Bobby's Catering and Events was established in a tiny kitchen in South Belfast - now the owners are catering for thousands each year.
Anthony McKiernan and Robert Lewsley have an eye for good food and decor, serving their well known dishes to christenings, weddings, parties and more right across Northern Ireland. But after almost seven years, the pair are now beginning to slow things down at their Falls Road headquarters, as they plan a move to Ibiza, the place where they married three years ago.
Speaking to Belfast Live about their move, the pair were stuck for words to describe what their customers mean to them.
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"Without them, there would be no Bobby's," Robert said.
"I was a bit of a party animal before and went down a real bad road. I had just lost my friend to suicide too, so I had got my dog, Bobby, and he really kept me on the straight and narrow. He changed my life.
"Then I met Anthony, and one thing led to another and we moved in together and got married in 2019 in Ibiza. Back in 2016, we done a buffet for our friend and just put some photos on Facebook. Things really took off from there. We were both working in our own jobs at the time and we thought we would give the catering a shot.
"We borrowed money to buy our trays and Anthony's daddy was driving us about. We were working in our tiny kitchen, on pop-up tables. The demand was getting really crazy.
"One Sunday we thought we would do a roast dinner from the house, and there were queues outside on our street. From this, we just went out on our own as Bobby's and it has gone from there."
Robert said they have been blown away by the support they have received from families in the Greater Belfast area. The pair have sold their buffet boxes under the peace gates at Lanark Way after 6pm. But he said it's not just Belfast that has been loving Bobby's, with customers prepared to travel for their services - even from Dublin.
And with that ongoing support, it was a difficult decision for Anthony and Robert to announce they will be moving to Ibiza at the beginning of next year, hoping that someone with their passion and drive could take it on at home.
"Sometimes we have actually had to turn away work, and recommend other catering companies because we are so busy," Robert said.
"We have made friends for life through Bobby's, that is what we will miss the most. The community spirit has been incredible and we wouldn't be able to thank them.
"After Christmas, we had a chat about how much we were working. It was crazy. We both felt the same way. We visit Ibiza regularly and in May we went out to have a look at a few places.
"We are friendly with people who own a nightclub, and they have a kitchen, so we are going to work from there and take our Bobby's to Ibiza. It will be breakfast and lunch and maybe a Sunday roast too.
"The past seven years have been so busy and without people across Northern Ireland, we would never have been able to make this, we wouldn't be Bobby's."
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