Local Spotlight: Café Bastille

At Monarc, our location in the heart of Downtown Miami puts us in the center of an incredible array of restaurants. Lucky for us, local favorite Café Bastille is just steps away. We wanted to learn more about this neighborhood gem, so this week we’re chatting with Estelle Bellegy, who co-owns the café with her husband Benjamin Amsallem, to get all the details on this delicious, French-inspired spot. Enjoy our conversation below and we hope you stop by Café Bastille for a bite soon!*

 

Monarc: Hi, Estelle. Thanks so much for talking with us today! Let’s start by having you introduce yourself to the Monarc community by telling us a bit about how you and your husband came to be the new owners of Café Bastille. 

Estelle: Sure. So, Café Bastille was established about 10 years ago. My husband and I moved from Paris to Miami and took over Café Bastille from the previous owners about a year ago (in August 2019). We didn’t really want to change the concept of the restaurant--everything was working quite well already--but we wanted to switch up the menu a bit and bring our modern, youthful, French touch to the business by redecorating, renovating, and growing our social media presence. The response has been quite wonderful.

 

M: Having lived in Paris, what was it that drew you to Miami? 

E: My husband and I both have degrees in hospitality management, mine from Paris and his from Switzerland, and we were both restaurant directors in Paris. My husband had lived here in Miami for management training and so we got a taste of the beautiful, warm weather and of course the nice palm trees and, after that, we decided to give it a try here.

   

M: Tell us a bit more about the menu here at Café Bastille. 

E: We like to think of our menu as French-inspired comfort food. We bring our French touch and style not only to the menu, but also to the decor and the service as well. We serve breakfast, lunch, and all-day brunch here, every day from 8am-4pm. Everything we make is handmade, from scratch, so our menu is very fresh. We’re also working on expanding our hours to stay open until 7pm and bringing a Happy Hour, with small bites and great drink specials, to Café Bastille soon.

M: What’s your favorite dish on the menu or what would you say is the most popular?     

E: I would say the turkey and brie cheese benedict is my favorite--all our benedicts are made with fresh, handmade croissants. We’re also really well-known for our pancakes and French toast, as well as our bottomless mimosas, served all day, every day for just $25 per person.

  

M: The coronavirus brought a lot of unexpected ups-and-downs for all those involved in the restaurant industry. What has that experience been like for Café Bastille?  

E: We did shut down initially for 6 weeks completely, and then reopened for just takeout and delivery in the beginning. When we reopened, it was just me and my husband at first--just a few orders a day because it was just the two of us cooking and doing everything. We started baking and offering cookies and cakes for free with every takeout order. We focused on finding new ways to adapt to all the new changes. Growing our visibility online was particularly important to us, so we brought on a new social media manager who has made such an incredible difference in our online presence.

   

M: Anything else we can share with the Monarc community about what sets Café Bastille apart?  

E: We’ve been working so hard every day, for months--the restaurant is really our life. We may be busy, but when you put a lot of passion and hard work into what you do, and provide good quality, people will want to come. We always strive to be the best in everything we do here at Café Bastille, and give all of ourselves to our guests, and I think that’s what really makes the difference. Everything we do, we do with our heart.

  

M: We can’t wait to dine with you soon. Thank you so much! 

E: We can’t wait to have you. Thank you! 

We hope you get to enjoy a visit to Café Bastille soon! Let us know what delicious dish you try by tagging @CafeBastilleMiami and #MonarcMet on Instagram. 

*This interview has been edited and condensed.

All photos courtesy of Café Bastille.