WEBVTT - Comfort Food With Dignity

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<v Speaker 1>This is on the Job. This season, we're speaking with

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<v Speaker 1>folks who are finding their professional stride in a tumultuous

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<v Speaker 1>job market and learning how to double down on their

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<v Speaker 1>skills and their experience to overcome challenges. We'll bring you

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<v Speaker 1>inspiring stories of people making themselves essential, an important skill

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<v Speaker 1>set in any economy. The food industry is usually high paced,

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<v Speaker 1>arduous labor, especially catering, a line of work that demands

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<v Speaker 1>a resilient, flexible spirit. On the wake of COVID nineteen,

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<v Speaker 1>when millions of Americans are put at risk just by

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<v Speaker 1>going to get their next meal, one woman is doing

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<v Speaker 1>everything she can to make sure her catering business brings

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<v Speaker 1>it to them. Hi. Hi, how's your day going so far?

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<v Speaker 1>Going well? I can't complain. This is Heather Public. She

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<v Speaker 1>co owns a catering company and evans in Illinois, about

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<v Speaker 1>twelve miles north of downtown Chicago. The name of her

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<v Speaker 1>company is sold in smoke. We do chef to and

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<v Speaker 1>barbecue and comfort food. Can you tell me what's on

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<v Speaker 1>the menu? And we do a lot of brisket, baby

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<v Speaker 1>back ribs, pulled pork. We have a signature mac and

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<v Speaker 1>cheese with the top secret three cheese blend, lots of

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<v Speaker 1>cornbread muffins. You can't tell me, no, I can't. The

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<v Speaker 1>chef behind their barbecue and secret cheese blend is DeAndre Carter.

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<v Speaker 1>He's from the South side of Chicago. He's the other

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<v Speaker 1>co owner. Heather is more in the business end, so

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<v Speaker 1>today she's in the office doing payroll and scheduling. Well,

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<v Speaker 1>Chef Carter is downstairs with their other employees prepping meals

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<v Speaker 1>for delivery. So they're working on tomorrow's foods. So they're

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<v Speaker 1>making brisket chili right now. Chef is very particular on

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<v Speaker 1>his brisket. You can get into like a whole rabbit

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<v Speaker 1>hole with him talking about how he smokes, how many hours,

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<v Speaker 1>all of that. I don't do a very good job

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<v Speaker 1>listening to it all sometimes. Probably important to note Heather

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<v Speaker 1>and Chef DeAndre are married. Oh yeah, somewhere along the

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<v Speaker 1>way that happened. They've also got a two year old daughter.

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<v Speaker 1>The two met when Heather started working at Arrest staurant.

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<v Speaker 1>DeAndre eventually became the executive sus chef for the world

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<v Speaker 1>renowned Moto Restaurant in Chicago, a Michelin star restaurant did

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<v Speaker 1>course feasting menus, and then we switched the game and

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<v Speaker 1>switched to catering. Having worked a lot in restaurants myself,

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<v Speaker 1>I can attest that working at a place like Motto,

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<v Speaker 1>where people travel from around the world for the best

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<v Speaker 1>food in service money can buy, it's not worked for

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<v Speaker 1>the fant of heart. And also having worked in catering

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<v Speaker 1>that generally is even crazier it is, at least in

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<v Speaker 1>a restaurant, like you have your flow of service. You

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<v Speaker 1>know what your steps and service are, what your side

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<v Speaker 1>work is. Every day is the same, even you know

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<v Speaker 1>your menu. Everything is different in catering every day. So

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<v Speaker 1>whether it's a two person plated wedding or a hundred

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<v Speaker 1>person cocktail party that's an anniversary party. But do you

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<v Speaker 1>like having a job or every day is different? It's

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<v Speaker 1>better than every day being the same. Sale's moke has

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<v Speaker 1>been well received all around Evanson and Chicago. Right up

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<v Speaker 1>until COVID nineteen hit, they were catering big events like

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<v Speaker 1>weddings and galas office parties. It's a ton of work

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<v Speaker 1>and being a relatively small business, Heather ends up wearing

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<v Speaker 1>a lot of hats during our normal course of things.

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<v Speaker 1>I am the one that will help coordinate the events

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<v Speaker 1>and the ordering of the rentals and the linen's and

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<v Speaker 1>the execution and the timelines. She coordinates their marketing people

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<v Speaker 1>with social media teams, taxes, payroll. I generally know everything

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<v Speaker 1>that's going out in the building at any moment. Meanwhile,

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<v Speaker 1>DeAndre is busy cooking the menu for any given event

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<v Speaker 1>in their commercial kitchen. Some of the meals have to

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<v Speaker 1>be slow cooked for days, so he'll routinely go to

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<v Speaker 1>the kitchen in the middle of the night just to

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<v Speaker 1>check on it. I think that he just puts so

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<v Speaker 1>much of his time and energy and making sure that

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<v Speaker 1>it's perfect that I think it's just so personal to him.

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<v Speaker 1>On the other end of the business, Heather's restaurant training

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<v Speaker 1>makes her equally invested in the experience. You know, I

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<v Speaker 1>cannot walk into a dining room and not see a

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<v Speaker 1>fork that's not out of place. I run the business

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<v Speaker 1>side of things here, but I also think that I'm

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<v Speaker 1>also in charge of the whole front of the house

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<v Speaker 1>operations for our full service events. She says she misses

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<v Speaker 1>that part of restaurant work, being on the floor serving

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<v Speaker 1>people one on one. She doesn't work as many events

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<v Speaker 1>as she'd like to but I am still as obsessive

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<v Speaker 1>about the linen's and the napkins and how the silverware

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<v Speaker 1>has done and the flow of service, and I get

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<v Speaker 1>like so obsessive where I can like time everything out.

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<v Speaker 1>And despite the madness of running a business like this

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<v Speaker 1>with so many moving parts, their combined dedication has truly

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<v Speaker 1>set them apart in a highly competitive industry. It's it's crazy.

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<v Speaker 1>It's like the thing I love to do. Heather grew

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<v Speaker 1>up in Deerfield, a suburb in Chicago, and like many

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<v Speaker 1>people who end up in this line of work, she

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<v Speaker 1>sort of found it after straying from a clear cut path.

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<v Speaker 1>Would you say you were rebellious growing up? I mean

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<v Speaker 1>I ended up in the food service distry, so I

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<v Speaker 1>was probably rebellious some aspect for sure. Definitely grew up

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<v Speaker 1>like you're supposed to be a lawyer doctor. She did

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<v Speaker 1>not do that. She ended up getting her degree in

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<v Speaker 1>writing from the University of Illinois and then immediately went

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<v Speaker 1>to culinary school, where she started out with a six

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<v Speaker 1>month internship in the kitchen at Moto. This is where

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<v Speaker 1>she met chef DeAndre, who was also knee deep in

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<v Speaker 1>his own internship. It was rough work and I remember

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<v Speaker 1>very specifically washing these dishes with him and asking how

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<v Speaker 1>he liked being there, and him telling me, he's like,

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<v Speaker 1>it's a lot of work. It's like it's a lot

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<v Speaker 1>of hours. But that did not scare her off. She

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<v Speaker 1>cooked there for six months, and when she had to

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<v Speaker 1>go back to school, the restaurant moved her to the

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<v Speaker 1>front of the house as an employee, and on her

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<v Speaker 1>first night, she got to serve a dish that she

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<v Speaker 1>had made in the kitchen hundreds of times, and all

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<v Speaker 1>of a sudden, I was able to talk to something

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<v Speaker 1>about the food and talk to something about the dish,

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<v Speaker 1>and I went to clear it and they told me

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<v Speaker 1>how amazing it was, and I had never heard it before.

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<v Speaker 1>It fascinated me was something that I didn't get in

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<v Speaker 1>the kitchen. She fell in love with service and became

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<v Speaker 1>one of their observers, and after a few years at Moto,

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<v Speaker 1>she went on to serve at other restaurants, and DeAndre

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<v Speaker 1>It was looking to branch off and do something different

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<v Speaker 1>on the side, so in two thousand twelve they decided

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<v Speaker 1>to host a pop up dinner together at a local venue.

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<v Speaker 1>Turned out great, sold out. We were an eater. We

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<v Speaker 1>had all this acclaim. Like before I even knew what

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<v Speaker 1>it was going to be. It was just all really popular,

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<v Speaker 1>really fast. But then the venue got shut down, so

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<v Speaker 1>they started hosting dinners in their home at their dining

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<v Speaker 1>room table. We were doing underground dinners for eight people,

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<v Speaker 1>sway nights a week. We started. Our first dinner was

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<v Speaker 1>in January. By April, I had to quit my job

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<v Speaker 1>because we were just too busy. People started asking them

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<v Speaker 1>to come to their homes to host ten person dinners,

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<v Speaker 1>twenty person dinners. People started asking them to cater their weddings. Yeah,

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<v Speaker 1>it was crazy, and we were restaurant people, so we

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<v Speaker 1>would just say yes and we would just figure out

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<v Speaker 1>how to do it. So, like before you even actually

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<v Speaker 1>knew it, you were a catering business exactly. It's very

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<v Speaker 1>much like our customers turned us into a catering business.

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<v Speaker 1>We didn't know what we were going to be going

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<v Speaker 1>into it, and then that's not what we are. They

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<v Speaker 1>called their catering business Feast and Imbibe, which wasn't Barbecue

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<v Speaker 1>at the time. They started taking on more events and

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<v Speaker 1>DeAndre quit his restaurant jobs soon after. Heather did to

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<v Speaker 1>keep up with the demand, and I think it was

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<v Speaker 1>even more so because he took that leap that it

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<v Speaker 1>was like, we just had to figure it out. Visa

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<v Speaker 1>and Bibe was built for on site catering events, but

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<v Speaker 1>they were getting tons of requests for drop off delivery

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<v Speaker 1>style catering, so they pivoted. DeAndre has always loved barbecue.

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<v Speaker 1>Was the food that he grew up on. He grew

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<v Speaker 1>up on comfort food. It reheats so well, it holds

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<v Speaker 1>so well. It's you know, brazen meats and smoked meats.

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<v Speaker 1>It's almost better than next day exactly. So we created

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<v Speaker 1>literally a menu that would work so well for this

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<v Speaker 1>drop off catering. Thus Sullen Smoke was born. It's only

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<v Speaker 1>gotten crazier since they started, but today they are a

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<v Speaker 1>very successful business. It's a lot. The rewarding part of

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<v Speaker 1>it is worth, oh for sure. You know, you're literally

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<v Speaker 1>building a restaurant and creating an experience every day and

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<v Speaker 1>being able to see people have that wow factor. And

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<v Speaker 1>nobody comes to us because it's Tuesday night and they

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<v Speaker 1>just need to eat dinner. It is all people who

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<v Speaker 1>are celebrating really special moments and we get to be

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<v Speaker 1>a part of those moments. And there are lifetime memories

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<v Speaker 1>which is incredible. In two thousand twenty, after seven years

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<v Speaker 1>in operation, someone Smoke was doing well enough to the

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<v Speaker 1>point where this past February they stopped renting their kitchen

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<v Speaker 1>space and bought the building that she's calling me from today.

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<v Speaker 1>Immediately after they did COVID nineteen hit, the event industry

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<v Speaker 1>was certainly decimated. It was very instant for us. We

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<v Speaker 1>had lots of events and then all of a sudden

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<v Speaker 1>it was nothing. They had been prepping for St. Patty's Day,

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<v Speaker 1>which is a massive holiday in Chicago. They had employees

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<v Speaker 1>that were ready to work, they had menus ready to go,

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<v Speaker 1>a big enough kitchen space to safely work in, and

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<v Speaker 1>they were in a city that needed to eat. So

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<v Speaker 1>we had very early on started like we had all

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<v Speaker 1>this food, and we were just like, we're just gonna

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<v Speaker 1>feed people. How do we take care of the populations

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<v Speaker 1>that need us most? Never did it even dawn on

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<v Speaker 1>anybody that a month later it would be this more

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<v Speaker 1>in Heather Story After the Break. A strong work ethic

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<v Speaker 1>takes pride in a job well done, sweats over the details.

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<v Speaker 1>This is you. But to get an honest day's work,

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<v Speaker 1>you need a response, You need a call back. You

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<v Speaker 1>need a job. Express Employment professionals can help because we

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<v Speaker 1>understand what it takes to get a job. It takes

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<v Speaker 1>more than just online searches to land a job. It

0:09:57.520 --> 0:10:01.480
<v Speaker 1>takes someone who will identify your talents, a person invested

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<v Speaker 1>in your success. At Express, we can even complete your

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<v Speaker 1>application with you over the phone, will prepare you for interviews,

0:10:08.800 --> 0:10:11.640
<v Speaker 1>and will connect you to the right company. Plus, we'll

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<v Speaker 1>never charge a fee to find you a job. At Express.

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<v Speaker 1>We could put you to work with companies of all

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<v Speaker 1>Like most Americans, Heathern DeAndre did not have a playbook

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<v Speaker 1>for something like COVID nineteen. Their business, like so many others,

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<v Speaker 1>came to a screeching hult. So when Chicago started shutting down,

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<v Speaker 1>they figured they just keep doing what they do. You know,

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<v Speaker 1>at the time, it was very much like we're just

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<v Speaker 1>gonna go down with the ship. We're just gonna keep

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<v Speaker 1>on cooking until there's nothing left to cook. They no

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<v Speaker 1>longer had any clients at the time, but even before

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<v Speaker 1>the pandemic, there were lots of people in the surrounding

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<v Speaker 1>area who didn't know where their next meal was coming from,

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<v Speaker 1>a reality only made worse by unemployment and the closing

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<v Speaker 1>of restaurants. So how do we feed people? How do

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<v Speaker 1>we make sure that people have what they need? We

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<v Speaker 1>had this idea, well, we'll cook ten meals and if

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<v Speaker 1>people want to help and contribute to it, like great.

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<v Speaker 1>They called it community sponsored Meals for your Neighbors in Need. Basically,

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<v Speaker 1>they were putting together meals that they were going to

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<v Speaker 1>give out regardless, and they put a page on their

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<v Speaker 1>website where people in Evanston could donate and sponsor a meal.

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<v Speaker 1>By the time we just kind of put out the

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<v Speaker 1>call of the community, of the community just showed up.

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<v Speaker 1>The first day, they ended up delivering thirty meals. The

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<v Speaker 1>next day they did a hundred, and we were feeding,

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<v Speaker 1>you know, to people by the end of that first week.

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<v Speaker 1>Like it was just heartwarming and overwhelming and we were

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<v Speaker 1>just go, go go. They quickly got funding from local

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<v Speaker 1>organizations and start coordinating with schools to see which families

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<v Speaker 1>in the area might be in need. They made a

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<v Speaker 1>donate page where anyone can sponsor delivery to essential workers

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<v Speaker 1>to nursing homes, long term care facilities, and it's all

0:12:00.880 --> 0:12:04.480
<v Speaker 1>their normal incredible menu items too. That brisket chili she

0:12:04.520 --> 0:12:06.240
<v Speaker 1>mentioned at the top of the show is the meal

0:12:06.280 --> 0:12:08.800
<v Speaker 1>that's going to be going out tomorrow, and every day

0:12:08.960 --> 0:12:11.800
<v Speaker 1>is different. The next day is pulled pork with a

0:12:11.920 --> 0:12:15.280
<v Speaker 1>roast sweet potato and a cinnamon or butter. We really

0:12:15.320 --> 0:12:17.080
<v Speaker 1>wanted to make sure that when we first first started

0:12:17.120 --> 0:12:18.680
<v Speaker 1>that it was a meal that had a lot of

0:12:18.720 --> 0:12:21.520
<v Speaker 1>dignity behind it. So we've always put just a lot

0:12:21.600 --> 0:12:24.559
<v Speaker 1>behind it and making sure that everyone has a really

0:12:24.600 --> 0:12:27.640
<v Speaker 1>comforting meal, especially during these times there's so much uncertainty.

0:12:28.000 --> 0:12:31.640
<v Speaker 1>Kept our entire team employed and they're all here, which

0:12:31.679 --> 0:12:36.600
<v Speaker 1>has been incredible. Have you even had a moment to

0:12:36.960 --> 0:12:40.040
<v Speaker 1>zoom out and reflect on how big this has been

0:12:40.080 --> 0:12:43.760
<v Speaker 1>for your community? Yeah, I mean certainly, especially in the beginning.

0:12:44.240 --> 0:12:47.000
<v Speaker 1>It was mind boggling that it was even we knew

0:12:47.040 --> 0:12:48.719
<v Speaker 1>that we wanted to feed people and it was like, well,

0:12:48.760 --> 0:12:51.480
<v Speaker 1>this is not what we do. It was mind blowing.

0:12:51.559 --> 0:12:53.760
<v Speaker 1>We had no idea that there were going to be

0:12:53.800 --> 0:12:56.840
<v Speaker 1>so many people that wanted to support and wanted to

0:12:56.840 --> 0:13:00.480
<v Speaker 1>be on the same side of this, And I'm still

0:13:00.800 --> 0:13:05.320
<v Speaker 1>pretty blown away. I mean we're currently doing, you know,

0:13:05.360 --> 0:13:17.240
<v Speaker 1>somewhere between seven meals a day every day. This was

0:13:17.280 --> 0:13:22.560
<v Speaker 1>never Heather's plan, obviously, not COVID, not these community meals,

0:13:22.920 --> 0:13:26.120
<v Speaker 1>but even this business. It's not an easy life. And

0:13:26.400 --> 0:13:29.600
<v Speaker 1>seven years ago, just before DeAndre and her started serving

0:13:29.600 --> 0:13:32.679
<v Speaker 1>people in their kitchen for eight people, Heather was going

0:13:32.720 --> 0:13:35.920
<v Speaker 1>to stop working in the food industry altogether, and I

0:13:35.960 --> 0:13:38.880
<v Speaker 1>was gonna, like get a desk job somewhere. I really

0:13:38.880 --> 0:13:40.240
<v Speaker 1>thought I was done. I was like, I'm going to

0:13:40.320 --> 0:13:43.640
<v Speaker 1>go to law school. I'm gonna become a lawyer. I'm

0:13:43.640 --> 0:13:46.080
<v Speaker 1>gonna have a spot for like my shoes under my desk,

0:13:46.280 --> 0:13:48.840
<v Speaker 1>and it's going to be wonderful. And that never happened.

0:13:49.960 --> 0:13:52.400
<v Speaker 1>I worked in the restaurant industry for seven years in

0:13:52.480 --> 0:13:56.960
<v Speaker 1>three cities. The hours can be absurd, the mental pressure

0:13:57.280 --> 0:14:00.360
<v Speaker 1>of a busy service can be diabolical, and a lot

0:14:00.400 --> 0:14:03.640
<v Speaker 1>of people you end up working with seem like genuine maniacs.

0:14:04.080 --> 0:14:07.520
<v Speaker 1>There's moments where you think I am out of this madhouse,

0:14:08.160 --> 0:14:13.800
<v Speaker 1>and still I've left and come back three times. Now,

0:14:13.840 --> 0:14:17.480
<v Speaker 1>what is it that brings you back? I don't know.

0:14:18.200 --> 0:14:20.920
<v Speaker 1>It's probably just the feeling that you get feeding people.

0:14:22.040 --> 0:14:25.520
<v Speaker 1>You just nourished people and you got to hear their

0:14:25.560 --> 0:14:28.760
<v Speaker 1>stories and it's a part of life that you just

0:14:28.760 --> 0:14:35.000
<v Speaker 1>get addicted to. With or without the pandemic. Heather and

0:14:35.040 --> 0:14:39.000
<v Speaker 1>DeAndre are doing just that. They're continuing to serve flavorful

0:14:39.000 --> 0:14:42.000
<v Speaker 1>food that has set them apart for seven years, food

0:14:42.000 --> 0:14:46.480
<v Speaker 1>with intent and care in everybody. You know, with DeAndre

0:14:46.600 --> 0:14:49.160
<v Speaker 1>being from this outside, he understands that, like people have

0:14:49.200 --> 0:14:52.640
<v Speaker 1>a sense where they feel forgotten about and left out

0:14:52.640 --> 0:14:55.520
<v Speaker 1>of the conversation. We really wanted food that people felt

0:14:55.560 --> 0:14:58.040
<v Speaker 1>like someone cared about them. You know. We really wanted

0:14:58.080 --> 0:15:00.720
<v Speaker 1>to stay away from anything that was cold. We wanted

0:15:00.760 --> 0:15:04.040
<v Speaker 1>to be things that were warm and hearty. A meal

0:15:04.120 --> 0:15:06.880
<v Speaker 1>that's already done and ready to go and you don't

0:15:06.880 --> 0:15:10.520
<v Speaker 1>have to worry about putting something together for your family,

0:15:10.560 --> 0:15:12.840
<v Speaker 1>being able to give them a true meal where it's

0:15:12.840 --> 0:15:18.680
<v Speaker 1>like a gift, something that people could enjoy. Wow, it's

0:15:18.720 --> 0:15:21.880
<v Speaker 1>really incredible what you've been able to do during the pandemic.

0:15:22.520 --> 0:15:25.320
<v Speaker 1>How do you think this time is going to affect

0:15:25.360 --> 0:15:28.720
<v Speaker 1>Sullen Smoke when and if things go back to normal.

0:15:29.080 --> 0:15:31.400
<v Speaker 1>And we've been feeding so many people in the community

0:15:31.560 --> 0:15:34.640
<v Speaker 1>for so long now, when we've talked a lot about it,

0:15:34.680 --> 0:15:38.920
<v Speaker 1>how to extend this beyond coronavirus and what that looks like.

0:15:39.600 --> 0:15:42.600
<v Speaker 1>Still trying to figure out how long through coronavirus we

0:15:42.640 --> 0:15:44.320
<v Speaker 1>can even get through, and you know what that all

0:15:44.360 --> 0:15:47.360
<v Speaker 1>looks like. But I would certainly hope they were able

0:15:47.440 --> 0:15:54.200
<v Speaker 1>to continue at least some of this forever. I feel

0:15:54.200 --> 0:15:57.240
<v Speaker 1>like you've been constantly hitting the ground running and adapting

0:15:57.280 --> 0:16:01.280
<v Speaker 1>so far, no problem. Yeah, you know, I think a

0:16:01.320 --> 0:16:29.120
<v Speaker 1>good challenge for On the Job. I'm Otis Gray. Thanks

0:16:29.160 --> 0:16:31.160
<v Speaker 1>for listening to On the Job, brought to you by

0:16:31.160 --> 0:16:34.600
<v Speaker 1>Express Employment Professionals. This season of On the Job is

0:16:34.600 --> 0:16:38.080
<v Speaker 1>produced by Audiation and Red Seat Ventures. The episodes are

0:16:38.080 --> 0:16:41.680
<v Speaker 1>written and produced by me Otis Gray. Our executive producer

0:16:41.840 --> 0:16:44.640
<v Speaker 1>is Sandy Smallens. The show was mixed by Matt Noble

0:16:44.680 --> 0:16:47.840
<v Speaker 1>for Audiation Studios at the Loft in Bronxville, New York.

0:16:48.520 --> 0:16:52.000
<v Speaker 1>Music by Blue Dot Sessions. Find us on I Heart

0:16:52.080 --> 0:16:54.560
<v Speaker 1>Radio and Apple Podcasts. If you liked what you heard,

0:16:54.720 --> 0:16:57.560
<v Speaker 1>please consider rating and reviewing the show on Apple Podcasts

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<v Speaker 1>or wherever you listen. We'll see you next time for

0:17:00.160 --> 0:17:03.440
<v Speaker 1>more inspiring stories about making yourself essential as you discover

0:17:03.560 --> 0:17:11.400
<v Speaker 1>your life's work audiation