Once upon a restaurant

Wishes do come true

Do you remember when you were younger and had dreams?

Well maybe, just like me. You were thinking of the future and how great something would be. And how much you wished to get there.

My wish has always been to have a restaurant. And not just manage it or rent the space. But to own it, own every aspect of that.

The first thing I did was buy land. I bought an old vineyard. The previous owners had a licence to make and sell alcohol on the property, I bought that also. The place was near the city but far enough to give it a rustic feeling and tranquillity. I turned the old house into a restaurant.

The house was big, so the first floor was great to transform, the tables, the chairs were are restored by me. I striped the paint and just gave them a nice varnish, because they were made from cherry tree. Beautiful and forgotten on the property, in the old brewery. I guess being old they haven’t used it in a long time.

The add-on was the kitchen. Big enough to have all the necessary equipment and space for the employees.

The second floor of the house is where I sleep, I have 3 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms and one office. My bedroom has the bath attached to it.

It is very easy to say that I have a perfect life. That I got everything that I wanted. Truth has it that I was barely making it with the bank instalment and paying bills and pay checks.

It is very hard to be on your own. And making it big.

My day would start with me getting ready. Preparing myself, pushing for great energy, like yeah, you can do it. As I want to the kitchen it starts, chef is yelling at waiters, one or two would quit. Then there would be a call, booking the restaurant for a party, a sweet sixteen. My hours would be spiralling from up to down, depending on when would happen.

I was expecting so much from the beginning. I was expecting so much from me. To be hands-on on every aspect, to expect much more then I was doing.

You might say that it is expected. You want to have success. To make money, to make it big. Yes, you are right. But at what cost?

Does the sacrifice you are making worth the reward?

This was the question that got me on the path of meeting John.

I needed a break. I felt like I was going to either finish my dream or myself.

A short weekend trip was my plan of salvation. So, I decided to visit some friends in Greece, on the island of Zakynthos. It is a small island in the Ionian Sea, third largest island. It is where Andreas and Vicky, my friends live. They are not Greek. But they fell in love with the island and decided to stay there, they even bought a house. Their house is beautiful, modern and since it is a perfect place for trees. I mean, really, it is Greece, they kept the orange trees and the grapevines. Which is perfect, because they can teach me how to care for my new found passion. The grapevine at the restaurant, I decided to keep as a hobby.