Couple transforms former BG’s Deli into Bluebird Café and Grill

FOX23 News at 9 p.m.

CAPE GIRARDEAU, Mo. (KBSI) — Benart and Albina Limani are bringing their dream of opening a family-owned restaurant to Cape Girardeau.

The husband-and-wife team is preparing to open Bluebird Café and Grill in early to mid-November, transforming the former BG’s Deli building while raising their two young daughters.

Moving from Macedonia, the couple chose Cape Girardeau to be closer to Benart’s family and quickly found a place they wanted to call home.

“We moved here when my sister-in-law moved here. We kind of fell in love with the area, so we thought it would be a really good place to continue raising our family,” Albina said.

The idea for Bluebird Café and Grill grew out of a family routine. While taking his daughter to dance classes, Benart wanted a place where they could sit down and enjoy breakfast together.

With both coming from families experienced in the restaurant industry, the couple decided to turn that idea into a business of their own.

Transforming a Cape Girardeau landmark

The Limanis chose the former BG’s Deli building, which housed the longtime Cape Girardeau restaurant for 45 years before closing.

The building had been vacant for more than a year, according to the couple, and preparing it for a new restaurant meant extensive renovations.

Benart and Albina have taken on much of the work themselves, from removing and scrubbing ceiling tiles by hand to thoroughly cleaning the walls and floors.

They have also replaced kitchen equipment, bringing in new refrigerators, stoves, ovens, utensils and other supplies.

“Everything from the front of the house, the back of the house. I mean, just it really needed to be brought back to life, and, you know, it needed some change. So we were really excited to get in here,” Albina said.

The work has often kept them at the restaurant from early morning until late at night, leaving less time at home with their daughters.

“We’ve been here from early morning, late nights, you know, so it’s kind of hard leaving the girls at home and not really having that time with them that we’re used to having,” Albina said.

Looking ahead to opening day

Bluebird Café and Grill plans to serve breakfast, brunch and lunch, offering a new dining experience at a location familiar to generations of Cape Girardeau customers.

The Limanis hope to create a welcoming space where families and friends can gather for a meal.

“I just want it to be somewhere where they can, you know, feel welcomed and know that it’s local, obviously locally owned. And we care about people coming in and out of the doors,” Albina said.

The couple said the response from the community has been positive as they prepare to open.

“It’s been all positive so far. Everyone’s excited for us to open up and see what we have to offer,” one of the owners said.

Bluebird Café and Grill is targeting an early- to mid-November opening. An exact date has not been announced.

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