This French Family Sold Everything, Moved to El Salvador and Started a Business in El Zonte | Antoine Allain of La Cajita Kitchen

What happens when a nightclub bouncer from Santa Barbara, California sells everything he owns and opens a restaurant in El Zonte?

You’ve probably seen Max Keiser posting from a beach restaurant and wondered how it got there. The posts show the finished version. They don’t show the ten years before it, or the little box it started in.

Mike sits down with Antoine Allain, owner of La Cajita, born in Brittany, France, raised in California from age 13, and a former competitive surfer who first came to El Zonte about 10 years ago on a surf trip.

He fell for the town in half an hour, surfed, and went home. Three years ago he came back with his dad for a birthday trip and found a different place, with more energy and more room to start something. On the first day they were already talking about what they could open here. Antoine called his wife and told her he thought they were moving to El Salvador. Her answer wasn’t yes. He tells you how she came around, and which part of living in El Salvador was hardest for her to get used to.

They sold everything in France and California and opened in a tiny box on the sand, serving the crepes and galettes his dad cooks at home. The risk sat on Antoine alone. One ingredient is hard to find in the country, so friends bring it in by the bag.

Then a smash burger went on the menu and the little box filled up. Then Max came to eat, became a partner, and the move upstairs that followed brought a crowd that still fills the place every night of rainy season. Antoine is clear about one thing: Max checks in on the numbers like a businessman, and the growth came bigger than they’d expected.

Antoine knew nothing about Bitcoin when he opened. Hear what accepting it has done for his customer count and for the kind of people who walk through the door.

He and Mike also get into El Salvador surf from a local’s view: the two peaks he rotates through on the El Zonte surf calendar, and La Cajita Express, the contest he runs where 20 men and five women competed for $1,250.

If you’re one of the El Salvador expats wondering how the town treats a foreigner opening a business, Mike asks him directly. His answer is short and worth hearing from him.

A family bet everything on a small box on the beach and El Zonte showed up for them!

Whether you’re weighing a business of your own in El Salvador or you want to know what’s behind the burger Mike keeps ordering, listen to this one.


—Bitcoin Beach Team


Learn more about Antoine Allain:
X: https://x.com/LaCajitaKitchen
IG: https://www.instagram.com/lacajitakitchen


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Browse through this quick guide to learn more about the episode:
00:00 Intro
01:02 Why did Antoine Allain move from Santa Barbara to El Zonte, El Salvador?
03:27 How do you start a restaurant on Bitcoin Beach in El Zonte with no experience in El Salvador?
05:39 What is Max Keiser’s restaurant in El Salvador and how did he become a partner in La Cajita?
10:13 How much does Max Keiser’s promotion help a small business in El Zonte?
13:40 Can a foreigner start a business in El Salvador and how do locals treat expats?
17:39 How hard are taxes and permits for starting a business in El Salvador?
19:59 Can you pay with Bitcoin in El Zonte and does it bring businesses more customers?
21:56 What is living in El Salvador like after moving from the US with your family?
25:14 What is the La Cajita Express surf contest in El Zonte and when is the next one?

Live From Bitcoin Beach