Kanab café owner Victor Cooper recounts camerawork past, outlines vision for Rocking V Cafe

Victor Cooper, owner of the Rocking V Cafe in Kanab, described his background as a CBS News cameraman and said he opened the cafe to create a casual, artful dining spot that serves the town’s visitors and residents.

Cooper told listeners he traveled widely while working in broadcast news and used those experiences in designing the restaurant. "I got to cover a volcano down in Montserrat in The Caribbean. Got to go to Mount Rushmore with, president Bush," he said, and recalled surviving a helicopter crash while reporting when the Chechen war began. He also said he interviewed the Turkmen Bassey during overseas assignments.

Cooper said he moved to Kanab because he liked the town’s character and nearby outdoor opportunities. "What I like about Kanab is it it's a funky, weird, little town. I wanted to come to a place like this," he said. He described the area as offering many ways to experience the landscape — motorized, horseback, hiking or cycling — and said that diversity influenced how he wanted his restaurant to operate.

On the cafe’s atmosphere and goals, Cooper said, "We're gonna build a place we wanna eat at, and we did." He added, "I just call it Pee Wee's Playhouse with food because I want it to be fun. I want it to be arty. I want it to be casual, but I want the food and the service to be great." Cooper said the restaurant aims to offer something for many tastes and emphasized a relaxed environment paired with quality service.

Cooper used a brief personal aphorism to describe his approach to life and the restaurant: "The world is big and time is short. Get all the juice out of the fruit." He concluded his remarks by saying he enjoys Kanab and the local scene.

These remarks were conversational comments about Cooper’s background and his ambitions for Rocking V Cafe; they did not include proposals, council actions, or formal requests to a government body.