Cathy Mo

AUSTRALIAN restaurant owner Maatouk Maatouk would have been much better off had he not encountered a severe flood in the summer of last year.

Maatouk was born in Lebanon and migrated to Australia with his family when he was three years old. He said that, until now, he didn’t know why his parents gave him such an unusual name.

Maatouk first came to China in 1999 and became involved in the clothing trade, manufacturing clothes in China and exporting them to Australia.

Seeing an opportunity to move into the catering business in Shekou, Shenzhen’s biggest international community in Nanshan District, he decided to settle down in 2004.

After opening Mediterranean-style restaurant, Mama Gelato, business was very good, according to Maatouk. With a casual and relaxed atmosphere, Mama Gelato offered a variety of Italian ice cream and pastas. “Everybody in the world loves his or her mother’s cooking. My restaurant was meant to satisfy expatriates’ yearning for their mothers’ cooking,” he said.

The restaurant became well-known among Shenzhen expatriates for the authentic Italian hand-made ice cream. “Besides expatriates, many customers were Chinese.”

However, Maatouk’s fortune was ruined overnight. Between 2 a.m. and 3 a.m. on June 10, 2007, a rainstorm erupted over Shekou unloading enough water to turn the lower level of the Sea World Plaza, where Maatouk’s restaurant was located, into a four-meter deep lake.

“The flood destroyed everything: the furniture, decorations, kitchenware and the imported machines used for making ice cream. I had losses of 5 million yuan, not including all the time and effort I put into the restaurant,” Maatouk said.

He didn’t get any compensation. Although he had insurance, it didn’t cover natural disasters. So his advice: analyze the insurance coverage and remember “don’t choose a place below sea level.”

Maatouk was, however, grateful for the help provided by the entire community, including his Chinese friends. They offered what support they could including cleaning up the mess and seeking legal aid.

“People were so nice to me. I have earned a lot of friendship instead of money,” Maatouk said. Nearly all the staff stuck by him to get through the difficult times and chose to move with him to his new Mama’s in Haichang Road, also in Shekou.

Maatouk is now trying to rebuild his business by offering something different. The new shop is more casual with more home-cooked food. Lebanese food such as doner kebab is also on the menu.

“I am confident that my business will get better and China will keep the momentum of growth in the long run although it is now affected in some extent by the U.S. subprime crisis,” Maatouk said.