Mr. Wat's Business Revival

I'm Kem Ruklittikul, son of Aphiwat Ruklittikul, otherwise known to the community as Mr. Wat.

For over 18 years we've lived in the Midcoast Maine making ends meet with our family-owned restaurants. We had gone through 3 Thai restaurants from classic Thai, to Sushi included, then a brand-new IP. And throughout the restaurants, it was overwhelming positive in the feedback of the food by Mr. Wat and my mother.

But with the last one, Spice Pizzeria in Rockport, our revolutionary idea of Thai-fusion Pizza, was a first step for a great concept at the worst time possible. Yes, we opened at Covid time, but managed to survive thanks to our community and our family effort for nearly 2 years. To that, it really was due to having a limited number of 3 employees to run a small takeout and delivery service, Mr. Wat, myself, and my mother. In the end, it wasn't exactly Covid that ended the business, but our hand-me down pizza oven finally going kaputs in 2021.

However, this did not break Mr. Wat's spirit as he bided his time and pooled his remaining funds to buy a new location at a busier area of Rockland. This was 59 Camden St, previously Getty Gas Station; all dilapidated and just sitting in front of McDonalds for over 20 years now with no one to buy and renovate it. Until now of course!

And the town was ecstatic to hear the news and many golfing buddies and loyal patrons clamored to see Mr. Wat and his phenomenal cooking's triumphant return.

However...

As much as we had hoped to start construction after receiving the town's building permit in May, the goal of our opening frustratingly and depressingly kept growing further and further away.

Why? Multiple reasons:

We had a difficult time precuring a contractor as well as proper architects to take our project. Most just claimed they were too busy. Then when we did get the architects to give estimates, it was higher than our expected proposed budget of $120,000. About $500,000 in total to remove the asbestos roof, to repave the driveway, and to set up the power grid and kitchen ventilation among other things.

Yes, I'm afraid it was just the economic climate that hiked up all the expenses, and this has been the major reason for our building delay. The wait and delay has also been affecting our mentalities as well, just waiting for weeks into months for a response with nothing better to do with no clear ally to help.

BUT! We are not calling it quits yet!

If the banks and the architects are gonna leave us hung to fry, then we won't go down without putting our mark of progress! We'll do some of this ourselves, like when we turned an old shoe store into a small pizza restaurant at Rockport.

With the supervisions of some close connections from old patrons and golf buddies, Mr. Wat has resolved to cut expenses such as the demolitions and constructions. He is actually has good handyman and carpentry skills, but his passion is still cooking.

While we can shave some of the $500,000 out of our own pockets along with a few kitchenwares on hand, but we still need to cover the remainder of:

Therefore, We ask you, people of the Midcoast and beyond, to donate as much as you can spare for us to rebuild our Thai-Pizza goodness.

Why do we still want to make Thai-Pizza a reality? It's not just about the Pizza, but to prove that a common family unit can build a stable sizable business with limited budget and employees.

How often do you hear, "You can't find good help these days," when you're looking for workers? Personally, even I don't and can't stay working for Mr. Wat for the rest of my time, as my creation passion is not in food. Thus, when I leave the restaurant business, Mr. Wat will need a business plan to operate by himself and/or the least amount of employees possible. Which would most likely be my mother. That's why he's like to set up the online ordering and Kiosk system.

Follow us on Facebook @SpicePizzeriaME, for updates

We do have our own reserves of $50,000 to work off from, and are looking to see if we can get any other loans possible. But we are most certainly unconfident in getting any help from the banks, and that is why we ask for any contribution towards 59 Camden St, Rockland, ME.

But once again, in the meantime, we'll try our hardest to trim our expenses, so that the goal can shorten to ease our donators' wallets.

This is how you can help for free:

Please tell others about our situation and delays. To Look forward to our pizzas, our website is HERE

If you want to donate through Mail, our PO Box is: PO Box 65, Rockland, ME, 04841