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But, Almendarez is also an enterprising tourism entrepreneur. His tour companies include "Cave Tubing R Us" and "Fantasea". But he says the tourism pie is shrinking and so he's had to diversify into the restaurant business. We found out more when we visited with him at his new restaurant which has a different kind of flavor:..

Jules Vasquez reporting
We've seen him many times at press conferences raising hell:

David Almendarez
"We are not afraid of you either. Don't wake a dog that is sleeping. Don't raise a lion that is not biting you, because you don't want the lion to wake up and everything is broken up."

It just goes to show the level of inequality in our country and that Belize is not for Belizeans anymore, it's for the person who comes with the biggest bucks."

But now, David Almendarez is not shouting, he's serving - not as a waiter, but as an owner of this new venture, a restaurant way out on the Western Highway.

Jules Vasquez, reporter
"What urge you to make this diversification in your tourism business?"

David Almendarez, Tourism Developer
"Well two things: 1) poverty. We have gone through one of the worse tourism season ever and I figure I need to diversify."

And diversification has meant a self-funded, self-styled bamboo restaurant made of all indigenous materials:

David Almendarez, Tourism Developer
"This is what Belize would look like if you build it in a building. We use the bamboo which is original. Every piece of material that you see here comes right out of the Belize River Valley. Nothing came out of a store. Nothing buy nowhere. Everything build right on this property here: the doors, the windows, the chairs - everything is 100% out of the jungle. Keep it local. No AC, everything runs on solar. It's a real country living, country food."

Country food, but what country is it priced for?

David Almendarez, Tourism Developer
"I don't want to be expensive. I am not even ashamed to say that my breakfast starts from as little as $7. It's priced for local market."

And while Almendarez will bring his tourists here he says he has to think outside that increasingly narrow box:

David Almendarez
"This is built out of necessity. I am not ashamed to say it. This year I was wondering what is the answer, because I don't see my company could take its lick only tourism 3 years in a row. So this is my answer to compliment. I am not getting out of the business you know, but this will compliment so I can stay in the business, because this year has been bad. I tell my brothers and sisters we have to diversify. We can't just figure that we will do tourism again. I am looking into agriculture too. Definitely in the catering business. Other places we will have to try use our common sense and diversify."

Of course, diversifying to a restaurant at mile 18 out in the country might not be the safest investment - but he's an optimist:

David Almendarez, Tourism Developer
"One day I sat down and I counted 350 vehicles in one day. Every vehicle that passes here is a potential customer."

Not exactly a captive audience but enough eyeballs to and hungry mouths to fill.

Almendarez expects to also pass his tourist guests through the restaurant since it is on the way to Belize's most popular cave tubing site, Nohoch Che'en.