What comes to mind when you hear the words “Ritz and Glitz” would be cool, classy, chic, elegant, glamourous and stylish.
And that is exactly the ambience that you will get when you visit the Ritz Café at the ground floor of the Summer Pines Residences at Marcos Highway.
The veranda has picturesque sunsets. It is different from a hotel in Legarda, but it is the same resto that used to be at the Bell House of Camp John Hay, except that it has now moved to Marcos Highway.
The name “Ritz” came from Maritzie Macapagal Banting. A soft spoken but dynamic entrepreneur and single mother whose passion for cooking was finally realized when the pandemic happened.
One can say that that this is one of the upbeat effects of reaching out to the others in order to share. Ritz cooked small meals to give “ayuda” to the staff of gas stations and convenience stores.
Her “dream” since graduating from the University of the East with an AB Political Science course in 1990. She wanted to put up a small restaurant, canteen or carinderia. However, cupid and fate interrupted her dreams. She went to Taiwan instead to work as a dental assistant, following the wishes of her mother. After three years, she came back only to meet her high school sweetheart again.
This paved the way to marriage which bore three sons, I-Cheng, now a business analyst; Clarenz, a BS Math graduate and book author; and Czammuel, a high school student who dotes on his mom. Their union also brought Ritz and her husband to the States where she took a short course in interior design as she looked for work before she settled in Baguio.
Before putting up the Ritz Café, the businesswoman in Maritzie, drove her to venture into making curtains, bedsheets, and bed covers. And because she also had a fetish for watches, she also started a business as a consignee of brand watches at the two big hotels in Camp John Hay. Unstoppable, she went further into RTWs and frozen food. At present, aside from the café, she does interior designs and is a consultant to construction businesses.
Her love for helping others brought her to the doorstep of an orphanage in Camp 7 and a senior citizens home in Tuding, Itogon, Benguet. Well, that is another story.
Her Ritz Café provides an upscale coffee and dining experience and a place “to go to” if you are after a scenic view of the mountains in Baguio.
In fact, her “heavenly ube” non coffee drink is something to try. The place is also a venue for events. The place can sit about a 100 to 150 guests during weddings, corporate events, and seminars. The café also provides catering services. And that is how we met Ritz.
She catered to our guests during the “grand re-launching of the rehabilitated Baguio Museum” after the completion of the 2017 Ambassador’s Fund for Cultural Preservation last Sept. 2 with H.E. U.S. Ambassador Mary Kay Carlson as the main guest.
Our menu favorites during the event were: Bacon-wrapped sausages, mini bur-gers, chicken lollipops, mini triple-decker sandwiches, mini ham, cheese muffins, and mini brownies.
Her braised pork are equally delicious. Ritz also bakes her own bread. Because she is meticulously aware of your dining needs, she will sit down with you to plan your menu. For those interested, you may get in touch with her thru: mobile 0917 566 8943 or email her at [email protected] or message her at her Facebook account “Ritz Café”.
By the way, they also deliver.
