Sideeq Nassir (Manager of the Bayridge Yemen Café)

Being Raised in the United States

Although born and raised in Brooklyn, NY and in the very neighborhood where the first Yemen Café was started, Sideeq finds a balance between his Yemeni culture and his American culture. While he “can’t get enough of McDonalds,” he also hopes that his newborn twins speak Arabic and understand their culture as they grow older. His father refused to allow English to be spoken in the house and Sideeq traveled to Yemen every year as a child. (He still does.) He credits his ability to read, speak, and understand Arabic fluently to this travel and to the restaurant’s ability to preserve Yemeni culture.

Sideeq went to college at the Fashion Institute of Technology for animation and furthered his artistic aspirations by moving to San Francisco to intern at Pixar. However, it was that internship that showed him that he could not bring himself to do art for money. Today, Sideeq draws and make sketches alongside his friends who are artists as well during the evenings. Even though he couldn’t live out his dream, he is happy that at least his passion for art isn’t being made into a business.

Sideeq even created the logo for the Yemen Café: it is a dagger that every tribe in Yemen has, and the writing inside of the dagger says Yemen Café in Arabic.

 

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The customers, the location, the community, the style, and Sideeq’s role have all changed in the Yemen Café. Everything has gradually changed except for two things: the Yemeni food and hospitality.

 

Location/Style of the Cafe

It was more of like a club back in the days.

 

The Yemen Café, when located in the basement of their current building, was the very first stop any Yemeni would make from straight off the plane. At the Yemen Café, Sideeq’s father would give new Yemeni immigrants a place to stay and sleep until they managed to get on their own feet. Before it was controlled, khat was one of the café’s major selling points.  “It was more like a club” Sideeq said, referring to the early days of the restaurant. His father would greet and host whoever came through the doors. The Yemen Café was a social hub for immigrants who were stepping into a strange and unfamiliar country. It was a place to socialize and build networks. It was a place for a community of immigrants who all shared a similar culture and story. To learn more about how the actual location changed click here.

Not Just a Cafe, But A Family

Even though Yemen Café is now all about serving food of the finest quality, the warmth and hospitality that gave the café its reputation is still vibrant. Everyone in the family grows up helping out in the café. Growing up, Sideeq recounts,

“I was the busboy, dish-washer; I wiped down the tables.”

Sideeq wants his children to pursue their interests, whether that means becoming a basketball player or a ballerina or whatever. He believes his children should be able to follow their dreams. But he hopes that he can instill in them the value of working hard and earning money. Hard work is also a great way to stay out of trouble and keep oneself occupied with school and with helping the family.

Without a doubt, Sideeq sees his kids helping out in the café. Since he spent all of his free time in the café as a kid, Sideeq now emphasizes that this is what helped him realize the value of money. Although he’s a manager, you can find him cleaning tables, serving dishes, answering calls, washing dishes, etc.

I’m whatever they need me to be

If his workers are tired, he’ll say “Take a rest”. He knows they each have families and understands the value of each position in the café. “I’m whatever they need me to be,” Sideeq says, referring to his workers. When you enter Yemen Café, family, community, and hospitality take on a whole new meaning.

 

From Before to After 9/11 and the Ever Changing Neighborhood 

Before 9/11, the majority of the customers were Arab. However, as the post-9/11 era came in, more and more non-Arab or American customers began to flow in. Many came into the café wondering if the stereotypes held true. Sideeq says that non-Arab customers came in thinking one thing, and left with a different attitude. These customers also have made Yemen Café’s portions smaller as more customers are coming in by themselves or in couples, whereas the Arab customers would come in large numbers and with families.

Not Worse than Trader Joe’s

 

Over the years, Sideeq, his brothers, and his father have seen much of their Arab community move to Bay Ridge as rent prices in downtown Brooklyn have increased and affordable living has become tougher. The family has also  gotten to know the owners of every shop in the area during these years–except for the owners of Key Food. Because the business is run through managers, the Key Food grocery store has shown little interest in joining with the neighboring shops and cafés in promoting the  interests of the community. Besides Key Food and the widely-popular Barclay’s Center which has caused more traffic for the area, another business that has impacted life in the neighborhood is Trader Joe’s.

This store of the national supermarket chain has taken up about 25% of the block, and this has limited the number of parking spots (now used for its delivery trucks). In an area that would usually serve as parking for 15 cars, Trader Joe’s has now blocked it all off.

Although complaints from surrounding shops have not yet been fruitful, the neighborhood stores have managed to put a stop to movie makers who come in and force the shops to close for days on end for the sake of shooting a scene or two. The shops could not afford to keep losing money and so complaints to the community board and calls to a state senator finally gave them protection from these movie makers. Sideeq proudly emphasizes, “10-15 years ago, we never would have all these shops gather to complain about Trader Joe’s taking up parking spots.”

The community or unofficial union of shops and cafés has been essential to protecting these small stores from being run out of business as larger stores or new waves of people decide to move in or use the neighborhood for its authentic or ethnic feel. Stores like Key Food and Trader Joe’s are not part of this thriving local culture, which may be declining and has made this community special.

Click here to see the different waves of people who have influenced this neighborhood’s development.

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So, What Next? 

“…they have the same exact menu, the only difference is in the address”

That is the kind of motto Sideeq hopes to keep as he dreams of expanding Yemen Café. With a a branch already located in Bay Ridge, the Yemen Café has taken note of its customers from Queens and Boston and hopes to set up a third location soon.

Sources:

“A Guide to Atlantic Avenue, Brooklyn | Brooklyn Based.” Brooklyn Based. Brooklyn Based, 26 Feb. 2014. Web. 11 May 2014. <http://brooklynbased.com/blog/2014/02/26/a-guide-to-atlantic-avenue-brooklyn/>.