Ubuntu Canteen - Dave Gunawan
Interested in starting your own entrepreneurial journey in food and beverage but unsure what to expect? Then read up on our interview with Dave Gunawan, founder of Ubuntu Canteen, located in Vancouver, BC, Canada.
What's your business, and who are your customers?
We are an organic bakery/cafe by the day and a restaurant by night. Ubuntu is a cozy neighbourhood establishment that serves meticulously crafted and eloquent food created with ingredients from local farmers. The restaurant-style is similar to going to a chef friend's house for dinner. The down-to-earth, knowledgable service and open kitchen exude a transparent, friendly, and confident vibe. The daily dinner menu changes served in six, or four-course tasting menus give guests a chance to try something new and have a transformative experience where they can consider every bite. Our cooking style is minimal resourceful seasonal respectful playful.
Tell us about yourself
Ubuntu Canteen is a place where a connection is everything. Reconnecting the people who work there to themselves and each other gives them the opportunity to really explore who they are and where they belong in the world.
The ethos of our establishment has always been about who we are in relation to others, and I firmly believe that until we are free from the burden of ourselves, we simply cannot achieve freedom in life itself. This is very apparent in most of the restaurants I have worked in. Food is no longer sanctified but rather utilized as a means to self validate. Food then became this resource to be extracted, manipulated, and disregarded once consumed. We then dilute the intention of food. The sacredness and convivial nature become a means to subjugate, colonize, and exploit. The results are rampant abuse and unworkable conditions. We need to realize the permanent part of our soul. To produce food, we must learn to respect nature itself, and this recognition must amount to a living faith.
Being a “restaurant” is not necessarily about commodifying a particular version of food to serve the capitalistic system, but rather serving food that serves the people who cook it, produce it, and the community itself. This is the basis of food sovereignty. Seeing how people transform personally and professionally each day is what motivates me
What's your biggest accomplishment as a business owner?
Keeping everybody employed throughout this pandemic.
What's one of the hardest things that come with being a business owner?
Having to create a safe environment and facing all the emotional challenges day to day.
What are the top tips you'd give to anyone looking to start, run and grow a business today?
Be resolute with your intention and stick with it. Take care of yourself first, then the business. Grow only when you are mentally healthy and have all the resources available.
Is there anything else you'd like to share?
Be devoted to hospitality, and the community will support you.
Where can people find you and your business?
Website: https://www.ubuntucanteen.ca/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ubuntucanteen/
If you like what you've read here and have your own story as a solopreneur that you'd like to share, then email community@subkit.com; we'd love to feature your journey on these pages.
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