Today we’d like to introduce you to Nicolai McCrary
Hi Nicolai, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
I’ve been involved in food, in some capacity, for almost as long as I’ve been in Austin. After college, I started taking photos at food trucks as a way to explore the city and foster a budding interest in photography. It eventually developed into a full-time career – first, as a freelance food photographer, then as the in-house photographer for Favor Delivery, here in Austin for about five years. Earlier this year, I made the transition over to food writing and am currently employed as the staff writer for the Austin branch of The Infatuation. Throughout this whole period, I’ve had an interest in cooking. It initially started as a way to practice my photography at home. The thought was that if I had a better understanding of how to build the dishes, I could better understand how to bring out the important details in them through my photography. Now, I host a number of pop-up dinners across Austin. In recent months, these have transitioned into “virtual” pop-ups, benefiting local charities, and hosted about once a month, where folks can drive by to pick up food.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Every path feels smooth in retrospect, but along the way, there have certainly been obstacles. The ups and downs feel more forgiving through a rear-view mirror. In the early days, it was finding enough business to pay the bills. I had a degree in computational biology – which would have been a healthy career on its own – that wasn’t particularly applicable here. The years working at a startup prior to the acquisition, certainly had their ups and downs as well, as does any startup. But the most recent struggle has certainly been the pandemic. I’ve been fortunate enough that my livelihood has been relatively unaffected, but transitioning to a new career writing about restaurants right as the entire sector shut down was less than ideal. Similarly, the decision to scale up my Malaysian pop-ups (operating as Penang Shack) right as the world seemed to go into lockdown caused a few operational difficulties as well. It’s been a constant learning process – the path has been anything but straightforward, and I imagine it will only continue winding.” Looking forward to seeing this out in the wild!
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
I currently work as the staff writer for the Austin branch of The Infatuation. In normal times, that means my job is to visit and write about restaurants. Right now, things are a little bit different, but the core of it remains the same. But I think that what I’m best known for is probably my photography. I worked as a food photographer for about seven years, five of those full-time at Favor Delivery. My background in cooking has made me a competent food stylist, which has helped a lot in the work that I do. And it’s helped me become a pretty good home cook. But I think what I’m most proud of right now is the work with my pop-up, Penang Shack. I’ve spent a lot of time taking my family’s recipes and developing them into something I can scale up and sell in take-home kits as a way to raise money for local charities. I’m really excited to eventually turn these into more communal, in-person events, as that’s something I’ve always really loved. But we’ll have to see where this road takes us.
Is there anyone you’d like to thank or give credit to?
I’ve been fortunate to have mentors, supporters, and advocates along this whole path – I certainly wouldn’t be at this point on my own. In the early days, the chefs and restaurant owners let me exercise my budding fascination with photography. I like to think it was mutually beneficial since I really just worked for food at the time, but I was probably more of a nuisance than anything. And I’m incredibly grateful to the founders of Favor Delivery, who took me in as their staff-photography when, in retrospect, I didn’t know what I was doing. But they were a young company, and we grew together. And now, I’m always in appreciation of all the friends that had continued to support my constant talking of “pop-ups” that probably lasted a few years before I ever actually did anything. But they were always there to provide words of encouragement and give me that little boost of confidence that I needed to let that idea grow.
Contact Info:
- Email: nicolaimccrary@gmail.com
- Website: www.nicolaimccrary.com
- Instagram: thenicolai
- Other: www.penangshack.com
Image Credits
Nicolai McCrary
