Mia Amada Prieto is many things to many people- daughter, sister, cousin, niece, business partner, manager, mentor, and friend. She revels in every role she plays. “I love surrounding myself with people and I love attention. Anyone who knows me will tell you that I am a ham.”
Dominican by birth and first generation American, Mia is a self-described Atlanta native. Her parents relocated from New York to Atlanta and settled the family in the Virginia Highlands when Mia was two. There they have remained ever since, along with many extended family members. Mia has spent the majority of her life, both personally and professionally, within the same five-mile radius. “I’m a very stable person,” she says with a laugh. “Everybody always knows where to find me.”

After high school graduation and prior to opening the restaurant with her family, Mia had a series of "odd jobs" and modeled on the side. Her modeling career is especially appropriate for a woman who enjoys being photographed. “I’m comfortable in front of a camera.” However, it is managing the restaurant where she believes she has found her niche. “What I do is basically throw a dinner party every day.

You want to be the perfect host and make sure that all your guests are comfortable. Their food order is right and that their drinks are refreshed is most important to me. I am a great hostess and for this reason the service at Caramba Cafe is probably the most consistent in the city. Plus, I am definitely a night owl so the hours agree with me.”
For a woman who so clearly enjoys her livelihood, she is still quick to find a flaw. “The worst part of my job,” she says, “is that I don't always know my regulars by name. I will be out and inevitably run into a customer that greets me by name, but I cannot recall theirs. It is frustrating because I know so many people so well- what they drink, where they live, how they party, but yet I do not know their names. It drives me crazy. But I know their faces and their faces make me happy.”
In her spare time, what little of it there is, Mia enjoys the simple things in life: enjoying her family, bowling in a league, and hanging out with friends. “I have a great group of friends and we have a lot of fun together. We like to go clubbing and follow local DJ’s. Music is important to me.”
While her friends may describe her as “wild, crazy, and a party girl”, Mia describes herself as a “chameleon”. “I have a very eclectic look and eccentric style. I like to constantly change my appearance. I love attention and changing my look is a way to receive it. I am known for my collection of eye glasses. Of all the looks I adopt, conservative is the one which is least suitable.” Upon meeting Mia, and especially after viewing her baby blue 1966 Alfa Romeo with painted clover leaves, that assertion is not at all difficult to believe.
The only regret Mia seems to have in her hectic life is that she does not have enough “alone time”. “My job is very time consuming, but anything heartfelt usually is. I work hard to cultivate the personal touch. And even if I am tired, when I come to work and get into the routine of the day and see all the familiar faces, I remember why I do it.”
Personality is something Mia has is spades. She is a study in contrasts, consistently inconsistent, yet “stable”. Through it all she remains true to one simple rule: “Life is too short not to have fun. You must enjoy yourself.”