I hope everyone is having a ✨peaceful✨ Holidays/Winter break/clearance shopping. I’ve been taking this time to decompress from my crazy Fall semester, but I’m back😏
As we are wrapping up the celebration of the birth of baby Jesus, I figured this would be a good time to highlight the restaurant that inspired the birth of this newsletter. Family Bakery and Restaurant is a Dominican restaurant in Berlin that I came across by chance while browsing Ubereats (yes, browsing because those delivery fees are wild🥴).
Let’s Get Down to Business
The first time I visited Family Restaurant was when I realized just how hard running a small business could be, especially within the first year when you are adapting to a new landscape, fighting for clientele, all during a pandemic might I add. Family’s has GREAT food and is in a great location where there are very few Latino restaurants. However, from a business standpoint, there are a few things I think would help them gain more customers:
The name, “Family’s Bakery and Restaurant”: I had driven by this restaurant many times before and always thought it was a basic American or Italian bakery. The name and logo give no indication that the restaurant is Dominican and given the location of the restaurant, this would help them stand out and get people curious. Also, the only way I can describe the interior design of the restaurant is very…American? If they added some pictures of the Dominican Republic, a flag, SOMETHING, I think it could really help them showcase their culture and differentiate themselves from other restaurants in the area. Changing the name to something like “Familia” and changing the logo would be a worthwhile investment.
Too much emphasis on baked goods: Honestly, the baked goods are American cookies that you could find at any grocery store bakery. The food is so good and if they were to take out the cookie display cases and replace them with a larger food bar with more variety the concept of the restaurant would be more clear.
Consistency: The menu is a bit inconsistent which is not a problem for me because many Latino restaurants operate in this fashion both in the states and abroad. But, given the location and clientele (majority white), I think it’s important that they conform to the idea of a consistent menu which is expected among non-Latino clientele. If you know, you know.
But, there is A LOT to love about this place:
Obviously, the food: Dominicans can COOK!
Made to order: Any food not already prepared at the food bar is made to order. This means they take some extra time making it (there’s only 1 cook), but it’s worth it if you call ahead.
Location: I think the struggle of figuring out how to present themselves in a predominately white town is obvious, hence all of the American-ness. But, the fact that there was such a diverse clientele really makes me happy :)
Now onto the food…
I have been to this restaurant multiple times and I’ve gotten:
White Rice
Yellow Rice
Beans
Roasted pork
Bistec guisado (beef stew)
Baked Chicken
Mangu con queso y salami
Ham, egg, and cheese breakfast sandwich
Cubano sandwich
For those that don’t know what mangu is, it is a traditional Dominican dish that is basically mashed plantain with butter. It is served with salami, fried cheese, and a fried egg most of the time.
To me, nothing beats Puerto Rican yellow rice BUT I will say that the meat is always perfectly cooked. I am always very wary of getting meat from food bars because it can sometimes be very dry or chewy but I have never experienced that at Family’s. Not to mention, the portions you get for the price which is huge and I always leave there ready for a nap 😭
Overall…
I really hope that this restaurant succeeds and is able to embrace and showcase its cultural roots in this town. I want to make it clear that not every Latino-owned restaurant is entitled to scream their culture from the rooftops, but in this case, I see it as a vital step in diversifying the community and getting more people interested in what they serve. The food is so good and the only component they are missing is the marketing and positioning. Right now, I think they are positioned as too American for the real gem that they have which is their Dominican food and not their American bakery items (sorry, not sorry!).
The first time I visited the restaurant, I thought long and hard about specific ways the restaurant can improve. This got me thinking about the difficulty of starting a business as a Latino since the food culture in Latin America versus the United States are completely different, hence the birth of this newsletter where I can disect my thoughts and share them with you 🌟
Before you go…
Make sure to watch the video on any of my social medias linked here and also check out Family’s Bakery and Restaurant on Facebook. 🥰