Bronx woman sells authentic Dominican food out of her window

At 2330 Crotona Avenue in the Bronx, the window of a raised first-floor apartment has stayed open from at 7 a.m. until 11 p.m. nearly every day for the past six years. The business didn’t even close when its owner and only cook, Orquídea Cabrera, got married a few weeks ago. Cabrera tells us she has a license to sell food out of her window.

A Dominican-themed menu offering breakfast, lunch, and dinner is taped to the window pane, inviting passersby to taste the flavors of Cabrera’s homeland. Cabrera, a Bronx resident of 21 years, was born in the Dominican countryside and later moved to Santo Domingo. Her father, a master builder, entrusted her to cook for his crew of about 20 workers when she was just a teen. She wasn’t mad about it. 

“I love cooking, that’s the problem!” Cabrera said with a laugh. She recalls how she used to accompany her father to construction sites, where he would set up a cooking spot for her. There, she would prepare rice, beans, chicken, and locrio de arenque, a smoked herring rice dish, over a firewood stove — a method she still misses to this day. “In the countryside, you couldn’t be carrying around stoves … woodfire-cooked food just tastes better.”

Her passion for cooking persisted through the years, and when she moved to New York in 2002, it followed her. 

Cabrera had trained in beauty school back home, and soon found work at a salon on Crotona Avenue, near her new apartment. It was at Genesis Salon that her culinary talents began to get attention. She would bring homemade Dominican dishes, especially her famed locrio de salami, to share with colleagues. Fellow salon workers, who spent long hours on their feet and often lacked the time to cook at home, quickly became her first loyal customers.

Encouraged by their praise, Cabrera dreamed of starting a small food business from her apartment. She contemplated leaving her job at the salon, an idea her oldest son encouraged: “He was like, ‘don’t worry, mami — as soon as I earn enough money, I’ll buy the salon for you.’”

She decided to take the plunge after her son unexpectedly died five years ago. She started by simply selling meals through her window. She named her business Genesis.

“My son’s death was hard, but this business keeps me going,” Cabrera says. Her small business has become more than just a way to make a living; it’s a means of coping with her loss and staying connected to the community that has supported her for the past two decades. Her partner, who she just recently married, helps with deliveries — a role once shared with her son.

During the pandemic, Cabrera temporarily scaled back her menu to just empanadas, arepas, and oatmeal, as she recovered from surgeries. She reopened with her full menu about five months ago. To her surprise, some Instagram and TikTok users who had enjoyed her food in the past began spreading the word. Customers from as far away as Brooklyn and New Jersey now make the trip to her Bronx apartment to try her food.

“When I saw myself in the video, I couldn’t believe it,” Cabrera said. “I was wondering why so many people were calling out, ‘Genesis, Genesis!’ ”

Her menu, which varies daily but features sancocho on Sundays and asopao on Thursdays and Fridays, has become a staple in the neighborhood. Passion fruit juice, a suggestion from the local kids, is now her best-selling drink.

Despite her success, Cabrera has no plans to move. She hopes to someday expand her business beyond her window, but for now, she’s content where she is and where everyone knows and supports her and her food. And she wants to dispel any reputation of it as a “bad” neighborhood: “I’ve lived here for 20 years, and I’ve had zero issues,” Cabrera said. “I mind my own business.” 

As for advice to aspiring small business owners, Cabrera offers: “I would tell them to put their heart, love, and affection into it. Because without that, you have nothing.”

Genesis Buffet

(646) 377-5091

2330 Crotona Avenue in the Bronx

Editor’s Note: Genesis Buffet is a licensed business.

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