We recently connected with Felicia Tapp and have shared our conversation below.
Felicia, thanks for taking the time to share your thoughts with us today. We’re excited to dive into your story and your work, but first let’s start with a broader topic that might be stopping many of our readers from pursuing their dreams – haters, nay-sayers, etc. How have you managed to persist despite haters and nay-sayers that inevitably follow folks who are doing something unique, special or off the beaten path?
At The end of the day I’m not going to let haters and naysayers get me down. In fact it’s an opposite effect for me. It drives and motivates me to push harder. I’m not doing this for them. It’s for me. I’m not in competition with anyone. I’m only in competition with myself.
Let’s take a small detour – maybe you can share a bit about yourself before we dive back into some of the other questions we had for you?
I’m a Personal and Events Chef that specializes in Southern Fusion Cuisine. Working with clients that have food allergies or intolerances. I have several clients that have various health issues and dietary restrictions. Someone may be Paleo, Vegan, Keto, Dairy Free, Gluten Free, FODMAP, or a Renal patient . It all depends. There’s my clients that don’t have food allergies. They are the foodies that want to try different cuisines, or simple palettes that like what they like. What I feel most excited about is learning what my clients like and turning them on to new foods they would normally never try. Seeing them try something new and they like it. That excites me. Or the O’G’s what I like to call them when they try something they haven’t maybe had since childhood and I prepare something for them that evokes nostalgia. It’s heartwarming to me and gives me the warm fuzzies..
When doing event catering I interact with various people. I prepare my empanadas on site and usually I am involved in something that’s related to music and production artists. Last year I catered for rap artist OCFROMNC’s Shrimp & Grits Festival and was the only chef there. Shrimp & Grits is one of my specialties and I met some of the coolest people. It was such an amazing experience. I was invited to come back this year and I introduced my Empanadas. It was absolutely fantastic!! I look forward to continuing this tradition. I’m working on a couple of projects. A BBQ Sauce, Low Sodium Seasonings and perfecting my empanadas.
If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?
Wow, that’s a good question.. Creativity, Determination and Imagination would be my qualities. As far as skills are concerned Culinary Skills of Course, Knowledge of Food Allergies and knowing how certain foods cause allergic reactions within the body . It made me want to go to Culinary School and learn about to preparation of food , being mindful of cross contamination, techniques and methods to follow. Also knowing your target audience. Who do you want to push your food to? Advice when you first start you will need to learn as much as you can by working with a mentor. That’s what saved me a lot of headaches. I reached out to my chefs and other business owners and simply asked them questions. Contact your local small business administration office and speak to them . They have so much information and resources.
What is the number one obstacle or challenge you are currently facing and what are you doing to try to resolve or overcome this challenge?
One of the biggest challenges I’m having right now is finding good quality consistent people that want to work. If I have a large event and not enough people to help. It literally will make or break my business. I need reliable and dependable people that are willing to do what needs a to be accomplished and not when it’s convenient for them.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.goldeneracateringcompany.com
- Instagram: https://instagram.com/goldeneracateringcompanyl?igshid=OGQ5ZDc2ODk2ZA==
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/GoldenEraCateringCompanyLLC?mibextid=LQQJ4d
- Youtube: https://youtube.com/@teamfoodandhiphop4220
- Yelp: Golden Era Catering
Image Credits
Felicia Tapp, Bradford Thompson, Anthony Aber
