Today we’d like to introduce you to Mike Nget.
Hi Mike, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself
I come from humble beginnings. My parents immigrated here to escape the turmoil in Cambodia back in the 70’s. All they wanted was a better life for themselves and their future children. With a best friend in 2010, we originally started out of a 10 X 10 tent serving only two items, our signature sticks of steak along with white jasmine rice. We were always told our skewers were delicious at family barbeques. We had to see if Minnesota felt the same way.
We started applying anywhere we could like neighborhood garage sales, art shows, car shows, and county fairs. We did alright, and the response was great. That’s not to say there weren’t shows where we lost money with only one sale all weekend. We understood that success takes persistence, humility, and adaptation.
In 2012, we both parted ways. My friend became a contractor and the company upgraded to a concession trailer to withstand the Minnesota weather. After we discovered music festivals, we expanded our menu, gravitated more towards those jobs, and really made a name for ourselves doing that throughout the state. We made many friends and met some of the most wonderful people and musicians. They’re the reason we have vegan and gluten-free options.
In the Spring of 2020, the Coronavirus Pandemic shut down the world and our way of life. With no source of income, we decided to sell our home and find a restaurant to move into. 10 years on the road can really take a toll on you physically and we felt it was time.
We found this building with a drive-thru window in Big Lake, summer of 2020. Rather than quarantine at home, we had to get to work and bring this place back to life. We opened on November Friday the 13th and the response was tremendously more than we could handle. We had a little bit of a nervous breakdown at close. We shut down, re-strategized, and opened back up a few days later.
The business has never been that busy and most likely won’t ever again in a single day, but after one full year of learning the ropes on the go, here we are. Our train is still moving.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
Selling food out of a tent had many challenges. The Minnesota wind could pick your tent up and toss it like nothing. The intense rain and lightning got scary at times. But upgrading to a concession trailer (food truck) helped in this regard.
We went through quite a few blown tires and torn off fenders. The trailer got unhitched from our truck on the highway once which was extremely nerve wracking. The festivals we worked at usually lasted for 3-4 days. When we ran out, finding supplies on the road was always an interesting task. With no accommodations, we camped in a tent at 90% of the jobs we went to.
Work and life balance was also very challenging. We missed weddings and events that we wish we could have been at. We still miss these events today living the small business lifestyle. With young kids at home, becoming great parent figures was a constant struggle. We worked quite a bit and feel they’ve grown so much so fast.
When eating food from a food truck, sometimes we think that people don’t quite understand what it takes for us to get the food to the location, prep it, and serve it. However grueling the work, the smiles, compliments, and support made it all worth the effort. It allowed us to make a living for ourselves doing something good for the world.
Great, so let’s talk business. Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
Cambo Flare is more than just a restaurant. It is an idea and a message. It is a release and an atmosphere. We’re a small family business that cares about the food we serve. We try to upkeep our quality with effort and consistency.
We cut our vegetables fresh and prep our cream cheese wontons everyday. We only use white jasmine rice. We make our food to order as much as possible. Sometimes this can cause a little bit of a wait, but we strongly feel it will be worth it.
We offer vegan options, gluten free options, and carnivorous options. We offer boba teas, loose leaf teas, coffee drinks, custom crafted sodas, and beer. We offer grilled foods, fried foods, sauteed foods, stir fry’s, and soups. We have specials that often come in and out. We offer dine in, take out, call ahead, and online ordering. We have a drive-thru window for easy pick up when ordering online or calling ahead. We have a downloadable mobile app available on IOS and Android phones. We have a stage for live music on Saturdays periodically. We offer free Wi-Fi. We have a digital currency machine, and also accept various cryptocurrencies as payment.
We believe in quality ingredients, superior service, and the understanding that what you eat should make you feel better. We make simple taste delicious, and try our best to ensure others know this not through our words, but through our food.
We’re extremely proud of where we came from and how we got here. From the ground up, literally.
Tone, our head chef and the wife of Mike is the true reason people love us whether they know it or not. He can be as nice as he wants to the guests, but her cooking style and menu selection is what has carried our name from the bottom to this point.
We’re small but fierce. We are Cambo Flare.
What makes you happy?
We feel happiness begets happiness. Why do we put ourselves in this situation that many others dare not do? Working your hardest to freshly prepare delicious food, serve strangers, and make them forget about daily struggles feels good. Each day we’re putting ourselves out there to be judged or ridiculed. Of course, we make mistakes but we try to make up for each one.
Like we mentioned earlier, the smiles, compliments, and support is why we do this. It makes us feel that there are others that understand our message. If you’re wondering what that message is, we invite you to give our food a taste.
Contact Info:
- Email: heycambo@camboflare.com
- Website: https://camboflare.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/camboflare/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/CamboFlare/
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/camboflare
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCS0M3AoDxNdWJVEBdxFpgQA
Image Credits
Anthony Holznagel
