The Gaffnies By Michael Kinney
From 2015-20 one of the hottest television shows was “Empire,” the fictional drama focused on the Lyon family, which had started from the ground up to build an empire in the music industry. While the show featured banging music and eye-catching fashion, the core of the show was about a family that essentially did not get along but was forced to work together in order to build their empire.
oils, coconut oils, things like that and we also portion our food correctly.” Creating an environment where people can eat well, but also healthy goes back to how the Gaffnies live their own lives.
In less than a year, the Gaffnies have started two businesses right next door to each other in Norman’s Merkle Creek Plaza. The first was Bee High Dispensary, which opened its doors in January. Then in July they opened Delish Nutrish Café & Meal Prep, a restaurant that feeds the soul in a healthy way.
“Over the years we’ve always tried to eat better seeing what our parents have gone through with their health,” Michelle said. “We started just changing, eating habits and things. But that’s always been a passion that we’ve incorporated at home and we just always said, when we got to a place that we could, we would love to have a healthy cafe. Being parents of three boys that played sports and you’re busy and you’re running the kids here and there, McDonald’s or Burger King is where you’d end up getting something to eat because it’s quick and fast and you don’t have time to cook, but it’s horrible for you. So yeah, that’s basically from our experience raising our kids and wanting to be healthier.”
Both businesses are family-owned and run. Along with Bobby and Michelle, their three sons Braden (21), Bentley (18) and Brian (17) put in work at both establishments.
The meal prep portion of the restaurant has become popular among the athletes at the University of Oklahoma. It has picked up steadily in just a few months.
“We’re trying to perfect it, I guess, at this level. We’re teaching our kids. So we have a 17- and 18-year-old that actively cook over here and make new drinks and things for people,” Michelle said. “Our 17-year-old actually wants to go to culinary school. So that is something he’ll end up stepping up into the role of head chef as the position my husband carries.”
“I was surprised actually,” Bobby said. “Once one came in, he spread the word on how the food tasted. Next thing, another one came in. That word of mouth is nuts.”
Bobby and Michelle Gaffney have taken a page out of the Lyon’s playbook as they also work to build their own empire, without the backstabbing and murder plots but instead use delicious food and strong cannibus.
With Bobby as the head chef, Delish Nutrish serves all organic and healthy food. Everything from Lamb chops and steak to Korean BBQ bowls and burgers. “We try to source local ingredients. We do have some farms that we work with. Everything is certified organic down to the spices that we use,” Michelle said. “We use certified organic chicken. We use grass fed meats. So everything that we use here, ingredient-wise, you can eat and know that it is very good for you. We don’t use any oils that are bad. We use avocado
Even though Bee High was the first to open, according to Bobby, the family has always had an eye on getting into the restaurant business. Both he and Michelle have extensive experience working at other eateries and were looking for the right opportunity. But then came State Question 788 in which Oklahomans voted to legalize marijuana in 2018. The couple saw that as an opportunity they couldn’t pass on. As a family that had a strong connection to the positive effects of marijuana and CBD products, they put their focus into getting into the field. It wasn’t until 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic that they decided to go for it. According to Bobby, they saw other people shrinking back and their mentality was to push forward.
63
