Insights from a Psychologist Turned Restaurateur

Marcos Caillet-Bois: My name is Marcos. I'm from Argentina. I came to the US, to Miami, about 3 years ago. I do come from a completely different business. I'm a psychologist back in Argentina. I had a little bit of experience in terms of hospitality and F&B back at home, mostly when I was younger, some seasonal jobs, and such. I came over here. I worked for a few hospitality companies over the last couple of years and managed some restaurants in Miami Beach. And eventually, well, alongside Leandro, here we came across this beautiful location.

Marcos Caillet-Bois: So I think that there's a lot of correlation between both of them, definitely. I've always loved creating experiences, you know, hosting people in general, for different events. I think that hospitality is still a business that is mostly based on bringing people together, sharing experiences, connecting, and I think that there's a lot of psychology involved in that as well.

Leandro Cabanillas: My name is Leandro. I, like Marcos, am from Argentina. I came to Miami in 2021. We first opened a wine bar in Wingwood, and then we found this location and opened this bar. Hospitality has been doing this for almost 10 years, and we are super excited about the new location we opened in March of this year, 2025.

Marcos & Leonardo: The bar name is Conventillo. Very, very important, the name itself, because it's what's been driving the concept all the way through, you know, the aesthetic aspect of it, to the kind of experience that we want to showcase and we want to create here.  Conventillos, actually, the direct translation into English is 'tenements'. 

When war broke out in Europe at the beginning of the previous century, there was a massive influx of Italians, Germans, Spaniards, and people from several other European countries who were, of course, unfortunately fleeing that situation. And a lot of them came to South America. And the Italian community, in particular, came to Buenos Aires, which is where we're both from. And they actually occupied, at that time, non-convents that had been abandoned, like, 50 years earlier!

That's kind of where convento conventillo comes from. It's those buildings in particular that had some very distinct characteristics. They were like U-shaped buildings, about two or three stories high, with a patio in the center. And there was literally an entire family living in each room. So nobody wanted to spend the whole of their lives locked up between six or seven brothers and sisters in a single room. So everybody was constantly out in the patios.

And in that merging and meeting of different nationalities and cultures, many aspects of Argentine culture were born, like tango, which originated in the patios of the conventillos. That's kind of why we also host live tango here and tango lessons every other Tuesday. 

Marcos & Leonardo: Our objective is to be a neighborhood bar here in Miami and build a community around it. And the way we're doing that is by inviting other bars to collaborate with us.

From the area. Miami's food and hospitality scene is growing rapidly and changing at a very fast pace, and you know, we feel we're in a place where other bars are opening, so there's a lot to be done in that sense. Regarding events, our venue is super comfortable, very open, and a great spot to host private events, social or corporate. And 10 months after opening, we have been very active in that sense. Collaborating with other operators, hosting social events, and corporate events.

Marcos & Leonardo:  As owner-operators, and to have a solid proof of concept when we opened the bar, we were, and we are still very much hands-on deck running the bar, running the floor, and thank God the concept has been quite successful so far. So we are at a point now where we are still very much present, but looking to incorporate front-of-house and bartenders as we head into the season.

Marcos & Leonardo:  We are, as I mentioned, between seven and nine; we're a small team. So, you know, like an excellent working environment and team collaboration are key. You know, having a previous position that allowed me to occupy different roles and support teammates across various aspects of daily operations. So, a very team-oriented attitude in general is very, very important. 

It's a space that gets pretty packed and busy, especially on weekends. So we're looking for somebody who can evolve and manage themselves in a very fast-paced environment, for sure. And we are a space that, as Leandro mentioned, we're a neighborhood bar. We are very, very much towards the local communities, regulars especially, so somebody who can build and has the personality to make that kind of relationship with our regular clients.

Marcos & Leonardo: Well, first of all, to be very honest with themselves and understand if they're looking for this just as a job to make money and pay their bills, or if they really want a career in this industry.

If it's someone who is just looking to pay their bills, look for the one restaurant that's well located and is gonna sell a lot during the season, and then move on to the next.

I think that a key aspect in this business, in general, for anybody entering it, either being a seasoned person within the industry or just starting out, is being very, very proactive. The hospitality industry in general has a lot to teach about sales, customer service, attention to detail, keeping a fast pace, and finding solutions on the spot. I think there's a lot to learn, and the key to getting as much as possible out of that experience and taking the best from it is definitely being proactive.

Marcos & Leonardo: We are always very open to finding new spots and opportunities, such as the ones we found here. But I think that in the thinking midterm in terms of time, definitely like building this into a great neighborhood spot that that's going to be able to just 10 years from now, we're still going to be able to say, okay, Conventillo is still the place to be and an amazing place and amazing bar to be.

When it comes to being a little bit more specific about the concept itself, being able to build a reputation as a place in which you always have an amazing experience musically.