Photo by Jensine Sajan
The ethnicity of the majority of the customers who came to the Yemen Café used to be mainly Yemeni specifically or Arab in general. Over time and possibly due to the gentrification of the neighborhood, there are now people of many different backgrounds who eat at the Yemen Café. The neighborhood used to be mainly Arab. Now, with the addition of the Barclay’s Center and the increasing transit around that area, people of different backgrounds (and higher incomes) are moving in. The owners were promoting the store’s opening until 2 A.M. because there are people who come from Boston or Washington, D.C. just to eat at the restaurant.
Photo from Yemen Café
Sebastian – Caucasian from Williamsburg:
“Have you been to the Yemen Café before?”
“No, this is my first time.”
“How did you find the Yemen Café?”
“Something drew me here. I had a business meeting around here and I ended up coming a little bit early, so I thought I would get something to eat. I just got out of the train station and followed the smell of good food.”
“Is this is your first time for eating ethnic food?”
“No. I love eating ethnic food. We usually have Indian once a week. Sometimes we go out for Japanese or Thai.”
Photo by Jensine Sajan
“What do you like about Middle-Eastern food?”
“It is quickly served and there are a lot of healthy options.”
“Do you think that you’ll come here again?”
“Yeah, I’m actually thinking of bringing my kids back here next week.”
Margo and Lauren – Caucasians from Manhattan:
“Is this your first time at the Yemen Café?”
“Yes, it is.”
“How did you find the restaurant?”
“We’re both from Manhattan so we kind of just met up at the subway station and found this place on Yelp.”
“Is this your first time trying Middle-Eastern food?”
“No way! We love ethnic foods. We’re very adventurous eaters, and Middle-Eastern food is our favorite.”
Photo from Yemen Café
Ali – Yemeni from Bay Ridge:
“Have you come to the Yemen Café before?”
“Yes, plenty of times.”
“What keeps you coming back to the Yemen Café?”
“It’s like Mom’s cooking.”
“What kinds of customers did you use to see here the most when you started coming here?”
“It was always Yemeni guys. Like I said, we come here because it’s just like the food our moms make. This restaurant is a home away from home.”
Photo from Yemen Café
“How do you feel the customer dynamic changed over the time you’ve been coming here?”
“It used to be all Yemeni or Arab people coming here, but now I see people from all walks of life from all different parts of the world coming here.”
“How do you feel about the Barclay’s Center?”
“I don’t really care about the Barclay’s Center. I mean, people need to make money and this is their way of making money. I don’t think it’s a big deal because the people who used to live there were relocated. I think everyone else is just making a big deal out of it and needs to calm down.”
Group of Four Women – from South India:
“How did you find the restaurant?”
“We don’t know the area that well. So we heard about it from our coworkers.”
“Are you new to the area?”
“Yeah, we came from India around six months ago.”
“What made you decide to come to America?”
“Some of us came here for our studies. Others came here because we got married and our husbands already established lives here for us to come and join them.”
