{"id":396,"date":"2019-05-10T04:43:50","date_gmt":"2019-05-10T09:43:50","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/footprintscafenyc.com\/flatbush\/about-us-copy\/"},"modified":"2019-05-10T07:47:54","modified_gmt":"2019-05-10T12:47:54","slug":"about-us-demo","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/footprintscafenyc.com\/nostrand\/about-us-demo\/","title":{"rendered":"About Us – Demo"},"content":{"rendered":"
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About Us<\/h1>\n

FOOTPRINTS CAF\u00c9 NOSTRAND has been serving up the best Caribbean food in Brooklyn since 2001<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n

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Sharing and celebrating Caribbean culture
through cuisine<\/h2>\n

In 2001, Robert Gordon opened FOOTPRINTS CAF\u00c9 NOSTRAND \u2019s first and flagship restaurant located at 5814 Clarendon Road in the Canarsie neighborhood of Brooklyn. This entrepreneurial genius, who was born in the Caribbean island nation of Jamaica, sought to serve great-tasting, authentic Jamaican dishes like jerk chicken, curry goat, and oxtail alongside his now world-famous Rasta Pasta.<\/p>\n

The success of FOOTPRINTS CAF\u00c9 NOSTRAND led Robert to open a sister restaurant in Coney Island in 2006, which is now located at 1521 Surf Avenue, Brooklyn, just a stone's throw away from the world-famous Coney Island Amusement Park and Boardwalk. With delectable cuisine, exotic drinks, and great entertainment, it brings an upscale taste of the Caribbean to Coney Island's diverse and fast-growing community.<\/p>\n

FOOTPRINTS CAF\u00c9 NOSTRAND \u2019s take-out facility, FOOTPRINTS CAF\u00c9 NOSTRAND , opened right smack in the heart of the Caribbean immigrant community in the Flatbush Avenue area of Brooklyn in 2013. It now rivals all local restaurants with its diverse and comprehensive menu, as well as its five-star- quality take-out food.<\/p>\n

Today, FOOTPRINTS CAF\u00c9 NOSTRAND is renowned for its excellent cuisine, which is complemented by modern local and international influences. We are looking forward to serving you at FOOTPRINTS CAF\u00c9 NOSTRAND \u2013 Brooklyn\u2019s Caribbean Kitchen, Home of the Rasta Pasta!<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n

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Footprints Caf\u00e9\u2019s President & CEO<\/h4>\n

Robert Gordon: Imagining The Future<\/h5>\n

\u201cThe ingenuity behind success is a very coveted human ideal. It is an ideal rooted in personal values, passion, and an extraordinary ability to achieve greatness and innovation.\u201d Highfalutin words from a long-gone philosopher. Right? Wrong! It\u2019s a business foundational statement from Robert Gordon a hugely successful Jamaica-born immigrant businessman and entrepreneur, par excellence. So, exactly who is Robert \u201cBobby\u201d Gordon? <\/p>\n

If you\u2019ve heard about the popular Jamaican\/Caribbean restaurant and bar called Footprints Caf\u00e9 with three locations in Brooklyn, New York City, then chances are you\u2019ve seen Bobby (everyone calls him that) working or chatting with patrons or staff. He is the President, Founder and CEO of this establishment and it was his vision and drive that has made this 18-yearl old restaurant and bar the household name that it now is, at least in the dynamic and growing Caribbean American community in New York.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was born and raised in Jamaica and came to the United States in 1989. I took the traditional immigrant\u2019s route of hard work, dedication, applying myself, and keeping a sharp lookout for opportunities,\u201d Bobby, a handsome late 40ish man says.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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He is a proud alumnus of Calabar High School, one of Jamaica\u2019s premier all-boys schools. Here in New York City he initially enrolled in college, only to eventually pursue a career in mechanics at the Apex Technical School. He would later go on to become a car dealer, a business he successfully ran for 10 years. <\/p>\n

\u201cI found my true passion in the food and hospitality industry when I decided to open Footprints Caf\u00e9 in 2001. For me New York is the Mecca of food, its constituents are demanding, and the failure rate is high. I knew all that but I also believed that done right, and with hard work, the rewards would be great. I was not wrong,\u201d Bobby says.<\/p>\n

The original flagship enterprise, where this food and drink experience and innovation started, is 5814 Clarendon Road, in Brooklyn, New York. Footprints II, known for its classic design and unique vibe, is also located in Brooklyn at the historical landmark\u2014Coney Island Amusement Park\/Boardwalk area. And the immensely popular Footprints Caf\u00e9 Express, the take-out, eat-in establishment is situated in the heart of the Flatbush section of Brooklyn at 1377 Flatbush Avenue. It seems that there\u2019s no stopping the man. A business success bug has bitten him \u2013 too many times. So the thing is that Bobby is never one to rest on his laurels. He\u2019s looking to the future and there are a \u201cfew things\u201d in the works \u2013 big things, like a new upscale takeout \u201ccoming soon\u201d and a banqueting hall. <\/p>\n

\u201cI always want to improve on our products and our services. Footprints Caf\u00e9 is about a dining experience \u2013 a fine dining experience. Not just any experience. So no matter which location you visit our goal is to have consistent food quality, great customer service, and a welcoming atmosphere \u2013 warm, professional and friendly,\u201d Bobby explained.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n

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Linden Clarke <\/h4>\n

FootPrints Caf\u00e9\u2019s Regional General Manager<\/h5>\n

He\u2019s worked in the hospitality business literally all his life. It\u2019s the man\u2019s passion and we can tell you that he knows this business \u2013 inside out. You can call him the consummate hospitality professional. In the process of this life-long passion \u2013 don\u2019t tell him it\u2019s a restaurant job \u2013 he\u2019s worked for a list of popular restaurants in Caribbean and New York City finally settling at the popular Footprints Caf\u00e9 - Brooklyn\u2019s Caribbean Kitchen and home of the world famous Rasta Pasta.<\/p>\n

His name\u2019s Linden Clarke and he was born in Guyana. For the past seven years he\u2019s been the Regional General Manager for all three Footprints Caf\u00e9 locations \u2013 Footprints Caf\u00e9 (Clarendon), Footprints Caf\u00e9 Express and Footprints Caf\u00e9 & Lounge (Coney Island). Needless to say Linden is results oriented and an expert in all the areas and skills required to define a great hospitality and restaurant manager. \u201cThroughout my career I\u2019ve worked with many restaurants in the hospitality industry. I\u2019m at home with restaurant start-ups as well as established ones \u2013 large or small or in-between. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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I\u2019ve directed restaurant operations and I always manage to consistently increase sales through promotions, and marketing activities while controlling costs and maintaining quality. So no matter if its about volume catering, recruiting and training managers, supervisors and line staff, I\u2019m your guy,\u201d Linden says.<\/p>\n

Always smiling and blessed with a charming and engaging personality, Linden can be Ma\u00eetre D, restaurant host, front manager or troubleshooter as the situation demands. His ultimate goal is always to make sure that every customer has a great experience at the restaurants and that his staff delivers 5-star service to every patron. Hands on, but not demonstrably so, Linden pays keen attention to everything that\u2019s happening at Footprints Caf\u00e9. It\u2019s the hallmark of an experienced manager when the staff feels very comfortable with him or her but understands that they must deliver constant quality services and food \u2013 very time.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou have to lead by example. And since I know all of the ins and outs of the restaurant business I bring that experience to the Footprints Brand. \u201cI start by acknowledging that ALL our staff members are important and vital to our ability to deliver quality food and services \u2013 all the time and every time. At <\/p>\n

\u201cI always want to improve on our products and our services. Footprints Caf\u00e9 is about a dining experience \u2013 a fine dining experience. Not just any experience. So no matter which location you visit our goal is to have consistent food quality, great customer service, and a welcoming atmosphere \u2013 warm, professional and friendly,\u201d Bobby explained.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n

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Footprints Caf\u00e9\u2019s Executive Master Chef<\/h4>\n

Basil Jones, Food Maestro<\/h5>\n

He jokingly says, \u201cI\u2019m cooking too long.\u201d That\u2019s because he\u2019s \u201cbeen in the kitchen\u201d professionally for 33 years now \u2013 and counting. But he started long before that, way back in Jamaica in his grandmother\u2019s kitchen when he was just about 15 years old. So the next time you visit Footprints Caf\u00e9, Brooklyn\u2019s premier Caribbean restaurant, and you browse through its extensive mouth-watering menu loaded with tons of exotic items to choose from, rest assured that this is the brainchild of Executive Master Chef, Basil Jones. <\/p>\n\u201cI was introduced to cooking by my grandmother when I was just a kid. I loved her very much, and I also found out that I loved cooking too. I\u2019ve been doing that ever since. I started by cooking for about eight members of my family and the more I cooked the better I got. After I left school I went to work at a local hotel called Sans Souci, but not as a cook. I did housekeeping. But I always found a way to get to the kitchen. You could not keep me out of the kitchen. Finally, in 1986, he was transferred to the hotel\u2019s kitchen where, at first, he cleaned ovens, washed dishes, peeled potatoes, and assisted the breakfast chef. In this environment Chef Basil says, \u201cI started to really learn how to cook.\u201d Determined to be a skilled chef, he worked extra long hours at a time observing, watching, and asking questions of the hotel\u2019s top chefs. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Chef Basil also worked with the cooking staff preparing and presenting special dishes for local cuisine competitions. He earned a certificate of merit for his cooking and culinary skills from Jamaica\u2019s former Prime Minister Edward Seaga in 1983.<\/p>\n

\u201cI also got a scholarship to Hocking Technical College in Ohio for six weeks in the first instant and then for two years later. While there I cooked and served over 200 people at a 5-star private golf course, and worked with a mentor and master chef for 10 years cooking at some of the most expensive and exclusive hotels and golf courses in the world. Over my career I have cooked for groups of up to 4,000 people at a time, as well as small, selective and picky groups,\u201d Chef Basil said.<\/p>\n

Chef Basil joined the Footprints Caf\u00e9 team in 2001. Today, he oversees all of the restaurant\u2019s menu items, food quality and control, training of the restaurant\u2019s cooking staff, restaurant and kitchen safety \u2013 he\u2019s very big on that \u2013 portion control and periodic testing and creation of new menu items. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n

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Great food, great times<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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Our Mission<\/strong><\/h3>\n

To provide our guests with outstanding and memorable experiences by presenting exceptional cuisine and genuine hospitality.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Our Philosophy<\/strong><\/h3>\n

For a great dining and cultural experience, we provide our team with every possible resource to succeed in providing the best service and take pride in working together.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n

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Where to find us<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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