As the oldest of four children, founder Vitalii Korsikov helped his mother sell her cakes on the street near their house. He tells New Times his family didn't have much money and maintained themselves with any profit from the cakes and his father's construction job. Still, he watched his mother dream of opening a bakery of her own.
Once his father saved enough money, the family opened a meat shop. Tucked away in the space was an oven where his mother could bake her cakes. The business slowly grew to multiple locations as Korsikov finished his studies while learning how to manage his mother's sales on the side.
Even after his mother decided to retire, he continued to grow the businesses, which included multiple bakeries, cafés, and a meat shop. Despite her absence in the kitchen, she remained the creator of all recipes and new dishes across his businesses. "We have a tradition in our family," he says. "We had this before the war; every Sunday, we would go to church in the morning, and then mom would make Ukrainian dishes like borscht for a family lunch. After lunch, she always made a new dessert. Every week, something new; she's just a creator. She would envision something and just make it."
When the dessert was a success, she would write down the recipe, which Korsikov would then send to his pastry chefs to implement at his bakeries.
After Finding Success in Ukraine, War Brings Him to the States
In 2021, he moved from Odesa to Kyiv to open two more bakeries. The following year, however, was marked by the Battle for Kyiv. When he saw friends and family leaving Ukraine, he tells New Times he did the same and never looked back.His first endeavor took him to Dubai before his sister's wedding took place in Miami.
"I knew I could go back and restore my business," says Korsikov. "But I didn't see the point. I would hear on the news about this way of living when missiles fly above your head — there was no future. That's why I decided to just lose everything that I had in Ukraine and start a new life. I believed I could succeed here."
After endless searching and driving from Miami-Dade to West Palm, Korsikov finally found a small space in downtown Miami. In June 2024, he opened Vanilla Cafe.
Why "vanilla?" Because everybody loves vanilla.
Vanilla Cafe Is Born
The idea was to open a café where everyone could find something they love on the menu. Vanilla serves a variety of healthy breakfast choices, coffee, and eye-catching pastries that, although now served in Miami, are still inspired by his mother who remains in Ukraine."She is always my inspiration," he says. "Even now, I always call her, asking if maybe she has something new and to ask her to send me some notes. Even from there, she's always helping."
Menu favorites include entrées like a creamy fish omelet, a Mediterranean shakshuka, and a pastrami beef toast. Korsikov also recommends sandwiches such as the burrata croissant and the pastrami sandwich. As an ode to his country, the menu includes Ukrainian cuisine dishes such as borscht, olive salad, and vareniki with potatoes and mushrooms.
Another priority for Korsikov was serving high-quality coffee by baristas skilled in creating specialty drinks. On the menu, guests will find the "Raf Vanilla," a creamy vanilla coffee with espresso, and the "Orange Up," made with caramel, espresso, and orange juice, as well as classics like the affogato.
Matcha lovers can try one of the many matcha drinks, including a matcha lemonade, the "Matcha Grape," and the "Ice Blue Matcha." For hot Miami days, the menu also includes a variety of refreshers.
Ending on a sweet note, the café first became popular on social media because of its "Dubai chocolate," but the vanilla eclairs and pistachio croissants are regulars' favorites. "We put together a menu that's very simple but very specific," he says. "We make sure to buy everything of the best quality. So, for example, the pistachio is from Brazil, we have Belgian chocolate, and we buy farmers' cheese from Ukraine, so, from every part of the world. We took the very best, and we implemented it here."
Korsikov's dream for Vanilla is to open more cafés and, in the future, have other ideas for franchising all over the United States.
Vanilla Cafe. 117 SE Second Ave., Miami; vanillacafeus.com.
