Today we’d like to introduce you to Jovana Smith.
To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
I discovered my passion for food art when I was a broke college student. In order to stick to my budget, I quickly learned how to create visually appealing meals in order to keep me motivated to finish eating my meal prep for the week. From that point on is when I not only started paying attention to taste but also the aesthetics of my food by developing and focusing on my own artistic food style.
Fast forward to two years ago, my sister showed me a picture of a charcuterie board. At that time, I didn’t know how to even pronounce the word charcuterie, but I loved the idea of grouping food together to create a beautiful presentation. As I was making my first board, I noticed that the only thought that was going through my mind was “ how can I make this visually appealing?” For the first time my anxious thoughts that I usually can’t break free from were finally calmed, and I was able to find inner peace and flow. Flow is a word I learned in my Positive Psychology course which means feeling energized, focused, and feeling fully immersed in an activity. From that point forward I found it essential to continue to immerse myself into this business. This pursuit has allowed me to express my inner joy I feel when I am able to create art with food, as well as evoking feelings of joy and happiness also from my clients when they share my work with loved ones.
I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle free, but so far would you say the journey have been a fairly smooth road?
I’m still learning the ropes of growing and building my catering company in Los Angeles. But, I am grateful to have great mentors who are helping me with my journey in the food industry.
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
Bougie Boards LA specializes in curating elegant grazing tables as well as teaching charcuterie classes. We source the highest-quality, freshest ingredients and artfully present them. Our stylish grazing tables are filled with a variety of curated artisan cheeses, cured meats, fresh seasonal produce, and other accouterments that everyone will enjoy. We also offer corporate team building, virtual, and private charcuterie classes. We are mainly known for elevating any event through our extravagant grazing tables!
In terms of your work and the industry, what are some of the changes you are expecting to see over the next five to ten years?I see this industry only expanding and getting more popular in the next 5-10 years. Having a grazing table is not the typical way people are used to experiencing food. It’s literally an art that creates conversations and brings people together. Because of how mesmerizing a grazing table can be, I think people are always going to be looking for something beautiful and different to have at their events.
Pricing:
- $27 per person for grazing table
- $250 for virtual charcuterie class (up to 40 people)
- $65 per person for private charcuterie class
Contact Info:
- Email: bougieboardsla@gmail.com
- Website: www.bougieboardsla.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bougieboardsla/?hl=en
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/bougieboardsla/
- Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/bougie-boards-la-los-angeles
