“We started here in Tomas Morato, back then it looked different. It was a basic restaurant, a griller at that time. Back in the day, early, mid and late 90s, it was ‘ihaw-ihaw (trend) pa’. So that was just a concept and a little bit better and transformed into a family restaurant,” recalls Gerry Apolinario, the owner of Gerry’s Restaurant and Bar.
Gerry’s Restaurant and Bar, formerly Gerry’s Grill, is a group of restaurants in the Philippines which has branches in other countries. Its first branch opened at Tomas Morato in Quezon City on February 14, 1997. Later, four branches opened in the US.
In 2010, it started to expand in Singapore and, in 2012, in Qatar. On June 21, 2019, Gerry's had 151 branches internationally, including UAE.
Gerry’s (now without the ‘Grill’ attached to the brand’s name) was a small under budgeted business in the 1990s, and Mr. Apolinario admitted that it was his first foray and that he didn’t have a business breakthrough.
25 years later, Gerry’s has unveiled its new look, and old branches will be renovated to create a new family concept themed restaurant.
“Lighting is much more inviting, brighter, and most family-oriented. The signature bar is now small and will be set up as a functional bar for service. It was a year or more of collaboration between us and the architectural firm, and they converted our ideas to what we really like,” added Mr. Apolinario.
Along with the renovations, new menus will be introduced by January 2023.
The pandemic took its toll on the restaurant industry, and Mr. Apolinario felt it was especially bad because their international operations suffered as well. He admitted to having a close bout with depression at the beginning of the onset.
Nonetheless, he saw the global scenario as a blessing because it allowed them to develop new products that they had never considered before. Gerry’s launched a new product line called Home Experience, which consists of frozen items that are widely available in groceries and supermarkets.
Gerry’s did not remain silent in the face of the ongoing digital transformation, instead seizing the opportunity to form a social media management team in order to keep the business afloat. They’ve also opened a new concept restaurant in the United States called Avenida, which is located in downtown San Mateo and serves Filipino cuisine.
“You can’t give up on something that you have 25 years to build,” shared Mr. Apolinario who founded and started the restaurant while still a bachelor. He also revealed that he faced numerous challenges and struggles during Gerry’s early years.
A significant change that Gerry’s is currently undergoing as part of digitalization is the conversion of comments slips to QR codes that direct customers to the Gerry’s comments landing page on their website. This is just one of Gerry’s methods for improving the company’s operations.
Gerry’s is popular on social media with its Kwentong Gerry’s, a series of short films available on Gerry’s Official Facebook Page that debuted in 2017 as a campaign for Gerry’s 20th Anniversary. The stories in the short films, which were released in the 4th quarter of 2017, reflect the fun personalities of Gerry’s customers.
Gerry’s is also present on other social media platforms such as Instagram, YouTube, and TikTok, where they recently concluded the #GerrysReel vlog-making contest in which they invited their customers to create and upload a video answering the question “Bakit da-best ang Gerry’s sa Pasko?”
The brand also intends to incorporate its international operations to the Philippine websites so that online visitors can access everything from a single website.