Business booms for Cullen's Yellow Deli cafe in first month

Press and Journal

07-05-2025

A Cullen cafe owner started her business after she was 'inspired' by her grandfather of Miele's of Forres.
Aylii Miele has said ever since the opening, the reception has been 'mental'.
When doors opened on March 19, queues lined up outside the Grant Street venue.
Aylii has tried a variety of food throughout her years travelling the world and has now brought these to Cullen.
The 33-year-old says her granddad Alessandro Miele, of Miele's of Forres, is her 'greatest inspiration' behind the deli.
The cafe owner also saw a 'bit of a gap' in Cullen, which led her to start her first venture of owning her own deli.
But the biggest starting-point behind the idea, Aylii says, was her grandfather.
Grandfather Alessandro Miele is Aylii's 'greatest inspiration'
Alessandro Miele, from Miele's of Forres, is her grandfather and also her 'greatest inspiration'.
She added: 'The business stemmed from him and his passion for hospitality.
'That's really how I was drawn into it all.
'He's a big inspiration to me.
'I've got his original ice cream recipe and a letter from him is hung up in the cafe as a memento to him.
'He passed away two years ago so unfortunately, he doesn't get to see it.
'But he would've been the person I would've liked to show the cafe to the most.'
Queues line up outside new Cullen cafe
When Aylii opened the deli at the end of March, she described the first day as 'absolutely mental'.
She said: 'On my first day, my first few coffees were awful because I was shaking like a leaf.
'But people were just so excited, people queued outside the front door on the first day before we opened.'
During the Easter holidays, it was 'mayhem'. As well as this, in the first three weekends, people queued outside which sometimes reached a 20-25 minute wait.
Why is it called The Yellow Deli?
The Yellow Deli didn't always have its name.
At first, it was meant to be called The Pantry at No. 19.
'But I painted the kitchen bright yellow and I just had such a strong reaction every time I walked into the kitchen,' Aylii said.
'I thought 'I love this room,' then decided to change the name and paint the rest of the building yellow.'
Variety of food from 'all over the world' on offer at Yellow Deli
The Yellow Deli offers a variety of produce, including Scottish cheeses, crackers and dips from Spain, Italian olive oil and olives.
As well as this, there is a range of locally made produce including honey, jam and chutneys.
Aylii added there is a 'huge range' of chocolate on offer too.
Aylii originally wanted to create a cafe focusing on ice cream due to the Miele name being closely associated with their ice cream business.
'I started thinking about having some local products alongside products from places I've travelled as well as my Italian heritage,' she added.
'Then I thought; if I actually turn it into a deli then I can incorporate all these parts of me in one place.'
The Yellow Deli can be found at 19 Grant Street, Cullen and is open from Wednesday to Monday.