Cafe Do Brasil’s Ana Davis: From Brazil to Midtown
I’ve known Ana Davis for years. The charming lady in the above video shot this week is the same friendly, approachable lady from several years ago.
I remember when my friend Steve Cortes and I would do lunch at More Than Muffins, owned by Davis and her brother. We’d talk Carnival with Ana if it were early enough in the year. She’d always encourage us to visit Brazil or travel anywhere when we had the opportunity.
Cortes is now General Counsel at Office of the Governor of Oklahoma. Yeah, I know, big time.
So is Davis. She moved her ovens from 19th and Classen (now a space occupied by the fabulous Cafe Antigua – amazing, amazing breakfast, my friends; get the No. 7, or No. 8 which is the bigger version of the No. 7) to the booming Midtown area.
Cafe Do Brasil is at NW 11th and Walker. It anchors the roundabout area in a gorgeous Spanish-looking building.
I caught up with Davis on Tuesday morning for this interview. Her story is amazing: one of 12 children who wanted “to fly” but grew up with a conservative, protective father. Davis told me she became the first of her family to go to college. Following her path, her younger siblings would go to college. And her father would pay for it, completely changing his perspective on education and women’s roles.
I asked her how does a person know they need to do bigger things. She could have easily stayed in Brazil and done the family thing. But she went all in and left South America for North America. And for Oklahoma, of all places. She said if you know in your heart what you want to do and combine that with a lot of hard work, it will work out (to paraphrase her response).
Big thanks to Davis for allowing me the time to catch up with her and invade her kitchen. Her staff was very helpful too. I doubt they really needed camera guy leaning over their shoulders while they prepared lunch.
Cafe Do Brasil is closed on Mondays, open otherwise for lunch and dinner, including brunch on the weekends. I had the excellent Migallas last weekend.
And yes, the video is a lengthy 12 minutes. But I think that’s a strength of the Internet. You can provide the time to let a fascinating person like Ana Davis tell her story. And why would you want to edit and cut down that conversation? In fact, there’s another 2 minute chunk about her father that I had to cut. I think you can learn more about Davis by watching her interview and how much passion she has about her story and her job.
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