Meet Monica Ford of Real Food Devotee in DTLA

Today we’d like to introduce you to Monica Ford.

So, before we jump into specific questions about the business, why don’t you give us some details about you and your story.
As a young private chef in Los Angeles I had the good fortune to work for clients that were open to my creative, culinary exploration. I am endlessly grateful to them because I began to experiment with long, slow-simmered bone broths & wild-fermentation. Bone broth made my clients & me strong but the alchemy of wild-fermentation boasted an irresistible pull for me. It wasn’t just the magical transformation of fermentation but the fact that it awakened an echoing of my childhood. Memories of my Egyptian grandmother culturing yogurt, curing basturma & fermenting veggies & labneh came back to me. I was hooked. Literally rooted to my purpose.

I started fermenting everything. I felt better than I had ever felt. Not just healthier but, vibrant & the food was so layered and utterly delicious! My clients began to amaze me with stories of their personal healing I had not anticipated. They began to report improvements in health issues they had been suffering with – for years in some cases. Things like joint pain, eczema, leaky gut, seasonal & food allergies & more. As they spread the word to friends & their health care practitioners, referrals poured in and I realized I needed to create a platform that could serve more people. That is the birth story of RealFoodDevotee.com. Now, people can hop on our website to order from the weekly menu. We deliver nutrient-dense, wild-fermented foods, & gluten-free treats to homes & businesses all over SoCal!

Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
I entered the small business space with a deep desire to create a point of connection for all us dreamers who wanted to get our ingredients from farmers using regenerative farming practices. Farmers who harvested the highest quality produce & other foods possible. The problem with that is our modern schedules don’t always allow for regular trips to the farmers market & cooking each meal from scratch. It is heartbreaking that people experience so much guilt around unrealistic expectations. I hoped that Real Food Devotee could be part of the solution to this dilemma. There were A LOT of moving parts. It was a stretch at every turn.

But, as people made orders, we were able to pool those dollars to support organic & ecologically sound farming practices & provide these ethical farmers with stable income support. This made it possible for our customers to nourish themselves with the cuisine of our ancestors, support sound farming practices & disrupt the growing trend of chronic disease while keeping their jobs & family time in tact.

At the time RealFoodDevotee.com took form, fermented foods had not experienced the popularity they are now. Organic produce was far more difficult to source & more expensive, bone broth was thought “weird” & no one knew what kind of extinct animal a kombucha was. So, there was need for education. And this went double for the regulatory agencies. It was a tough road but even through all the frustrations, I feel those experiences were an opportunity for me to grow as an entrepreneur. To evolve as a food maker & fill my mentor well. Now, I get to mentor new entrepreneurs in the healthy food space & without those crazy hard adventures, I would have less to give.

Please tell us about Real Food Devotee.
Ha! I often say, “If there’s a long, difficult way to make food, that’s what we do!” This is NOT fast food! But, really what Real Food Devotee specializes in is super immune supportive foods made from the highest quality ingredients. We are queens of bone broth & master fermenters. We believe all of us deserve sweet treats made with ingredients that lift our spirits & our health instead of filling us with guilt or disrupted health.

We are probably most well known for bone broth that actually tastes good ☺ & for our Wild-Fermented food & drinks which are far superior to starter-derived fermented fare. So much more diverse probiotic content. I believe that once we experience supported health, we are freed up to shift focus to live our purpose. That is the power of truly nourishing, probiotic rich foods.

We receive so many sweet notes from our customers but, here’s a link to our testimonials page http://www.realfooddevotee.com/testimonials and a NY Times article https://www.nytimes.com/2016/06/16/fashion/lisa-bonet-coconut-oil-beauty-tips.html

“A typical breakfast at home would be seasoned bone broth from Real Food Devotee, scrambled eggs cooked in coconut oil and the sourdough bread toasted with raw butter.” – Lisa Bonet

If you had to go back in time and start over, would you have done anything differently?
Honestly, I think the only thing I’d do differently if I had to start over at this time in the world is to sync up with a mentor. When I began, no one was fermenting much of anything and there wasn’t so much information in books or online as there is now. But, looking back forging my own way & being forced to experiment & take risks, ignited a creative courage I didn’t even know I had. Without taking risks, we never stretch, learn or grow. The hard times, the shadow of uncertainty is where we awaken & more deeply engage in the creative experience of life. So, in truth, I would choose the mistakes & momentum of forward trajectory. I don’t want to go back to the safety of believing I know.

Pricing:

• Wild-Fermented Veggies starting at $7.99 ea. (i.e. Vegan Kimchi & Peruvian Spiced Sauerkraut)

Contact Info:

• Website: http://www.realfooddevotee.com/
• Phone: 818-577-5871
• Email: [email protected]
• Instagram: @RealFoodDevotee

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