LELAND — Local partners in love and business — Cedrick and Lisa Bush — are taking their talents to the restaurant industry and will soon be opening the doors of Bush’s Kountry Cafe, formerly called Leland Cafe, 117 E. 3rd St.
“The people spoke and we listened,” Lisa said.
What started out as “Tonight at the Bush’s” whereas Lisa would occasionally post their Sunday dinners on Facebook for friends and acquaintances to salivate over has now manifested into a brick and mortar establishment in which patrons will not be left in wonder, but will have a chance to experience all of the delectable dishes the Bush’s prepare for themselves.
A soft grand opening is slated for 5 p.m., Friday, Dec. 3, which is the day before Christmas on Deer Creek.
When asked what motivated her and her husband to delve into this new venture of food service, Lisa thought it only right to tell a little about the sentimental story behind it.
“My husband won my heart with his cooking and we’ve been married for 28 years this month,” she said cheerfully. “He used to cook for me all of the time when he was trying to win my heart and so I’ve always been in love with his food. He actually taught me how to cook.”
Lisa also said while she has always had a love for food, by way of her other half, she developed a love for cooking as well.
Discussions about opening a restaurant between Cedric and Lisa ensued many years ago, but the timing then, Cedric felt, was not right.
This time, however, he believed it was and they were given the opportunity to acquire the Leland Cafe which has seen a couple of owners over the last few years.
“It’s just amazing because we had been trusting God for so long for his will for us and me and my husband are strong believers that we aren’t going to make a move on anything unless we feel that God has given us the “OK” to do it. So when the opportunity presented itself, we said “OK,” we’re going to go ahead and do it,” Lisa said.
Cedric shared a story of his own about how his passion for food and cooking was birthed.
He preceded the tale with acknowledging and honoring God, whom he attributed everything his family has to as well as the steady flow of creative ideas.
“I come from a line of people that cook — I had a grandmother that was 4’9 and she was about 110 lbs. She had 12 children,” Cedric recalled. “Some ranged to be about 6 ‘3 and 6’4 in stature and as much as 300 lbs and she was the one that started the cooking on my mother’s side.”
Cedric’s paternal grandmother was the eldest among 19 children.
With her being the eldest, she and her sister engaged in a playful competition of who was the best cook and it also presented an opportunity for the rest of the family to come together and break bread.
He said of his maternal grandmother, “She would call all of us every Sunday to come to her house to eat and it would be about 40 of us that were coming and she would have food laid everywhere — cakes, pies, baked chicken, roast, fried chicken, butter beans etc.”
Cedric said they would all be left to wonder how their grandmother managed to prepare such a massive meal without the help of a catering service or anyone.
“She would say, ‘I had help and my help was from the Lord,’” he remembered. “From that point it was instilled in us and my uncle, who was the oldest of the family, showed us how to do the grilling.”
Cedric’s Uncle Willie showed him the ropes, but said they both came from under the tutelage of their uncle, Wesley whom they would always encourage to open a restaurant.
It isn’t what he wanted to do, but he was sure to encourage Cedric and his uncle, Willie, to pursue such if that’s what they desired.
Even though Uncle Wesley has passed away, Cedric and his family are keeping his grilling and barbecue legacy alive in Bush’s Kountry Cafe as they will be serving barbecue ribs, rib tips, smoked chicken and other grilled favorites.
Southern comfort food or “food for the soul” as Cedric and Lisa call it, will be the theme of Bush’s Kountry Cafe cuisine, ranging from fried chicken and macaroni and cheese to the lighter side of comfort food with grilled salmon, grilled shrimp, salads, sweet potatoes and cabbage greens.
“Those are the things people have been asking about so that’s what we will try to produce,” Cedric noted.
Lisa highlighted how their large Facebook following and engagement, which has grown over the years, fueled her and her husband’s determination to go on and do what people have been asking them to do — open a restaurant.
Lisa said whenever folks would ask them about opening such an establishment, her response would always be, “Keep the faith.”
Their Facebook following was also used as a means to gauge what potential patrons might want to see on the menu.
While some said they would want everything Bush’s Kountry Cafe cooked, the top choices were salmon, baked chicken and salads.
“That’s very important to us because people have supported us online for so long and just the excitement and the responses that we’ve been receiving has really been amazing,” Lisa said.
She brought up a significant moment in her life when the late Mayor of Leland, Sam Thomas — father of current mayor, Kenny Thomas — told her years ago, “Young lady, there is nothing in this town that you can’t do or nothing in this town you can’t have as long as you go about it the right way.”
“Those words stuck with us,” Lisa added, “And every time we do something, we think about Mayor Sam Thomas and how he encouraged us to do whatever we wanted to do in this town.”
Cedric also remembered when Thomas said to him, “You will do well in this town because you love your town” and told him to never let anyone keep him from believing in his town.
“That went a long way with me,” Cedric said.
The addition of Bush’s Kountry Cafe makes the third business among the couple’s enterprises in downtown Leland as they operate The Sports Corner located at 301 N. Main St. and Bush Funeral Services, 316 N. Broad St.
Lisa pointed out that now, all three of their businesses are within walking distance of one another.
“We’re proud of that fact because we are natives of Leland, we graduated from Leland High School and we love to instill in young people to give back to the community they are from,” she said. “Our desire is to be the best residents and the best business people in Leland we can be and hopefully set an example for somebody else so they can follow in our footsteps.”
