Today we’d like to introduce you to Michele Kamayi.
Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
Ever since I was little, I told everyone I’d live in the United States when I grew up. I’ve always had an unexplainable attraction and fascination for the US. When I met my now husband, it quickly became clear that we were on the same page. I made my first omelet when I was 6 and I haven’t stopped cooking ever since.
At night I loved to go through my mother’s cooking books instead of reading fairytales. Food has always been an important part of my life. My dad being African, introduced my taste buds at a very young with a whole variety of herbs and spices. Growing up in Belgium/Europe has been very beneficial and rewarding foodwise. Belgian people love to take their time to come together and enjoy each other’s company over a lavish meal and locally brewed beers or full-flavored wines.
My husband and I want to bring that ambiance along with all the traditional Belgian cuisine to our restaurant. We bought this restaurant last year when the world was still in the middle of the pandemic. To even be allowed to enter the US at the time, we needed to quarantine for 14 days in a country outside of Europe.
We ended up in Aruba. They’re worse places to quarantine in of course. My husband still had a full-time job so he saved up all of his vacations so we could at least stay for 10 days in Florida to find our restaurant.
The restaurant we ended up buying, was the last one on our list. We were so grateful when we found it! There was definitely a lot that needed to be done but we immediately saw its potential. The fact that it was located in the beautiful and charming Dunedin was the cherry on top!
We had put our house on the market back in Belgium thinking it would take a little bit of time before it got sold. After being on the market for 2 weeks someone made us an offer we couldn’t refuse!
Because of covid the US embassy in Belgium, just like everywhere in the world, was having extremely long wait times. Every day we checked our online accounts to see if our visa applications were approved.
Mind you that we bought the restaurant in July 2021, moved out of our house in September 2021, and finally set foot on American soil on March 2, 2022!
Together with our 2 children, we bounced around from hotel to hotel for a few months. For the last couple of months, our best friends offered to let us stay with them till we got the green light from the embassy to finally move to the United States.
When we left Belgium, we first went to New York for a couple of days. Our daughter had never seen it and we wanted to surprise her. Moving abroad and leaving your best friends you grew up with your entire life, behind when you are 12 years old isn’t the easiest thing to do. Our son who’s 4, didn’t really realize what was going on. He thought we were going on vacation to Aruba again.
When we arrived at Tampa airport that Saturday the 5th of March, it felt like coming home. All those years of dreaming, longing, planning… The dream finally became a reality. Half April we finally got the keys to our restaurant and we began to work nonstop to get everything done for the 21st of July. This was a symbolic date for us to open since it’s the Belgian national holiday.
We successfully had a small event at the restaurant with all of our new friends we made in the US, Belgians, and Americans. My dad specially came from Belgium for the occasion! We were very moved by the outpouring of support we received from all of them and also by the support of the local community. Every person we’ve met has helped us in their own way. It hasn’t been the easiest of undertakings but so worth it!
We’re especially proud of our two children, Sam and Ellie. They were real little troopers during this chaotic and challenging year.
Fun fact: people think my name is Sallie but it’s actually an amalgamation of our children’s names.
What better way to name our restaurant?
So this was our little background story in a nutshell…
My husband’s name is Kieran Uylenbroek
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
The lack of family and friends to help out with the children is also very challenging. But we look at it as positively as we can. All the time we’ve spent together, are moments that we’ll cherish forever!
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know?
Our motto is Good food, Good times, Good people.
We offer traditional Belgian cuisine and also dishes with influences from all over Europe. You don’t need that long plane ride to Brussels to have authentic cheese or shrimp croquettes or one of our famous Belgian stews.
Our homemade chocolate mousse is made with delicious Belgian Callebaut dark chocolate and topped off with a Baileys & caramel mousse.
For the moment we celebrate the coming of the fall with a delicious cinnamon cake with a vanilla rice pudding mousse, caramelized calvados apples, roasted almond flakes and a cinnamon raisin ganache.
And yes the famous Belgian waffles will be added to our menu! When you enter our restaurant, my husband we’ll welcome you with his heart-warming smile and make you feel right at home!
We’re always looking for the lessons that can be learned in any situation, including tragic ones like the Covid-19 crisis. Are there any lessons you’ve learned that you can share?
The Covid 19 crisis has reinforced our mentality of not giving up when things get tough or seem impossible. A lot of things got even more complicated but complicated doesn’t mean impossible! Where there is a will, there’s a way! Positive thinking and perseverance are key!
Contact Info:
- Instagram: @salliescafe_dunedin
- Facebook: @Salliescafeandcatering
