We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Tori Rivera. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Tori below.
Tori, thank you so much for making time for us. We’ve always admired your ability to take risks and so maybe we can kick things off with a discussion around how you developed your ability to take and bear risk?
Taking risk can sound like such a negative when it’s really where most people have found the most success. I was raised, among many things, that we as people have to figure life out for ourselves, and no one is going to come save you. That life is tough, and it takes a lot to succeed. And as much as your upbringing can teach you, each of us have to figure out different levels of life on our own. Life really becomes about the safe, easier choice or the harder, riskier ones.
I moved away from home after graduating high school, moving my life down to South Florida in 2017. Moving away from home at any age, to any place is scary. But, fresh out of culinary school moving to South Florida where I had only ever been once before, was quite the risk. Ultimately, it came out of choice, a sink or swim mentality. I wanted more for my life and had a vision that I felt like I couldn’t achieve living where I had grown up. I could’ve played it safe and done so many things differently but I just knew I had to take the risk and go for what wasn’t easy if I wanted different for myself.
From an early age I was always interested in the culinary industry, and I started young. My background is working my way up in kitchens, from bar restaurants to culinary school, mom and pop restaurants to Billion Dollar companies, high-end restaurants and catering everything in between. Each time there were options, safe ones and risky ones. It’s a fact, high end restaurants and culinary business ownership has been a historically male-dominated industry. We all know it started as “women in the kitchen” able to handle the demand and physical labor required, but overtime the stereotype became the professional kitchen environment was too tough, aggressive, and competitive for women. Reality is successful kitchens and businesses operate due to the diversity inside of them, women included. To address the elephant in the room, I don’t look like most chefs. But the ability to execute dishes, manage a team, operate a business, and handle the pressure of a busy kitchen isn’t about appearance—it’s about hard work, experience, and passion. I was told by a lot of people that it would be tough, a long fight, underpaid, especially as a female; but regardless I kept pushing to find where my skills fit best and be able to help others at the same time.
All those people weren’t necessarily wrong, years ago, I worked 2 jobs at a time, even with a degree in my industry, I was still underpaid. I loved the ability to learn as much as possible so it worked for the time being. The risk in it was worth it for me, experience is something you can’t just buy. But after enough time, we all eventually start to want more, more out of life, more for ourselves. After seeing so much of the restaurant industry, I realized I wanted a job that was me able to cook for people in a way that helped them, instead of mass consumption. I didn’t want to work for someone else’s company anymore, someone else’s goals and standards to abide by. There was another risk I had to take, stay at a safe job that just paid the bills, or risk struggling again. I went for opening my own business and LLC in August 2024. I always loved the Thomas Jefferson quote, the only one I know by heart: “If you want something you’ve never had, you must be willing to do something you’ve never done”.
Now with all that being said, to really spell out the answer to the question, how did I develop the ability to take risks? It developed over time, starting with how I was raised, as you can see. What you couldn’t see, is each risk was a little easier in a way since I could learn from past mistakes and knew and trusted myself more each time. I learned that it’s important for both professional and personal growth to not scare away from what seems like a risk. Taking risks pushes you outside of your comfort zone, leading to new opportunities, and helps develop skills and confidence. Most importantly don’t doubt yourself, do your research and take calculated steps, learn from what doesn’t work and move on! Very rarely does anyone ever succeed without mistakes, struggles, stress, and most importantly trying. If you don’t do what’s necessary, you can’t expect what you want to just walk into your life.
Thanks for sharing that. So, before we get any further into our conversation, can you tell our readers a bit about yourself and what you’re working on?
To go a little more into detail about the LLC I opened in August 2024, it’s called Chef Tori- Personal Chef LLC. It’s been a successful meal prep and catering event operation with some other extras in between such as food vending at food festivals. I offer a range of meal options from creating your own weekly menu to a chef created plan based on your likes and dislikes; for meal prep, in-home dining, and catered events. All products are locally sourced, quality ingredients. We also offer a variety of options from all organic/grass fed, gluten free, soy free, dairy free, mediterranean, low cholesterol, low fat, low carb, macro focused, and more! I take pride in working with the client to create the perfect menu they would want to be paying for!
Our day to day operation is meal prep delivery for clients in their homes. It’s a luxury service where meals are delivered right to you, ready to heat and eat at your convenience. With flexible meal plans for most dietary or allergy restrictions, as well as choices that you don’t typically get with most meal delivery services. Our meal prep service is designed to take the hassle out of your week while still providing delicious, nutritious meals made with the finest ingredients. Whether you’re looking for yourself, a grandparent, a busy family, or a group of people, we offer a range of flexible plans tailored to your specific needs. You can select from different dietary focuses including soy-free, gluten-free, dairy-free, low cholesterol, low-carb, Mediterranean, and macro-friendly options. Our menu is versatile, allowing you to customize your meal plan to ensure you enjoy meals that align with your personal preferences and health goals.
Outside of meal prep, we tailor that same service to in home dining or catered events, with specialized menus and service to suite the style of event you’re looking to have! Whether it’s hot or cold hors d’oeuvres, a 3 course dinner with dessert, a large buffet, cheese plate, you name it, we offer most requests and cuisines, just ask! Our in-home dining service is perfect for small dinner parties, special occasions, or simply treating yourself to a night of indulgence without leaving the house. We take the time to understand your tastes and preferences, customizing a menu that aligns with your vision. From modern twists on classic dishes to innovative new flavors, we guarantee a culinary experience that will delight your guests and make every event special.
When it comes to catering for events, we go above and beyond to leave you free to enjoy your event without worrying about the food. From corporate meetings and intimate gatherings to large weddings and celebrations, we specialize in creating tailored menus for every type of event. Whether you’re hosting a small get-together or a large formal occasion, our team of certified professionals will provide a wide selection of dishes that impress both visually and flavorfully. Planning a special event and want to impress your guests with exquisite food and presentation? Whether it’s a cozy baby shower, an elegant dinner party, or a glamorous high-end gathering, our catering service provides a carefully curated selection of gourmet dishes designed to elevate any occasion.
For booking, head to my website www.cheftori-personalchefllc.com or contact Chef Tori directly at 5613791645 [email protected]
Just one more thing! Everyone knows now a days, social media presence is important! We have some bigger plans in the works, but our focus at the moment is Instagram! Give us a follow @rivera.tori to follow along for more food videos, photos, kitchen/business tips, and more! We are pushing our social media presence and looking for brand sponsorships or partnerships for relevant products/services, if interested in collaborating reach out to us at [email protected]
If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?
If I had any advice for chefs wanting to do well in this industry, it would be you have to understand people in the industry, gain confidence in yourself, and make the decisions for yourself who you want to be. I just talked a little previously about the stereotype that male chefs thrive in high stress conditions, while women are not able to handle it as much. Whether you’re trying to be a chef or open a business, it’s kind of the same in those aspects. I’m not making this article about gender, i’m just putting out the facts, understanding what industry I wanted to be in, and unfortunately it’s a big part of it. It’s a fact, when you don’t look like what someone is expecting you to for a job, you naturally have to break down more barriers than someone they would expect. Whether we like it or not we as human all make expectations and assumptions about each other, whether we admit it or not. Understanding this will help you know a little more what to expect, makes taking the risk a little less scary if you’ve researched into it rather than walking in blind.
This leads right into the next point of confidence, and building that in yourself so you can stand in what you believe, your standards, and caliber of quality. There are going to be a lot of forces against starting that new restaurant job or business, but having the confidence in yourself and your whys behind it are half the battle. If you’re not spending time second guessing yourself, it’s more time you’re investing in moving forward. Confidence takes a long time to build, and can be different things like knife skills, communication, your voice, but keep working at it so when the tough times come, and they do, you’re ready.
I was put in a tough position not too long ago, I was told by a WOMAN, that I had to adjust the way I spoke to men so that I didn’t emasculate them, that women in power had to act differently to men if we wanted to succeed. I made the decision to not let that deter me into thinking I wouldn’t succeed being exactly who I am. Within months of that conversation, I was running my own business successfully by myself, so again, HOLD in your confidence that you deserve to be successful too, regardless of what anyone says. I made the decision for myself to go after what I wanted, instead of believing the negativity. That’s my last bit of advice, once you have an idea of what your idea life/job looks like, make that decision for yourself before life has it’s chance to. Trust in yourself and your choices. Regardless of what you believe in, the world’s a mysterious place and things have a way of happening when you least expected, but probably needed.
Tell us what your ideal client would be like?
My ideal meal prep client would be someone who is looking to change the way they eat, can’t cook for themselves but wants to eat well, struggling cooking with a new dietary or allergy restriction, or just doesn’t have the time and wants to stop spending money out! If you are someone looking to stop all those habits, and have ready to heat and eat meals in your fridge on a once or twice weekly delivery basis, we’re taking on more clients! We also offer additional delivery days for an up-charge if you are particular about how often your food is cooked, we understand! It’s okay if you are picky about foods too, we always ask thoroughly what you do or don’t like to ensure we are creating the right menu for you. If you can’t pick up the food, no problem we offer delivery for Palm Beach County and are looking to grow to surrounding areas.
The biggest question we get is, is it worth it? The way I always put it is, realistically look at what you spend in a week on food/groceries/costs associated with meals. Usually for a single person one meal out is $30+, maybe you skip a meal a day if you buy food out too, that’s also sacrificing your health doing so. Your metabolism needs frequent meals to stay burning calories. Realistically, you’re spending much more money on food out, than you would if it were our meal prep. Our meal plan per meal cost is drastically lower than a typical meal cost out, and having the meals ready to go will limit urges to spend excess money elsewhere on food that probably won’t even be as good.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.cheftori-personalchefllc.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rivera.tori/
- Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/chef-tori-personal-chef-west-palm-beach-2
Image Credits
Victoria Rivera (Owner, Chef Tori- Personal Chef LLC)
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