Meet Amanda Butkowski | The Heart Container Cafe Owner/Founder

We had the good fortune of connecting with Amanda Butkowski and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Amanda, we’d love to hear more about how you thought about starting your own business?
Well, I was having trouble working at regular jobs after Covid due to health concerns and toxic work environments. I had been working in different Cafes and Food Industry jobs since I was 16 and had come to love the cafe environment so much! One day, when I was feeling especially down I was looking into how to start my own cafe, just for fun. I told my partner Jeishon that: “wouldn’t it be cool for me to run my own cafe?” I had so many years of experience in cafes and buisness that I really thought I could do it well. Instead of telling me that we aren’t at a place to be buisness owners or that I wasn’t ready having not been to college or studied for buisness, he just told me ” you should do it!” And that was all the motivation I needed. I deeply researched how to start your own business and to have a successful cafe, you needed something unique. So I thought about my favorite things, I love anime and video games, video game culture was my entire life! And I love japanese food! So why not make a cafe that combines all these things and is unique? That’s when I started sketching and drawing up my cute video game themed desserts and snacks, as well as my Heart Container Logo! The name came from my favorite game series “The Legend of Zelda” I liked the idea of a coffee cup logo but like in the cartoons when it’s spiked with a love potion it has a little smoke heart coming out? I did that but made it 8-bit for the theme! After that we slowly joined pop-up events and the rest was history!!

Alright, so for those in our community who might not be familiar with your business, can you tell us more?
The Heart Container has grown into such a huge brand. Not only is the original idea of a Gaming/Anime Themed Cafe that does Japanese Food, but we have become Gaming Tournament Organizers, Event Organizers, Hosts for different Events and Venunes, have even branched off into our own creative projects like Podcasts, Cooking Videos (coming soon), Cosplay and so much more. What sets us apart from others is our community. We have found a home alongside other nerds and gamers and we love it! We care about them immensely. I love to be able to share my passion for video games, anime, drawing and overall just creativity with everyone, we know the community we are a part of it so I do my very best to create new and exciting menu options that people can relate to their favorite games and be excited to have! That’s what makes us different. It has never been easy. Like I said I never went college, besides working in cafes and food and learning first hand how businesses run I was never properly trained in it. I had to do a lot of my own personal research to learn how to make an LLC, how to get insurance and licenses, how to file your taxes and income reports, all those hard buisness asks, and I’ve been doing this since right after highschool when I was only 20. I’m about to be 24 now and I’ve come a long way and learned so much. I have a lot of other businesses to thank for teaching me and willing to tell me how everything works and it’s thanks to them that I’ve learned and grown so much. Money was also always an issue. This was a dream built from NOTHING. Me and my partner Jeishon had very average jobs, no inheritance, no investors, nothing like that. We used our own money to slowly upgrade The Heart Container into what it is now starting with just a table and some baked goods at events. Much later, Jeishon quit his Publix job and used the stocks he had saved for years of his life to help me open my first food trailer. And I can’t help but thank my partner Jeishon Quispe for doing that for Me and continuing to stay by my side. He has been my rock and the only reason I’ve been able to get through some of the tough moments, has been because of his constant emotional & physical support! I want people to know and I say this all the time, that you can do it! You don’t need to work a basic 9-5 job your entire life. If you have a dream, an idea don’t let it just stay in your head, research it and make it your own! It’s easier than you think to start small and have your own buisness. And it’s so much more rewarding to work as your own boss! So if it’s art, baking, photography, gaming tournaments. Whatever it may be do what makes you happy, look into it and just start! Don’t be afraid to make that leap. You will learn a lot. Not everything works right away and sometimes you need to adjust from your original idea, but that’s okay! Don’t be afraid to change. The Heart Container is all about finding those creative people, geeking out with a community that feels the same, and it’s all about never giving up on your dreams even if you come from nothing like did, it’s all possible.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
This is where I’d like to shout out my fellow small businesses that have continued to help me so much! They have some amazing stores and places:
Flynns Arcade & More:
Were the first people to reach out and help us, they helped us learn so much! They have an amazing huge arcade space with retro and modern games and host amazing events like cosplay events, Raves and more!
Guildhall Anime Lounge:, Has slowly been helping us more and more providing an amazing space for Gaming Tournaments! They have a huge venue filled with PCs for Gaming as well as food! From Ramen to Boba Tea!
ROK Esports Center: Another huge venue we have worked with a lot for Gaming Tournaments and more recently our own Rave event! They have so much: Table Top Card Games, DND nights, Pcs for gaming and so much more to do!
All these places are amazing to go to if you’re a fellow Gamer, Anime Lover, or just enjoy fun company! They all have their own food and snacks, event nights with so much to do, and plenty of space for you and your friends! I love every one of these places and go all the time!

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
Honestly there are so many people that have helped us along the way and too many shout outs to give. You already met one the Tenth Level Tavern crew that has become family to us and helped us immensely. There are so many fellow small buisness owners and conventions that helped us get here today as well and we can’t thank all these people enough.
For now, the biggest one I’d like to shout out is the SoFloDojo Organization! They are Gaming Tournament Organizers for South Florida their Leader Ryan (Convicted of Fun), and their Stream Coordinator/Photographer Alejandro (Unevenpictures) have especially been a Huge help and inspiration to me. Helping me find my place in the FGC (Fighting Game Community) that has helped us grow so much! Their Tournaments and Friendship mean the world to us!

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/the_heart_container_cafe/?hl=en

Twitter: https://twitter.com/heart_con_cafe?lang=en

Facebook: https://m.facebook.com/p/The-Heart-Container-Cafe-100075172195618/

Youtube: https://m.youtube.com/channel/UCpoc6hN_Jp8uqLuU9pk49QQ

Other: Twitch: https://www.twitch.tv/theheartcontainercafe

Image Credits
Alejandro Torres (Unevenpictures)

Amanda Butkowski
(The Heart Container Cafe)