The Moneris Merchant Scoop: Revalee Brunch Cafe

Get the scoop on Revalee Brunch Café, co-owned and operated by Michael Dilliott.

• Where: Vineland, ON
• What: Restaurant
• Product: Move5000 4G|Wifi
• Time with Moneris: Since 2017

Tell me about Revalee Brunch Café

Revalee Brunch Café puts a unique twist on ‘modern’ brunch, offering a half vegan, half omnivorous menu, local wine and beers, and a great coffee program with Pilot Coffee from Toronto. We opened our doors in 2017, although it was never our intention to start a restaurant. Our initial plan was to start a production kitchen – preparing boxed meals to corporate clients. But when we first found our café location, it was already set up with a full kitchen, so we decided to include a sit down, restaurant component.

We launched these two businesses around the same time, but the café turned out to be a hit. Then during the pandemic, we learned just how vulnerable our boxed lunch business model was to closures – since it’ dependent on serving a large group of people who are all in the same place. So, we adapted our focus towards the café, and it’s what we’re known for today.

What inspired you to open the café?

Mitch Lamb (my brother-in-law) is my partner and co-owner in this business. He’s worked in the restaurant industry for 20+ years and is currently a culinary professor at Niagara College. As for myself, I’ve never worked in the restaurant industry before, and I spent the prior 10 years at an income tax consulting company in Toronto managing tax analysts and auditors. At the time, we were both just burnt out from our day jobs. We wanted more control over how our lives were going and how much time we were spending at work. We also both have young families and wanted to devote more time to them. So, we made a risky move and decided to quit our jobs, give up our salaries, and open the business.

You operate other kitchens outside of Revalee, how does that work?

The café sort of acts like the flagship of our larger ‘company’, but we manage several kitchens that operate at different restaurants throughout the Niagara area, and we support events at different wineries throughout the year. We also take pride in having a variety of cooks, team members, and even co-op students that work for us, who come from all different technical backgrounds and levels of cooking. We allow them to move positions throughout different locations so they can learn various techniques and gain new experiences – it’s a great collaborative environment. 

Why Moneris?

We were introduced to Moneris through the Canadian Small Financing Loan, which was facilitated by the Royal Bank of Canada (RBC). Our advisor helped us polish our business model, and when they told us about Moneris through their payment processing partnership program, we decided to give it a try. In those early days, we really appreciated their next day deposit feature and ADP integration. Later down the line when we needed customer service support with our hardware, Moneris was quick to respond, sending someone onsite within hours so that we could stay up and running. And when approached by competitors, I would often reach out to Moneris to ask about the offers they presented us, and Moneris would really take the time to break it down for me so I could understand, in simple terms, what was being communicated. Overall, Moneris has provided a fantastic service to us and it’s why we’ve stuck with them all these years.

What product are you currently using?

We are using the Move5000 4G|Wifi terminal, which we’ve found very easy to use. The screen is large, it’s bright, and we love that it works inside and outside of the restaurant, so we can easily serve our customers out on our patio.

Overall thoughts?

We’ve received great service from Moneris since we started working together, and the terminal we’re currently using is a product that I would recommend to other businesses in my industry.

As for the café, we’re focusing on the kitchen service side, and supporting other restaurants and staff in our community, where we can. We’re also trying to expand our night service, bringing a bit of life to our Friday and Saturday evenings through wine and food pairings, and good music. We hope you can join us!

Next time you're craving a unique, modern brunch, check out Revalee Brunch Café.