2024-04-08 07:35:46
Rodrigo Santos was always a ball player. Since he was a kid, he ran clubs in his region. Born in Serra de Santo António, in the municipality of Alcanena, near Fátima, he was a member of the federation and even played in the third national division. He balanced football with working in the textile sector, in a firm that his parents maintained for 35 years. But at a certain point, “things started to go wrong,” he recalls. It was then that he decided to emigrate. “I arrived in Luxembourg on January 5, 2015, for economic reasons, like almost all Portuguese people. I came with my mother and we opened a cafe. That’s what came up and we jumped in head first.”
It started with the café-restaurant ‘Três Marias’, in Bonnevoie. Later, Rodrigo was part of the opening of ‘Serra Café’ in Dudelange, of which he is still managing partner today. Six years ago, he met Mariana, who is now his wife, and a year later they opened another café, ‘DUC Brasserie’, in Hesperange. In May 2021, another opportunity arose for the couple: they took over the old ‘Belle-Vue’, on rue de Hamm, in the capital, which they decided to call ‘Hammstuff’. “It’s a typical name in Luxembourg”, explains the partner, who came up with the idea. In addition to the new name, they renovated the space of that century-old cafe, which now also has a restaurant.
For almost three years, they maintained cafés in Hesperange and Hamm. “We were working well and we tried to combine the two to expand the business”, says Rodrigo. However, they started to no longer have time for themselves and their three-year-old son and had to make a decision. “Hammstuff is very big and requires a lot of work, so we decided to close the other one at the end of last year, to dedicate ourselves 100 percent to this one. It’s better to dedicate just one space and do the best you can.” They transformed the downstairs, which was previously a living room.skittles‘, in a dining room, where they focus mainly on traditional Portuguese food and, more recently, picanha.
Zé’s picanha is one of the house’s specialties. © Credits: Chris Karaba
The concept of Hammstuff, in Rodrigo’s eyes, is a space to be “with your football friends, drink a beer and eat the dish of the day”. The cafe has capacity for around 30 people, the restaurant can accommodate around 50 and the terrace can accommodate more than 70, guarantees the Portuguese. “We started investing in restoration and it has gone well. We have had some reservations, football people tend to come often, we have a lot of parties with young people who rent the room and we are also going to start having communions”. The objective is to try to attract all types of customers, whether families, groups of friends or “people who like to watch the ball”.
Most of the customers are Portuguese, recognizes the 37-year-old manager, but they end up receiving people of all nationalities. “Some Luxembourgers, French, English, Spanish… Now with the terrace in the summer we will have a lot of people from the neighborhood”. One of this year’s bets is to use the outdoor space for the Euro2024 party. With the arrival of good weather, Rodrigo hopes to be able to gather many fans in Hamm. “We will have televisions and music on the terrace, so people can come and drink a few beers and watch the ball. Always with our snacks, like steaks and gizzards.”
This year we want to bet on the Euro. We will have televisions and music on the terrace, so people can come and drink a few beers and watch the ball.
Rodrigo Santos
Hammstuff Manager
In addition to snacks and picanha, Hammstuff also serves Portuguese stew, barbecue chicken and feijoada. “We have the menu of the day from Monday to Saturday. It’s all based on traditional Portuguese food”, says Rodrigo. The restaurant is open for lunch and dinner, except on Tuesdays, as it closes at night. The cafe is open Monday to Friday from 6am to 1am, Saturday from 8am and Sunday from 9am. “Weekends and days when there are football games are the strongest moments”, notes the manager. The team is made up of seven people, including Ivone, who has worked there for 26 years. “It’s already furniture in the house and has been our right arm.”
The Portuguese of the capital. João, the cocktail master in a historic Grund bar
Every day, Rodrigo goes for breakfast, from around 10:30 am, until early afternoon. He takes care of purchasing, accounting and helps with the service when needed. In the little free time he has left, he likes to play football. In Luxembourg, he played for Junglinster and more recently for Gasperich. “He used to train three times a week. I am also part of the Luxembourg City veterans.” Right now, he can’t play because he broke his foot during a match. But he remains connected to football, because he is a sponsor of the two clubs where he plays.
The Hammstuff team, with Rodrigo in the center and his wife Mariana Toscano on the left in the photo. Ivone (next to the manager) is the oldest employee, with 26 years of service at the cafe. © Credits: Chris Karaba
After all, Hammstuff is a café closely linked to football. “I’m a Benfica fan, but we have fans from all clubs”, explains Rodrigo. Interacting with customers is his favorite part of the job, making “everyone feel at home”. The not so good part is facing the crisis that has affected the business so much. “Everything is very expensive. The cost of living is higher, the price of food has increased, as have electricity and gas. It is increasingly difficult to pay all the expenses. The biggest challenge is trying to manage this,” he confesses.
I really like Hamm, it’s a very calm neighborhood. Maybe I would buy a house here, because it is a good area to live.
Rodrigo Santos
Hammstuff Manager
In addition to playing football, Rodrigo also likes traveling, going out with his wife and son and fishing. He tries to go to Portugal every two months, either to see Benfica or to visit family and friends. As the woman is from Póvoa de Varzim, they end up traveling the country from north to south. Lately, it has been more difficult to travel because of work, but the couple’s idea is to return to their country within a short period of time. “We haven’t thought much about what we want to do yet, but we want to come back in the next six years, to enjoy life. Maybe in the Algarve, with a small business next to the beach. We lack the sun, the sea, and having something to do in our free time.”
The Portuguese of the capital. Isabel, the CHL nurse in Rollingergrund
The couple recognizes that Luxembourg is a good country to improve living conditions, but the objective was always to save money to one day return to Portugal. Until then, Rodrigo would still like to try investing in the construction sector, if the situation in the sector improves. As for restaurants, if the opportunity arises, he does not rule out the possibility of opening another cafe. And, who knows, you might even consider moving to Hamm. “We live in Schifflange, but I really like this area, it’s a very calm neighborhood. Maybe I would buy a house here, because it is a nice place to live and has a good neighborhood.”
2024-04-08 07:35:46