Madison Heights

‘Once you put in the love, there’s no way you can fail’

By Andy Kozlowski
C & G Staff Writer

» Click on image to view full size « Photo by Deb Jacques Asia Shaya-Rayis holds a platter of fresh food at her restaurant, Asya Middle Eastern Cuisine. The restaurant, still in its early months, is her first business. Photo by Deb Jacques Asia Shaya-Rayis holds a platter of fresh food at her restaurant, Asya Middle Eastern Cuisine. The restaurant, still in its early months, is her first business.

MADISON HEIGHTS — It might seem risky to start a business in today’s economy, but according to Asia Shaya-Rayis, it’s not as scary as one may think.

This past Halloween, she opened her first restaurant, Asya Middle Eastern Cuisine, near the northwest corner of 13 Mile and John R — coincidentally, a couple of doors down from the Biggby Coffee where aspiring entrepreneurs meet for the E-Lounge each month.

The name “Asya” is written the way you pronounce her full name (Ah-see-ah) so people don’t think it’s pronounced like the continent, Asia. Cozy and clean, it resembles a classy café, with light/dark contrasts between warm gold walls, a black ceiling and light tile floor. Cheerful music from Iraq, Lebanon and Syria plays softly over the speakers.

Starting the business was simple enough, she said. First, think of what you want to sell and then define the scope of your offerings. In this case, it meant writing a list of family recipes and narrowing it down to a diverse, delectable selection of Middle Eastern foods, including some unique to Chaldean culture, all of them healthy.

“Most Middle Eastern dishes are easy to make,” Shaya-Rayis said. “They’re just time-consuming.”

Next, she started looking for a location, settling on the busy intersection at 13 Mile and John R. She spoke to the plaza owner and secured the lease to what was once a psychic reader’s shop. It was vacant, nothing but four walls and a window, so she had to lay the tiles, paint the walls, install the countertops, equip the kitchen, and more.

City staff was very helpful, she said, walking her through the steps to get the proper permits, so she could run a restaurant. Beyond that, it’s just a matter of making sure you have the finances to make it through the first six months, as start-ups tend to break even in the months to follow. Shaya-Rayis took a business loan and supported it with her savings.

At that point, if it works, it works; if it doesn’t, she’ll seek the advice of others and try to fix it. And if it still falls through, she said, at least she’ll know she tried, that failure is not something to be feared, but rather to be seen as a learning experience.

“I look at it this way: I have my health; I have money, but money doesn’t buy you happiness,” Shaya-Rayis said. “So if I fail here, if I have my health, I can still go back to work.” And the passion, she added, will remain.

Her hardworking attitude comes from a life of juggling jobs, though that’s not to say she didn’t have a good life growing up.

She came to America from Iraq when she was 19 going on 20. The second oldest of seven children, she was raised in a suburb of Baghdad. Her dad was a well-to-do businessman who owned a liquor store, sold it, and then ran a five-star restaurant.

“We lived a good life back home, even though Saddam was president,” Shaya-Rayis said. “Things were more stable back then. It was a peaceful life; there was no violence or killing or anything.”

Then her dad was diagnosed with cancer. The Iraqi doctors didn’t have the means to cure him, so they sent him to America because he could afford it. This was in the late ‘70s.

In the end, they cured him, giving him not only a new lease on life, but a new perspective on the U.S., as well.

“My dad loved how nice the people were here, how everyone treated everybody like a human being,” Shaya-Rayis recalled. “He loved how when he went to the hospital, the nurses or the doctors would say, ‘Well, have a good day.’ He just loved that.”

So smitten was her father with the warmth he experienced in America that soon he was planning to move his whole family here. He kept it quiet, though, to avoid unwanted attention from the Iraqi government, staying behind with the eldest daughter so she could finish college while the rest of the family moved to Egypt for a month. Then he sold off all of their properties and followed them to Detroit near some relatives.

She went to school for a year, learning English, but she and her older brother also had to work. Before long, she was bagging goods at a grocery store where her aunt worked. For over a month, she worked for free, knowing just enough English to greet and thank the customers. When she made money, she gave it to her parents to help pay the bills.

She went on to marry and have kids: two girls and a boy. She raised them while doing odd jobs, such as a nail tech, office secretary, pharmacist’s assistant and bagel shop employee. It got to a point where she’d get up at 5 a.m. to go to work, come home to make dinner and then leave for a second job. Through it all, she realized something.

“Everywhere I worked, I treated it like my own place,” Shaya-Rayis said. “So I thought I would be good if I were to have my own place.”

The idea to start a restaurant came when her kids grew up and were so busy with life that they no longer pestered her to put in the time preparing the food they love. Ironically, she found herself missing the attention, so she decided to share her food with others, making delicious homemade meals that make them feel like their grandma made it, even if it’s something new altogether. And she delights in teaching people about each dish.

Fast-forward to last December and she’s at the ribbon cutting of her restaurant, delayed multiple times because she wanted her son to attend. He graduated from training for the U.S. Marines and was there in full regalia, shaking the mayor’s hand.

“I’m very much proud of what he’s doing,” she said of her son’s military service. “I’m very much proud of each and every one of (my kids).”

Linda Williams, Madison Heights’ economic development coordinator, said the restaurant is a new favorite lunch destination for her.

“You can see the passion in her eyes, in the way she conducts herself at the restaurant. I mean, she’s even cooking in high heels,” Williams laughed. “Presentation is everything to her. She invested her whole heart and soul in this restaurant.”

Customers returning on a first-name basis, or people visiting at the recommendation of others, is a good metric for progress, Shaya-Rayis said. She wants to get to know everyone on a first-name basis and make them feel at home.

“I have a passion for food; everything I make here is with love,” Shaya-Rayis said. “I make sure it’s good, clean, perfectionist. I think of everyone, (including) those with high blood pressure, and those who have diabetes.”

She admits she was a bit nervous getting started, but in the end, belief in her business and a passion for her product kept her going. She believes things will work out.

“I said to myself in the back of my head, ‘I know I’m going to succeed,’” Shaya-Rayis said. “Once you put in the love, there’s no way you can fail.”

Asya Middle Eastern Cuisine, 31011 John R at the corner of West 13 Mile, can be reached at (248) 397-8485. For more information, visit http://www.asyacafe.com.

You can reach C & G Staff Writer Andy Kozlowski at akozlowski@candgnews.com or at (586)498-1104.