Kusina sa Plaza, The Home of Authentic Marinduque Cooking!
“The Home of Authentic Marinduque Cooking” as the tagline goes. Kusina sa Plaza was founded by the restaurateur, Mrs. Aurora Majaba-Pitero, an elementary Home Economics teacher for 42 years. Her passion for cooking has brought her to establish the business on the 24th of April 1983. With only ample space for her small eatery, composing o
f a small kitchen and four (4) dining tables for her customers. She managed her “turo-turo”, as how she describes it, though serving delicious “lutong-bahay” entrees. For thirteen(13) years, Kusina sa Plaza was known for Aurora Pitero or Manang Auring’s Filipino dishes. After her retirement, she fully focused her attention and energy in managing her eatery. Come 1997, she decided to expand the business with the help of her daughter, Mary Rose “Rosette” Pitero-Sotta. Being a risk-taker, Rosette facilitated in the renovations and turned the small canteen into a bigger restaurant and added more services. They started offering more entrees, included more choices in their menu, focusing on snacks or “merienda”. It is also in 1997 that Kusina sa Plaza ventured into caterings. They started to tap a larger market in the food industry. Their first few clients in the catering service were government offices within Marinduque. What started as a small business catering for simple events eventually grew and prospered in the year 2000. The start of the millennium brought about great opportunities for Kusina sa Plaza. They were given the chance to serve their exceptional dishes in different events namely on weddings, birthday parties, debuts, anniversaries, etc. Being in the business for three (3) decades also gave Kusina sa Plaza the opportunity to present their dishes in various social events and activities all over the province, especially to well-known public icons like, Gov. Ejercito Estrada, Pres. Gloria Arroyo, Town Mayors and Congressmen. With all the occasions, gatherings, events and the likes that Kusina sa Plaza has catered throughout the years, they did not stop in improving their services. In 2009, Rosette invested on another addition to the family business. She introduced Café Kusina, the first coffee shop in town and the only establishment serving freshly brewed coffee and coffee-based drinks. New food products were also offered and the ambiance was enhanced. After two (2) years, 2011, Kusina sa Plaza was able to expand once more through the birth of Casa De Don Emilio on the 2nd level of the restored ancestral house of Don Emilio Hidalgo, a music enthusiast and major historical figure in the province. Casa De Don Emilio offers a more sophisticated approach in dining. Giving more attention to the quality food that Kusina sa Plaza has long been offering. With the more relaxed and classy ambiance, more guests are drawn to stay longer at the new found home of the Marinduqeños. With Kusina sa Plaza’s continuous desire for customer satisfaction, their mission to provide good services is made exceptional by the personal attention given by Manang Auring and Rosette in their events and especially to their clientele’s needs. This will always be reflected through the culture that they have established for Kusina sa Plaza and will be always evident through the never ending improvements that they are planning for the coming years...