After the military and college, I came back to the family business to help
grow a brand.
My father's built a great business and a great restaurant.
And my goals now are to turn it into a brand.
My name is Emilio Dominguez.
I'm 28 years old.
I make $90,000 a year and live in Pompano Beach, Florida.
I'm the bar manager for Casa Maya Grill, my family's restaurant, where it's
in Deerfield Beach, Florida.
I'm responsible for the cocktail menu, developing new menu items,
promotions, meeting with the suppliers, distributors and training our bar
staff.
I started in the restaurant business when I was 10 years old bussing tables
for $20 a day.
I learned early on to focus in school.
So at 17 years old when I graduated high school, I joined the Air National
Guard.
Most of the men in my family served and it was something that I knew that I
wanted to do.
I went to basic training.
I was in active duty for about a year training and then I came back
part-time.
And then I was back with them full-time as of May 2017.
Every month, I spend $1,500 in rent.
About $175 on my utilities.
I budget about $1,000 a month for groceries and food.
My car payment is $500 a month and I spend about $160 a month on gas.
We don't live for money, but we do need the money for what we do.
My system of budgeting changed when my daughter was born because I had to
create one.
Before I didn't have a budget.
I always made enough money to pay my bills and I was always fine with
sacrificing buying things to pay the bills.
I didn't grasp the paternal love until I had a daughter.
And the moment she was born and I held her, it made it very succinct and
very clear that there are different types of love.
And I made a lot of mistakes with money.
But now that I have a daughter, it's put a lens over how I see it and
really clarified everything.
I'm obsessed with that little girl.
[That's really cool.]
Being the sole income earner is a little...
It's stressful at times.
I've learned to avoid debt and to save because I've gotten into debt and
not saved.
My credit built very quickly when I was young and I used it when I maxed
out credit cards.
I was fortunate I was able to pay them off, but then I would do it again.
Then I was put into a position when my wife got pregnant where
all of a sudden I had to pay for a family.
Not just myself.
Then the credit cards didn't get paid.
I have months where my savings fluctuates a lot.
I have to be very aware of my budget and be very aware of my expenses.
The responsibility's on me to save for retirement, pay the bills and also
to have savings and to enjoy our lives together.
There are some months where I don't have any days off, but most of the time
when we do we'll go to a museum or a park.
Try to do things with the family to spend time together.
I literally just work.
I work so much.
The restaurant business is unforgiving.
My dad came to the U.S.
from Mexico to pursue his ambitions of being a business owner.
He came and he started working here as a dishwasher.
Then he moved out to a busser.
Now he owns a restaurant, a laundromat and has really come further than I
think he ever imagined was possible.
Part of my success is to be able to work with my son Emilio.
He really is giving to this business what we need, which is the passion.
Which is educating yourself in what you do.
Right now I'm saving to buy a house in three years.
The goals are to pay the credit cards off in three years, and only be left
with the student loan debt and then buy our first home.
My ambitions with Casa Maya Grill are to build a brand.
What that means is opening another location.
When I was 16 and I worked full-time to pay my car and to help with the
rent, I felt like I was a man because I paid some bills.
Then when I joined the military, I thought I was a man because I wore a
uniform and I was willing to die for my country.
And at the end of the day now, becoming a dad has made me a man.