Meet Chef Suela of Suela’s Soul Food

Today we’d like to introduce you to Chef Suela

Hi Chef, so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work-life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today?
We started just before the pandemic in November of 2019. I started with my bakery, selling cobblers and pies during the holidays and was blessed to have an amazing response from my clients and the community. Then, the pandemic order came down in March of 2020. We were a little lost, just like everyone else. in July of 2020, I saw on Facebook in my hometown of Niles, Michigan that people were selling plates during the pandemic, so I looked at Chef G and said “We have to get our food out there”. We brainstormed a bit and “Soul Food Friday” was born. We were able to connect with people on Social Media and pre-sell dinners from a set menu for pickup on Fridays. We grew relatively quickly and learned a lot. Before we knew it, we were selling over 100 meals per week. We did this until the end of 2021, then we decided to focus full-time on catering events. It was slow as we were still under stay at home orders, but by June of 2022, we were blessed to have consistently booked events pretty steadily. We currently cater over 100 events per year and also have a retail lunch menu available Monday thru Thursday from 11am-3pm through DoorDash.

I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
Every business owner and business struggles with adversity. First, we had the pandemic of course. Then, it was marketing and getting the word out. For me, I also had a challenge with learning the back end business functions of controlling food costs, managing cash flow, etc…We still face challenges daily, we just don’t let anything stop us!

Thanks – so what else should our readers know about Suela’s Soul Food?
We are Private Chefs/Caterers based in the Valley. As a Brand, we are different because our food is a fusion of Old School Soul Food from my upbringing in the Midwest with a fusion of Latin flavors from Chef G’s upbringing. Our menu catalog is unique, with Soul Food Staples, Authentic Spanish Tapas, Carribean, Latin and Americana flavors. We also provide a Chef consult for every client, which allows us to curate a menu unique to your event. We are super proud that we have a 5 star rating across all platforms and our reviews highlight our flavors as well as our service.

Do you have recommendations for books, apps, blogs, etc?
I love watching cooking & baking reels, whether it is a home Chef or a famous one. I get a ton of inspiration from watching Chef show as well, there are too many to name.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.suelasoulfood.com
• Instagram: suelasoulfood007
• Facebook: Suela’s Soul Food
• Twitter: @chefsuela
• Youtube: @soulfoodassasin
• Yelp: Suela’s Soul Food