The yogi and the crossfit called each other “until” and started mixing unique salads. With their food you can play on your own!
It takes courage and courage to start a business in an unexplored business. He doesn’t know what he’s getting into, he doesn’t know what awaits him, all he has is an idea he has to be convinced has potential.
Lukáš and Rasťo had both. They decided to create together what has not been in Košice before, namely a fresh bistro, where you can even mix the salad yourself and according to your own tastes or ideas. They successfully survived the pandemic, only half a year before they opened, they have a permanent clientele and the salads they offer you will not find anywhere else.
They put their heads together
Rasto is an economist who for many years was the CEO of the multinational Swedish company Husqvarna for Central Europe. He loves yoga and Ayurveda, which he recommends living in harmony with himself. But it also puts a lot of emphasis on what we eat and how we eat or combine it.
Lukáš is a trained lawyer, but he has always seen himself in marketing. He knew this was the path he had to take. In the end, he succeeded and today runs the successful online marketing agency ZOOMZOOM. Although he is a marketer in body and soul, his passion is crossfit. Of course, food also plays a very important role there.
The boys once decided to put their heads together and create something that was not in the metropolis of the East and at the same time it would fully fulfill their idea and also grind their customers. And so the lawyer and crossfiter, together with an economist who is also a yogi, opened dokelu unique salad shop. And they did it, too.
Harmonious tastes
“The only thing Lukáš and I did in the gastronomy was that we cooked food at home. We were the CEOs of large companies, but we wanted to start a business in this sector. ”
says Rasto.
He adds that they wanted the food to do people good, to make them feel good, and for their stomachs to thank them for it. “Lukáš and I went through European capitals to find out what people want to eat for lunch today. I was even in London to learn something from a great chef. ”
There was nothing more to discuss, they decided to open the bistro. “It simply came to our notice then. The first was that we wanted to bring harmonious tastes to Košice, the second that we believed the salalors was not similar in our city so far, somehow no one wanted her, but we believed her. “
Perfect name
Everyone can remember the name Dokelu, but coming up with an idea that combines everything a fresh bistro should contain is not that simple. “At first we wanted to call the bistro Šalalát, but we found out that this name is already registered. It may have taken us three weeks for Dokelu to be created. “ says Lukáš, who once walked with his wife and they thought together about what name would be best.
She told him tips, and he told her what would and wouldn’t. Suddenly she told dokelu. “It was perfect. It’s Slovak, it’s a verbal toy, it’s not long, it has vegetables in it and it can be used wonderfully in marketing. “
Today, it is 100 percent confirmed that it was a really good move. As long as he still has a name in Košice and those who don’t know them, even if there aren’t many people, will surely remember him. “Only recently have young boys been walking past our bistro, where they said to each other, “Look, it’s called Dokel, that’s great.” I’m always pleased. Today we know that this name is perfect, ” said Lukáš.
Fresh, healthy and full – fledged
However, Fresh Bistro is based on the principle of freshness. An athlete, but also a man who decided to lose weight, eats from their meals. “However, we also dealt with how to eat healthy and fresh, when you work in an office and do not want to reach for the lunch menu. Theoretically, it’s still the same everywhere, rice, chicken… There is rarely a place where one would go for something healthy, fresh and different. ” Everything made sense, the dressing room was a good decision.
In addition to permanent salads, the bistro also offers the opportunity to compose a salad. You simply put it together according to your own tastes and preferences. Not to mention that you have 60 ingredients available. “You have a taste for meat, you put it there. Do you want cheese? You’ll put him there too. You add, carrots, cucumbers, some protein and you have a tasty and fresh whole meal. You just make what you want. ”
In addition to the eight salads, which are regularly modified and improved, you can also order bowls. “We cooperate with our chef Miro Ješek on the development of meals. Sometimes it takes two months to create something. He is a lover of India and basically the whole of Asia, and that is why these tastes feel beautiful in our bowls, as in the very popular tikka masala bowle, ” says Rasto.
Let’s remember to sow the salad
However, it must be said that the salad itself does not have a very good brand. Many people think that it is not found and even consider it just an attachment. However, the opposite is true. A 500 gram salad will satisfy you for long hours. “Our 8 salads that we offer are complete meals, similar to our bowls, we offer them both cold and hot. With or without meat, with fish and classic Caesar salad. “
Luke, on the other hand, says that the uniqueness lies in the fact that their meals are always fresh. “It’s like home when you buy vegetables. One should eat it as soon as possible, you can’t store it for long. Our ingredients are fresh and fresh must also be sold. It is an advantage for every customer. We also consume 150 kg of vegetables a day. “
Koza Figová
We were interested in which salad is the best-selling. “Customers who don’t know us yet have Caesar because they don’t know what to expect, but Chicken Pasta and Koza Figová is also very popular . There is an interesting story behind the last one. “
In the salad room, it works in such a way that after a certain period, the last two salads fall out and are replaced by new ones. Statistics simply don’t let go and the latter have to get out of the round. Rasťo once looked at the numbers at the operation and found out that Koza Figová was somehow not working, although Lukáš stood up for her and wanted to give her a chance, but Rasťo was relentless.
They had to say goodbye to her. However, over time, people began to ask her back and they did not understand how it was possible. She was among the last. “But I looked at the traffic statistics and not online. She was there in the first places. We found that people who order food from home have different tastes than those who come directly to us, ” adds Rasto with a smile.
Goat Fig is a regular today. The taste buds tickle with sweet apricots, salted goat cheese, delicious figs, delicious beetroot and the highlight is citrus dressing. “It’s the perfect whole for all tastes. I can’t stop eating this salad.”
The pandemic was kicked
The COVID crisis affected us all, and gastronomy was far from the exception. However, Lukáš and Rasťo did not give up and, in addition to the necessary break, they managed to slip out of the clutches of the pandemic, really successfully.
The COVID did not repel them, but on the contrary, strengthened them. As they are based in the Cassovar business center and with it T-systems with hundreds of employees, they had to come up with a way not to close, but to gain from it all. Cassovar has become depopulated overnight. “Our investment in the chalet was € 90,000.”
They reoriented their business to online and thanks to their online marketing agency ZOOMZOOM, they managed to escape without losses. “We have started to solve the online world. However, I think that every crisis will show that what is sick will die and what is healthy will survive. Today we are open and without losses. Our concept turned out to be really good, ” explains Lukáš.
You can also enjoy the salad from Dokel on the terrace and also enjoy the tasty Aloha beer, which they produce in cooperation with the brewing Hostinec Brewery, which is based in Levoča House and is the oldest inn in Slovakia.
“We have a very good partnership and I think companies should help each other more. We merged andcreated a tasty beer, while we also plan soft drinks and soon we will extend the sitting on the summer terrace, as we are still only “lunch”. We would like people to sit with us in the afternoon.“
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