"They are like my parents here in Canada," added De Leon. "They are like family to us," said Gomez. This is where he met local restaurant owners Raymond and Jackia Chan who would become the couple's business mentors. CONTRIBUTED - ContributedĪfter 10 years with McDonald's, De Leon accepted a job at a Home Hardware in North Sydney. In this photo, they are at one of the historical sites in the city in traditional clothing worn by kings and queens. The couple, who are from the Philippines, went to Seoul to research food and current popular menu items. Mary Grace Gomez, left, and Joshua De Leon in Seoul, South Korea in January. McDonald's paid De Leon's moving expenses to Canada and he worked as a manager until he decided it was time for a change "I know if my father could see me now he'd be so proud because all of those things we talked about I am doing," he said. However, De Leon's father died in 2011 and three years later De Leon moved to Canada. Knee surgery could have helped De Leon's father and he hoped to get that for his father. De Leon's father needed a wheelchair for mobility due to severe illness which included rheumatoid arthritis. He was also attracted to universal medical care in Canada. NICOLE SULLIVAN/CAPE BRETON POST - Nicole Sullivan The other dish is tteokbokki - a spicy rice cake dish with a gochujang sauce. On the left is kimbap, rice picked vegetables and marinated beef with rice rolled into roasted seaweed. Two meals from Omma's Korean Bar BQ and Grill in Sydney. In Saudi Arabia, once you are retired they ask you to leave, no matter how high up you are in the company," De Leon said. "In Canada, you can plan for the future, you can build a life for your family and you can retire. Gomez, who has experience as a sous chef and line cook in the United States, was hired to work at Swiss Chalet and within a few months got permanent residencyĭe Leon immigrated to Canada in 2014 through McDonald's restaurants when they were recruiting to fill management positions in Canada.Īt the time, De Leon was working at a McDonald's location in Saudi Arabia as a manager and jumped at the opportunity to fulfil his dream of moving to Canada to build a life. The program helps speed up the permanent residency process for skilled workers who want to immigrate to Canada. NICOLE SULLIVAN/CAPE BRETON POST - Nicole SullivanĪlso from the Philippines, Gomez moved to Cape Breton in April 2019 through the Atlantic Immigration Program (AIP). The couple first opened Omma's Korean Bar BQ and Grill in North Sydney but relocated to Sydney because most of their customers live there. Joshua De Leon, right, and his fiancée Mary Grace Gomez stand in the front entrance of their Korean-Japanese restaurant on Wednesday. Since their soft opening on June 1, Omma's (which is the Korean word for Mother's) has been busier than the couple expected. in Sydney, formerly the home of Wentworth Perk and Dillan's at Wentworth, the couple decided to relocate. When the opportunity came to buy the property at 697 George St. The couple noticed more than 60 per cent of their customers came from Sydney. "The number of international students from India, the Philippines and Vietnam is also increasing and they like Korean food." "We didn't realize there are so many people in Cape Breton who have taught English in Korea," said De Leon. De Leon said they have one loyal customer who lived about 10 years in South Korea who travels from the St. Customers came from everywhere to get meals from what is believed to be the first Korean restaurant in the Cape Breton Regional Municipality or on Cape Breton Island.
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