Thai resto in Brisbane is run by a Pinay
Barely an hour from Australia’s third-largest city of Brisbane, the Sunshine Coast is fast attracting people of all nationalities for many reasons, not least of which are its beaches and weather, which is why it’s called the sunbathers’ paradise.
Skyscrapers are also beginning to dot the region’s shoreline, a testament to the area’s progress.
It’s the kind of progress which a particular Filipina, Elena Dawson, has seen fit to ride with her Thai Suphan restaurant at the Noosa Head beach.
The Sunshine Coast has a population of 290,645, with an additional 50,000 in visitors and seasonal workers. It’s a coastal region located in South East Queensland, north of the Queensland capital of Brisbane.
Thai Suphan offers not just Thai but also Filipino food since it’s owned by a Filipina.
Elena Dawson hails from Leyte, and she bought the place in 2001, soon after migrating to Australia.
“Restaurant is my passion, I love meeting people, I love serving people, and it really gives me pleasure talking to them,” she said.
Dawson had already mastered the art of cooking Filipino food when she opened her restaurant, but not when it came to Thai food. The Thai dishes on the menu were a challenge which she faced head on.
“I’ve never done anything Thai, I didn’t know anything about Thai before I bought this business, but I thought it was a good challenge for me, I thought, ‘ok, I will give it a try and see how I go’ and it’s been really good,” she said.
Elena runs her business right from the middle of all the excitement and tension – the kitchen.
She even dons the same uniform as her workers.
“The business is like a family business, she treats her workers as her own family – a very smart woman, business woman,” said fellow Filipina Susan Howard, who works as a kitchen hand at Thai Suphan.
She added, “I feel comfortable working here.”
Although Dawson is the epitome of a very successful woman, she is just one happy worker.
“You’ve got to be really willing to work hard, and most of all, you’ve got to enjoy what you do. You’ve got to be able to get up in the morning and be excited to go to work,” she said. – With reports from Berns Relos, ABS-CBN News Australia
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