It all started on the Caribbean island of Haiti. Naomie Cesar (Nami) didn’t like cooking at first but when she became an orphan at the age of ten she had no choice but to learn how. She went to live with her her grandma in a household with eight grandchildren to look after. Inspired by her grandma, she developed her love of cooking and the Creole fusion flavours of the Islands.

After she moved to Canada, living in the City of Welland she longed for some connection with the food and culture of her youth.  In the Summer of 2010, there was a Jamaican Restaurant on King Street near the Welland Hospital. Naomie talked to the owner and made an arrangement to use the space every Friday night to invite friends over for Haitian food. It was a wonderful experience of Haitians and Canadians getting together to learn about Haitian food, culture and the music.

They all insisted that the food was too good not to share. It took a few years of convincing, but in 2015 Naomie opened her shop CaribAfrica Specialty Store on East Main Street where she sold grocery items related to African and Caribbean cuisine. She had so many requests for prepared food that she launched ‘Nami’s Kitchen’ daily heat and serve menu items, condiments and relishes featuring the tastes she had grown up with.

Everything from our famous spicy pikliz, to the classic “Du Riz a Legumes” – all of the menu products offered by Nami’s Kitchen are authentic Haitian cuisine. Every bite of food you enjoy is an experience of the taste of Haiti.

As the prepared foods part of her business expanded the CaribAfrica location no longer met the needs of Nami’s Kitchen. Instead, Naomie now operates from a commercial kitchen where she creates her specialty products and can cater takeout food to customers craving an experience of the Caribbean. Someday her dream is to operate a food trailer in Niagara every weekend where everyone can have a blast enjoying the flavours of the Islands.

If you have a special request we would be more than happy to discuss with you, please call us at 289-990-4634.

Please visit the online store here and allow 1 week notice when ordering.