Aussie’s café: Italian fare

THE reopening of Star Coffee on the ground floor of Hita Plaza opposite Jiuzhou Town, Jida, was celebrated March 1 by a hundred potential patrons, both westerners and Chinese.

A duo of young men played and a young woman sang in the coffee bar, adding to the lively atmosphere.

Mike James, a 60-year-old Australian lecturer with Zhuhai United International College (UIC) and owner of the coffee bar, and his wife, Susan, a former senior human resources consultant and now a teacher at UIC, were busy tending to business at the bar. Although he moved to Zhuhai only half a year ago, Mike has made numerous friends from China, Australia, the UK, America, Canada, Germany and other countries and territories. Many people joined the fun by taking pictures, having coffee or tea, or meeting friends.

Because he was unable to get anyone to repaint it before and during the Chinese New Year, the exterior facade of the coffee bar remains unclean with traces of the former name -- SPR.

Mike has been in restaurant business for years, so he is confident of doing a good job in China. He opened his first restaurant in England 25 years ago and then had one in Australia. He still owns a motel in Queensland.

Although born in London, Mike fell in love with Australia on a holiday more than 20 years ago and then lived there for 20 years. “I was English born, Australian citizen and Chinese resident,” he said with a grin.

Three years ago, Mike went to Beijing where a friend of his was teaching. They visited the Great Wall. “I found China is very exciting. So I decided that I would go back to the school and get my teaching certificate and then come to China to teach when I retired from the motel,” Mike said.

And so Mike returned to China with his family a year and a half later for a holiday. He and his wife marked their daughter’s 21st birthday party on the Great Wall. “It was fantastic,” he said.

Upon retirement at Christmas 2006, Mike came to Zhuhai for the first time the following February. He passed SPR Coffee, which then was open and found it closed when he came again last August, He located the former owner, a Singaporean who was considering closing the shop, and said he would take it over. The management of the area said they wanted it reopened as a coffee bar, which matched his own desire.

Mike bought an apartment at Horizon Cove in Tangjiawan Town, and began his business with the help of his Chinese consultant, Lisa. He sells Espresso coffee and uses an Italian coffee machine.

“The business problems in China are the same as anywhere else. There’s no difference,” Mike stressed, explaining: “You open a business; you get people in through the door; you sell your goods and they go away happy; so they come back. That doesn’t matter whether you’re in Zhuhai, or New York, or Brisbane in Australia,” he said. “There are many differences culturally to take into account, but the basic business practice is the same wherever you are.”

Living in the middle of the city in Brisbane, Mike had been fostered in a coffee culture, he explained. There are eight coffee houses in the neighborhood or a few shops apart on a narrow street similar to where Star Coffee House is located. “People drink a lot of coffee,” he said.

“People tell me my coffee is good,” Mike added. Westerners come to drink coffee, but Chinese come to drink tea. “We make very good tea and we make many different teas,” he said. Apart from five full-time staff, Mike and Susan help in the evenings and at weekends. They used to work 16 hours a day, Mike noted. “We got up at six in the morning and went back home at midnight. We’re used to working long hours,” Susan said.

Although retired from his business in Australia, Mike said: “I have realized that I will not retire. I can’t retire. If I retire, I think I will probably just die. I will just fade away.”

As for the future, Mike said he would like to open another coffee house in Gongbei and then one in Xiangzhou, and after that in other cities. “We’ll do Italian food -- pizza, spaghetti, lasagna. We’ll try to specialize in Italian food. There’s not good Italian place in Zhuhai,” Mike said, adding: “Italian food is very, very tasty!”

“I would live between here and Australia for the rest of my life,” he said.