Life & Work with David Pese

Today we’d like to introduce you to David Pese.

Hi David, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
I started by winning a shark tank-style business competition. With that money, I bought what I could afford and advertised catering on Craigslist and Facebook. Soon after, I started doing events and festivals. Those events and festivals opened the door to doing bigger events. We eventually had the opportunity to open at a food hall and have been the longest-standing tenant at our current food hall and are opening another location in Torrance within the next couple of months.

We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
Hell no! The struggle was that I never had the proper financing or experience. I learned while doing and because of the lack of resources had to duct tape (sometimes literally) things together. We used a wok filled with oil on top of a campfire burner as a deep fryer when we first started we had makeshift equipment. We grinded it out improvising as we went; we said yes to every single opportunity that came our way. Took a lot of L’s but turned those into lessons. We got scammed a few times. I worked a job I absolutely hated to help fund the business and worked full time plus overtime there while building the business on the side. My sister who was super supportive of the business and was willing to finance the business passed away before helping me and after that, I quit the business because it reminded me of her. Exactly a year after she passed investors contacted me to do an event for them. I started the business again just with the intention of selling it but it took off and the timing of everything just made me know it was her guiding me back. I’ve survived shady business people, COVID, downtown construction that put a lot of my neighbors out of business all after coming back after her passing. I shouldn’t be here, but I’m as successful as ever, and I can’t help but know it’s her.

Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
At the core, I’m a storyteller. I’m showing you where I been who I am through food.

We’d be interested to hear your thoughts on luck and what role, if any, you feel it’s played for you?
It’s really not about luck it’s more about what can you do with what you’ve been given.

Contact Info:

• Website: Www.fakasislandgrill.com
• Instagram: @fakasislandgrill
• Facebook: Facebook.com/fakasislandgrill