The Times - Serving Waitsburg, Dayton and the Touchet Valley

DAYTON – Christina Betts said she's always adhered to the advice of her father, who subscribed to the adage, "if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is." Still, she didn't deter husband Jon from responding to a Craigslist ad promoting a "wonderful career opportunity" with the ability to take over ownership of an existing, successful restaurant.

Columbia County Economic Development Coordinator Brad McMasters placed the ad in an effort to help former Manila Bay Café owners, Justin Jaech and Roger Tumbocon, give their restaurant away.

The couple had operated the restaurant successfully for ten years, but after adopting their 10-year-old son, Justin Jr., they decided that spending evenings and weekends as a family was a priority.

Rather than liquidating the assets, they opted to give the restaurant away – preserving it for the community while creating an opportunity for another entrepreneur.

Jon said he doesn't recall the exact wording of the ad, but admitted that the opportunity seemed too good to be true. "I didn't think it was a real thing until I talked to Brad on the phone," Jon said.

"I don't think it became real to me until we came to visit Justin and Roger," Christina added.

But both agree on the fact that being chosen to take over the café is nothing short of a dream come true.

"It really is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. This is something we never saw as possible in the near future, but it's always been a dream of ours," Jon said. "Financially, to open a restaurant is not something a young couple can generally do."

Tumbocon said he and Jaech met with several people, starting with a few locals they thought might be interested, before enlisting McMasters to advertise and screen for them.

"The Betts were the only candidates we met who were both able and willing to take over the restaurant," he said.

Christina, along with children Annaliese (5), Braiden (7) and James (8), moved from Vancouver, Wash. to Dayton last month. Jon joined the family just last week, after wrapping up his responsibilities with Shari's Restaurant in Vancouver, where was general manager for the last five years.

The couple say they have "decades of experience" in the culinary industry and even met at culinary school.

Both Jon and Christina enrolled in the Clackamas County Skills Center's restaurant management program in high school, but attended different sessions. They found themselves working together at event dinners and catering events and developed the friendship that eventually led to marriage.

Christina grew up in Goldendale, Wash., helping at her grandparent's restaurant, before moving to Vancouver as a teen. When she started the restaurant management program she knew she'd found her passion.

Jon, on the other hand, knew from childhood that he wanted to be a chef. "Teachers would say, 'You don't know if that's what you want to be, you might change your mind,' and I would say, 'Yes I do!'"

Jon said he has worked in a variety of settings including lodges, sports bars, retirement centers, breweries, and fine dining establishments. "I've always tried to work at different types of restaurants to learn different types of foods," he said. "It's really just education for me. I've learned something – even if it's how to cook fast – at every place I worked at."

Jon said he's been working 50-60 hours a week at Shari's and has been missing time with his family. "I know this will be a lot of work, too, but we'll be doing it on our own terms, and as a family," he said.

The couple plans to retain the restaurant's name, and will keep some of the community-favorite Filipino dishes, while running others as specials. But they say they have changed the majority of the menu.

Jon said the menu will still be eclectic and that they plan to locally source as many ingredients as possible. They've already made arrangements with Deer Pond Garden, Pure Eire Dairy, Little Dipper Dairy, and are working with Rey's Roast to create a signature coffee blend. They even plan to display the works of local artists on the restaurant's walls.

Courtesy Photo

Dayton's popular eclectic cuisine restaurant, Manila Bay.

They are currently working to finalize the menu, which includes items such as Stuffed Onion, Sisig Chicken Tacos, Dayton Heirloom Salad, Hermiston Watermelon Salad, and Prime Chop, a bourbon, brown-sugar marinated chop. Christina will oversee the desserts which include cheesecake, homemade ice cream and crème brûlée.

Jon said the menu will change seasonally, depending on the availability of local ingredients. "We want to be Dayton's little hometown café with the eclectic, fun menu," Christina said.

The Betts are hoping to open the café in mid Sept. "We could have pushed it and opened in August but it wouldn't have been our best and we would rather wait an extra week or two and give everyone the experience we want them to remember. Your first impression is a big deal," Christina said.

Hungry readers can keep updated at the Manila Bay Café page on Facebook.