The subway was closed and there was no transportation available. Montes joined people walking and running to get out of Manhattan. He headed for Queens, where he lived with wife Nancy. Nancy Montes saw the TV reports of the attacks. Without a cell phone or any way to communicate with Caesar, all she could do was pray that he was OK. It seemed like an eternity before he arrived home.

“It took me two hours to get home, running. I don’t know how long it took for the people who were walking,” he said. The country went into shock and mourning for those killed in the attacks, but Montes also saw Americans pull together and refuse to be intimidated by terrorism.

“It makes me so proud of this country. If you are a hard-working person, this country gives you so many opportunities. I am so thankful to this country for opening the door for me to come here,” he said.

Montes and Nancy are immigrants. She is from Peru and he is from Mexico. He came to the Bradenton area 15 years ago at the invitation of a friend who opened a restaurant here. “I called my wife and said you’re going to love Florida. Everything is so green and beautiful. The people are friendly and say ‘hello’ and ‘good morning.’ It’s amazing,” Caesar said. After years working for others in all kinds of restaurants, the couple decided it was time to open one of their own.

Opening Caesar’s Breakfast Cafe last week at 1808 Cortez Road W. represents the realization of the American dream for them and their two daughters. “I have been working about 15 years here in the restaurant business and decided I wanted to open my own. A lot of people like breakfast and that’s the most important meal,” he said.

Although Caesar’s Breakfast Cafe has just opened at 1808 Cortez Road W., Bradenton, it is  Caesar handles the chef duties, while Nancy works the front of the restaurant.

Caesar’s Breakfast Cafe, a 50-seat restaurant located in the All Star Plaza, serves breakfast and lunch from 7 a.m.-2 p.m. six days a week.

Breakfast meals start at great prices for one egg with bacon, ham or sausage. Also on the breakfast menu are biscuits and gravy, breakfast platters, omelets, sandwiches, pancakes, waffles and French toast.

The lunch menu includes appetizers, salads, soups and combos, sandwiches, subs, wraps and burgers.

Even though the restaurant is new, Caesar’s already has begun attracting a cast of regulars.