Photo Credit: sbe
Sofia Vergara and her son, Manolo Gonzalez Vergara, as well as their business partner, Luis Balaguer, CEO and founder of Latin World Entertainment, launched their LatinX culinary brand, TOMA, in partnership with sbe founder and CEO Sam Nazarian’s Everybody Eats at his Hyde Sunset in Los Angeles late last week.
Photo Credit: sbe
Guests at the fete on Friday evening included Vergara and co, Juliana Aiden Martinez-Griselda Cast, Taye Diggs, Marco DelVecchio, Carlos Eric Lopez, Orlando Pineda, Lisa and Marco Vergara , Mary Wolff, Shane Norman, Lauren Morasky , Valeria Metz, Zach Metz, Ydelays Rodriguez, Erol Bay, Lon Taylor, Argjira Berisha, Cintaya Carmona, Ernesto Reyes, Maria B Fernandez, Jose Velaquez, Diana Madison, Anastasia Soare, Charlene Roxborough Konsker, Camryn Burke, Norvina Soare, Claudia Vergara, Eloin Rivera , Lauren Morasky , Shane Norman, Hernando Vergara, Luisa Vergara, Gwendolyn Patkunas, and more.
Photo Credit: sbe
The landmark partnership marks the first hospitality venture for Vergara and her son, and will launch with empanadas and croquetas available at restaurants around the US, with plans of becoming a disruptor in the Latin Consumer Packaged Goods category. The brand soft-launched at select events around the country in partnership with Netflix’s Griselda in January, and has now hard-launched in cities including Los Angeles, Miami, and Chicago. The brand aims to fill the gap in the Latin foods segment by bringing South American flavors and elevated dishes to the forefront of fast-casual dining. At the heart of TOMA are the Vegara family recipes that Sofia and Manolo take pride in, of which have been formulated and perfected over the years with the Everybody Eats culinary and hospitality standards of excellence.
Photo Credit: sbe
Nazarian said: “It’s an honor to join forces with international superstar Sofia Vergara and her son Manolo on TOMA. Sofia is not only incredibly talented but she has an innate entrepreneurial instinct and passion that will drive TOMA to close the gap in representation of South American, Latin QSR brands. My team and I at Everybody Eats, are honored to collaborate with an incredible duo to deliver authentic experiences to a broader audience that Sofia has been able to connect with since the beginning of her career. We have great plans for TOMA and we are excited to grow the brand together.”
Photo Credit: sbe
Added Vergara, “I have been eating Manolo’s cooking since he was a little kid, and I’ve always thought this was a perfect thing for us to do together, because he cooks but I eat! I’ve also known Sam Nazarian for many years, and he loves Latin food I think even more than I do, so I knew he would be the perfect partner who not only understands our food, but understands what we want to accomplish with this brand. It’s our love letter to Hispanic food and we want to share it with the world, and I’m so proud to be doing this with our team. It’s really special, we hope you love eating it as much as we do!”
