Mama Lou’s Italian Kitchen - or simply and lovingly, Mama Lou’s - has been an institution of comfort for over a decade. In anticipation of this interview, members of the Tatler team exchanged fond memories of and favourite dishes from the beloved establishment, gushing about their vongole olio, indulgent lasagna, and many more. Although the pandemic’s obstructive consequences continue to plague the industry, Mama Lou’s admirably manages to maintain their momentum, sustaining their restaurants while expanding their brand across different platforms.
Recently, Mama Lou’s pivoted towards and emphasised their online presence: from improving their website, to launching their hotline, and further integrating social media platforms into their marketing and operations efforts. Simultaneously, Mama Lou’s continued to support their team through ongoing in-house leadership workshops and transitioning the roles of restaurant servers and cashiers to delivery riders, ensuring continued employment. The chain also streamlined its menu and professionalised its commissary (which now holds 90 per cent of its restaurant offerings), allowing the company to centralise their operations and combat economic challenges while preserving the consistency and quality of its food.
We spoke to Crystal T. Sison, Mama Lou’s managing director, and David P. Sison, the company’s president and CEO, to learn more about their latest experiences running their restaurants. As they divulge their insights into the future of the hospitality industry and recount the strategies they implemented to face the pandemic, Crystal and David demonstrate that business know-how and innovative foresight underpin the success story that is Mama Lou’s - a welcoming comfort food empire from humble beginnings.
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Could you tell us a bit about Mama Lou - the namesake figure behind the restaurant’s name, as well as the restaurant brand?
Crystal Sison: Mama Lou's Italian Kitchen Restaurant was born out of a real kitchen, a modest one in our family home in Las Piñas. We opened our doors to guests in 2010, welcoming them with warm Filipino hospitality on every visit. My mum, Malou Tremblay, was the inspiration behind our restaurant's name - Mama Lou's symbolises love, and I think we can all agree that nothing compares to a mother's love.
We envision Mama Lou's to be the leading Italian kitchen for every family. We are always about making memorable moments.
How did the pandemic affect and change the way you run the restaurant from service to menu and food?
David Sison: We needed to find ways to offer Filipino hospitality and our Italian specialities to every home, so we brought our delivery and take-out services online. We're currently available on the Mama Lou’s website, Gcash (GLIFE), and our new hotline #MAMA (#6262), as well as Grab Food & Foodpanda.
In addition, we’ve explored more opportunities to bring diners the dishes they love and satisfy whatever it is they’re craving for, in the most convenient ways. This sprouted our newest delivery-only concept: Mama Foods Cloud Kitchen. It is the newest delivery platform in town, housing a variety of premium brands like Mama Lou's, Mexigo, and Chicken Gaga, to name a few. As the name suggests, it operates as a cloud kitchen, so you can order multiple cuisines and have them delivered together.
Finally, we’ve integrated contactless service for dine-in, emphasising the importance of safety and peace of mind on your visits. You just have to scan the code to see our menu and place your orders directly from your smartphones.