(James Jackman)
Co-owners Sef Chesson and Brian Wright (L-R) in Paradis Books & Bread.
It was a match made in heaven – a group of friends with a dream, and a neighborhood hungry for their business.
Bianca Sanon, Brian Wright, Audrey Wright, Ben Yen and Sef Chesson are the founders and owners of Paradis Books & Bread in North Miami, where they’ve established a wine club, maintain an enviable library of thought-provoking and politically charged books, bake fresh bread and other goods, and offer a carefully curated selection of bites.
It’s all housed in a nondescript flat-roof building along West Dixie Highway that sits next to their vegetable and herb garden, complete with mosaic patio tables and a pool table set under a metal roof. Locals are flocking there.
The road to Paradis began when Sanon – a trained sommelier – and the Wright siblings, who all attended St. Thomas Aquinas High School in Fort Lauderdale, “little by little made our way to New York City,” said Sanon. “While we were there, Brian began working with Sef at Joe Coffee on Columbia University’s campus and became one of his best friends.”
Audrey Wright met Yen at Riverpark, a Tom Colicchio restaurant, where she maintained its on-site farm and Yen rose to chef.
“Brian, Audrey, Ben and myself were the first to plan this venture, and Sef was the last piece of the puzzle,” said Sanon.
Eventually the quintet gathered at a mountain location in North Carolina to discuss their proposed business venture in North Miami.
“We had already secured the building location at 12830 West Dixie Hwy., but hadn’t done anything and were waiting on the Community Redevelopment Agency (CRA) grant from North Miami, but of course everything was frozen at the time (because of the pandemic),” said Sanon. “And we loved having Sef onboard because he had extensive experience in all the areas of our business model. Land justice, farm justice, natural wines – and he loves cooking.”
Chesson does a little bit of everything. He worked with Sanon at Dirty French in New York City, where he served as a line cook. Originally from Brooklyn, N.Y., he moved to Miami to work with the group.
(Courtesy of Paradis Books & Bread)
Outdoor mosaic tables and benches are available for dining al fresco at Paradis Books & Bread.
“Bianca plugged me into the world of natural wine, and I would join in on Zoom meetings and industry sessions. At Paradis, I help with wine purchases and contributing books to our library,” said Chesson. “I also do menu development. We have a lot of fun here. It’s just us; we don’t have any investors so we have a lot of freedom to develop our ideas.”
Having found the building in 2019, the group was so focused on opening for so many years “that when we were finally able to begin, COVID happened,” said Brian Wright. “We knew a general contractor and architect, and began making some rough sketches and discussing where everything would go inside. Due to permitting and other regular issues, it took the architect until 2020 to get the plans finished for the presentation.”
The pandemic, however, worked in the friends’ favor – since everything shifted online, visiting the permit office in person was no longer necessary. Also, the contractor had worked with the North Miami CRA before and “he was understanding of that. The CRA ended up approving us in October 2020 so we had to wait until then to start the work,” said Brian Wright.
Over the next nine months, the group finished working on the space and were able to open the second week of July.
“It was terrifying,” said Sanon. “You spend so much time thinking about something, and (then) you get to the final week and the stark realization of opening is right there in front of you.”
(Courtesy of Paradis Books & Bread)
Some of the small bites created by Paradis Books & Bread chef Ben Yen, who is looking forward to incorporating ingredients from the eatery’s on-site garden into the menu this fall.
It was a collaborative effort all the way. The foundational/functional aspects of the building were completed by the construction team, but design aesthetics – such as selecting the neon sign, outdoor light fixtures, awnings, chairs and the color of the wood – was all left to the five friends.
“There’s not a detail inside that wasn’t handpicked by the team,” said Sanon. “The library was always a foundational part of the space, along with the food and the wine, and they all get equal importance. It’s what makes [Paradis] accessible to people no matter what they’re interested in.”
(Courtesy of Paradis Books & Bread)
Books by Octavia Butler, a favorite author of the ownership team at Paradis Books & Bread, are among the extensive library customers can peruse while in the café.
Wine lovers are delighted by the wine club, and the Wrights’ extensive experience having studied culture, anthropology and American studies means they choose the books. However, when all five friends met, they realized they had the same books. Several fiction titles by Octavia Butler, who has written extensively on Afrofuturism, as well books on queer theory, queer existence and Indigenous studies, were something they shared.
“Customers have said they love that they can touch the books physically. We carry small and independent presses, which is very important to us, and it’s also reflected in the wines we carry. Same ethos across the board,” said Sanon.
“It’s been well received,” said Yen of Paradis. “It’s very gratifying after all the work we did to get the space ready. I’m really looking forward to the fall and harvesting what we’ve got growing, and hopefully incorporate it into our upcoming menu, which we will adapt as we go along.”
Seeing their collective dream come to fruition has been very satisfying indeed, for all of the friends.
“We want to build community,” said Yen, “and I feel great about what we’ve created.”