We met Francis in 2019 when he had a pop-up for Reppin in the West Loop next to us. While he's gone on to do big things like boost Chicago's Filipino food scene, start multiple businesses, and grow a young family, he still remains one of the friendliest, most humble and coolest people in the game.
Who you are and what you do?
My name is Francis Almeda. I am a serial entrepreneur. I own Side Practice Coffee, part owner of Drip Collective and here at Kanin, as well as Novel Pizza Cafe in Pilsen.
Love “serial entrepreneur.” Tell us a little bit more about how Side Practice supports other artists and entrepreneurs in their businesses or ventures.
Side Practice Coffee opened up in 2020. It's exactly what the name is. We feature people's side projects, or I call it side practices. We feature them either via pop-ups or on the wall, or have them take over the cafe space. However we can support anyone's side practice or side project – this is the place where they start something.
What's been your proudest moment as a business owner?
Alright, so proudest moment as a business owner is really not only watching the businesses grow, but the teams that grow within them, and having people around us that care as much as we do. Every single team is really my proudest moment, to be working with people that I love, and who care about what they're doing. 
Image by @evilyn.oro
What's a valuable piece of business advice?
I think a lot of entrepreneurs think that it's a solo game, like you have to do it on your own. I think of business as more of a team sport. I can't have all these places and do this alone. It's not sustainable, it's not enjoyable. So the best piece of advice is, as a business owner, you don't have to do it alone. I would suggest finding people that you love working with and do the work with them. Trust.
How do you talk to people about supporting small business right now?
I think now more than ever it's needed. I'm blessed and very lucky to open up businesses around this time where everyone feels like they're helping each other out. Helping each other's businesses is really a core principle, but I don’t think it’s always been this way. Small businesses nowadays are collaborating rather than being competitive with each other.
A lot of your businesses highlight Filipino culture through food. Why food?
Food is the one of the things in life that brings people together. That's the main reason I opened up these places, to bring people together. I just love catching up with a friend over coffee or a slice of pizza. We get to share an experience and, you know, catch up on life. What other things in life do that other than food?
You have a family, young kids, and multiple businesses. How do you balance it all?
That’s a good question, I ask myself that every day. I balance out my schedule in a way where I take care of myself and my family first before my businesses. Not that I like putting hierarchy on things, but without me taking care of myself and my family, I wouldn't be able to take care of the businesses as well. I think the main reason I'm able to do this – let's be real – is the people that I have around me. As I said, I think business is a team sport, so that means putting a lot of trust in the leads and the owners and the partners of the shops. They run the show. To be able to work with people that I love, and that care as much about the business as I do, that is literally the only reason I’m able to manage family and work.
Little bit of a switch up. What’s your favorite dish to make for Thanksgiving and during the holidays?
Okay, let's think about this for a second… I'm truly on a pasta kick at the moment. I just love the simplicity and creativity of what you can do with pasta. As far as our family and holiday parties go, we make Filipino spaghetti. It's wonderful and sweet, but I make ours spicy. That's one of my favorite dishes to make. A go-to dish… I make pizzas. You know, who doesn't love someone that brings over a pizza? And as far as desserts go, our banana pudding [at Kanin] is a hit at any party, but I also love making tiramisu. That's a whole smorgasbord of stuff!
Do you have any holiday traditions with your family that you look forward to every year?
I have two kids. One is four and the other one is two. So we're just starting out making traditions for the holidays. But one thing we did last year that we kind of want to keep doing this year is this Italian place down on the south side called Cafe Bionda. We went there for Christmas Day. All our families celebrate the day before, so I think every year we're gonna go to Cafe Bionda and have an Italian meal for Christmas Day. It's not that busy so it becomes this very intimate moment. I said I just love pasta, so that's what we're gonna do. Just have pasta every Christmas.
What are you grateful for right now?
I am grateful for my kids and my family. I'm very blessed to have a beautiful boy and beautiful girl and an amazing wife. And I'm grateful for the people that I work with and the things that we're building for the city. And just grateful for the community that has come to support all the places.
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Interviewed by Arabella Breck for Ándale Market.
The original interview has been edited for brevity and clarity.
Images courtesy of @francis.almeda unless otherwise noted.
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