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Wine and beer will be available, but traditional spirits like rakia won’t be stocked.
Deronjic is interested in creating a fresh take on Bosnian dining. In this vein, the space at 950 Main St. has been completely renovated with new decor, fixtures and flooring to create a modern European feel with a vintage twist to represent her parents’ homeland.
To start her business, Deronjic has relied on her family and the Bosnian community. Deronjic noted that hiring staff has been difficult, but she’s been able to enlist her cousins to work at her restaurant for now. She hired members of the Bosnian community to work on her renovation project and they’ve consistently shown up.
Deronjic’s career so far has been in marketing. She still holds a position as a lead business account executive at Gift Tree. She’s never owned a restaurant, but her cousins in Chicago owned restaurants in Europe. They’ve weighed in regularly regarding the restaurant.
“I have a lot of family,” she said, “it’s like ‘My Big Fat Greek Wedding.’ ”
The family’s lucky number determined the name for the restaurant. Deronjic’s father’s number when he played for the Bosnia soccer team was seven. Her parents married in July (the seventh month) and Deronjic was born in July.
Once that name was chosen, everything else seemed to fall into place. Deronjic and her father were having lunch in downtown Vancouver and happened to see that the space was available. The owner had just posted the for lease sign in the window. She’s also found her new neighbor, Miguel Sosa of Elements Restaurant, to be endlessly helpful. Deronjic hopes this good luck continues so she can open her restaurant by the holidays.
