vision of MGI is simple - building loved brands.

With nearly 70 years of experience in the industry, the group adds a valuable dimension to the development of Dencio's However Jim quickly pointed out, MGI does not intend to veer away from the restaurant's original identity.

"Being restauranteurs ourselves, we value brand authorship," he explained. "Dencio's already has an identity and it was a great one. We want to build on this, so it can focus on the things it does best."

With the current set up, Max's focuses on the restaurants execution and operations while Dennis takes charge over the creative side of things of the brand.

"Just as we want to stay true to our roots with our concept, we also want to apply it to the business side of things by going back to the core," added Jim.

Dennis concluded: "At Dencio's we strive to satisfy all our target market by bringing them quality while staying true to our identity. We don't try to be something we are not. And for an industry that is constantly changing, holding on to your identity is very important."