The Christmas spirit.

I wanted to take a moment and tell you about a little restaurant we found in Bishkek. It is located close to the white house in the center of the city. The first time I went there , Dave the owner gave me a full tour of the kitchen.. He was excited to show me the white tiles, the stainless steal, the water purifier and the dishwasher.. I also noticed that the kitchen staff were in uniform, wearing gloves and hair nets ..Did I happen to mention that this was in Bishkek... the staff were friendly, happy to be working there, and liked their boss... the restaurant has a sit down flush toilet, and wireless internet ... again did I mention that this is Kyrgyzstan...
We started going their when in the city for business meetings.. that's when I realized that it is one of the best priced restaurants as well. We even brought large groups there for birthday parties... not to mention that we usually end up with a large group everywhere we go.

Dave (standing ) making the rounds at a birthday party

This is a place that I would not only recommend to anyone heading to Kyrgyzstan, but I would ASK that you go at least once just to meet Dave... You see behind that gruff British exterior, is an incredibly caring and generous man. A couple days ago when we realized that the Bishkek Mayors office had decided to evict one of the best run orphanages in the country .. if not all of Central Asia with next to no notice, we decide to speed up the process and get Christmas early for the kids that will be homeless on Jan 1. I spoke with Christy to try to see if we could give these kids an extra special treat.. she went and talked to Dave. He said that he did not have money to help us and wished that he did, but he does have the restaurant and the food, and that he is going to provide the meal for the entire orphanage... for free....

Soooo if you are ever traveling to Kyrgyzstan, drop me a line and I will get you directions to Dave's , and you can stop in for a bite...and thank him for his support... you will be happy you did.