Check Out Joseph Pelillo’s Story

Today we’d like to introduce you to Joseph Pelillo.

Hi Joseph, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers?
Was born and raised in Worcester, MA. Moved to Tracy, California when I was 10 years
Old with my family. Growing up, all I ever really cared about was baseball. After graduating high school in 2008, I really had no clue what I wanted to do. I followed some friends up to Chico, CA for my freshman year of college and absolutely hated it. Took the next year off and moved out to New York and started my first real restaurant job. Started as dish, then shortly moved to runner, then bussing tables, and then to expo. All within a quick 6 months. It was a 50s style diner that was open 24/7, busy from 7am-4am. Shortly after expo I moved to serving and to a position called a soda jerk, where you’re basically making all the desserts for the restaurant, and I just loved every bit of it. Not just the food, but the fast pace environment, adrenaline rush, excitement, emotion, everything a restaurant gives you and I loved it. I knew I needed to be in a restaurant, just not sure on what position. After a little over a year I moved back to California and my mom had convinced me to go to culinary school. Growing up in an Italian/Brazilian household,( dad’s family from a Italy, and my mom was born and raised in Rio de Janiero, Brazil, ) no matter the time or day, rather it was my mother, nana or Vo,
Someone was always in the kitchen, and I always somehow found myself helping whoever was in there everytime. So when my mom suggested culinary school in Santa Barbara, I said why not. Attended Santa Barbara city college from 2009-2012 and once finished moved to Pleasanton, CA, and got my first line cook job working at Sanctuary Ultra Lounge in Downtown Livermore, which is Rebel kitchen. After about 10 months, was moved up to Lead Line cook, started adding some additions to the menu with the chef’s approval. All in all, I felt like I had something and it was only going to get better from here. Then April 1st, 2013 happened. I was on my way back home with my mom from Sacramento and we were in a horrific accident, which resulted in the loss of my mother. My Mom was our family’s world, our rock, the glue that held us together. Losing her felt like I lost myself. A year after losing her I was made head chef of the restaurant and even that, didn’t’t feel right. Birthdays, holidays, a trip with friends, nothing felt right. Until one day, I made feijoada as a special, a Brazilian dish my mother made damn near everyday. The first one I sold, I sat out in the dining hall to see the woman’s face. She took her first bite and when she did her expression was the first thing to make me smile in a very long time. Her eyes rolled and looked to her friends to say try this. My smile grew larger because what I saw wasn’t just a woman enjoying my food. What I saw was my mom. Before you know it, I had another 10 orders in line, a few hours later, the dish was sold out. For the first time in my life, I finally realized why I am here, and it is to be a chef. Over the next couple of years I worked a Sous chef for a couple restaurants from San Jose, CA to Pleasanton, CA. While being the head chef of Beer Baron Kitchen in Pleasanton, I was starting to become a little burnt out, but we also had open 2nd and 3rd location all with a couple of years. A former coworker told me about a company called Greek House Chefs, where you’re a private chef for sorority houses and I honestly had no idea what to think until I saw it myself. Shortly after I was working as the chef of Delta Gamma sorority for San Jose st. While working this job one of my best friends gave me the idea of opening up a catering business after he helped me cater a friends wedding. Cooking for the sororities was always large numbers and it just came so easy to me. And finally decided that this where I start my brand and business, and in 2019, I opened Wandas Fine Catering, named after my mother. But then 2020 came, and Covid shut me down. I temporary closed up shop, packed up and moved out to South Carolina. Got back working with the private chef job for sorority houses, while also working for Halls chophouse in Charleston, Sc, I kind of felt defeated yet again, not knowing where to turn. I moved
Into a travel chef position for the sorority gig and worked all over. From UW in Seattle, to UF in Gainesville, Rutgers in New Jersey, UC Berkeley, UCLA, USC, (LA and South Carolina), and while traveling, I learned one thing, and that I needed to get to LA and start my catering business out there. So in February, 2023, I packed up my car headed back to California, only to LA this time. June I found a prep kitchen, and shortly after in August, Wanda’s Kitchen LLC was finally back up and running. While opening Wandas, I also opened a popup business called Little Joes Tacos, which I have at a lot of local breweries all through LA.

We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
Besides for losing my mom, a lot of legal troubles came with it. Since I was the driver, my license at the time had been suspended. Because of the severity of the accident, the state of California went after me for it. Battled in court for over two and a half years, resulted in my license suspended for 6 years, always had to rely on a bus, uber, or bike to get around, 400 community service hours I served at a old folks home in the kitchen, 4 years court probation and on top of having someone blaming me for my accident.

My mom worked graveyard shift her whole life and my dad worked during the day. So on our way home she asked if I could drive so she could get some sleep before work, knowing my license was suspended. On the way home, I fell asleep and launched off a hillside 150 ft, in packing at 75mph, and rolled rolled another 100 ft down. How I didn’t die, I don’t know, nor will I ever know. But what I do know is that I’m here for a reason. And that reason is to share my food and story with as many people as I can.

Alright so before we go can you talk to us a bit about how people can work with you, collaborate with you or support you?
Any sort of event that needs food, rather it be a concert, private party/dinner, market, festival, open house, weddings, birthdays, etc

Social media, collaborate on a popup or catering

Contact Info:

• Instagram: @littlejoestacos @wandaskitchen_