Today we’d like to introduce you to Katrina Ferraro.
Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
After 11 years of cooking in NYC, I returned to Austin in 2016. While I spent several years working in various kitchens around the city, I ultimately built my own boutique catering service called The Hot Knife. It was based in the East Village where I also lived. We specialized in providing office lunches to tech companies. This service grew out of a personal chef gig for a small website design company named Squarespace- a company that isn’t so little anymore! I was very fortunate to grow my company alongside their own company growth, picking up clients like Apple, and Brooklyn-based lyrics company, Genius, along the way. I loved the process of creating new menus for my offices daily. It was truly inspiring to be able to source from creameries in Upstate New York, from farms in the Hudson Valley, even randomly stumbling upon little corner spice shops I had never heard of in some part of the city I happened to be passing through.
After more than a decade in New York, I decided to close up shop and return to Austin (ever a Texas gal at heart). In 2017, I was given the opportunity to partner and take over the food program at Hotel Vegas & The Volstead Lounge. This was an unexpected turn in my career, but I was up for the challenge. Partnering with the bars, I designed and built out a custom mobile kitchen and created a menu of classic, craveable bar foods. Within a year, I had a staff of great people so I stepped out of the kitchen and took on an operations job at one of the top catering companies in town. I worked there for nearly two years, learning every day from the most creative chefs and inspiring people I could imagine spending my days (and many late nights) with. I left in early 2020 with the vision of a new project. I was ready to tackle a venture of my own.
And then……Covid.
You know, I did what everyone else did. I laid off all of my staff, I worried, I quarantined, and when we were allowed to open Hotel Vegas and Volstead for to-go orders, I got in there and did it. As soon as we realized that the Concession Stand could help reopen the Hotel Vegas & Volstead patio as a restaurant, I immediately sprang into action. We had been running a really limited menu and all of a sudden… we needed entrees, we needed sandwiches, we needed sides, we just needed… more. I wanted the food to be something the people in the neighborhood wanted to come back for again and again. Those months of constant changes and “pivots” were long and hectic and difficult, but they were also so rewarding. I went back into the kitchen, put on that apron and (kind of accidentally) opened my first “restaurant”.
Now, all these months later, I have a menu of classic American comfort foods that I love and think are so playful and delicious. I also have a really great brunch menu on Saturday and Sunday, and I have some exciting special Summer dishes about to roll out. In all of it, I have definitely become a much better cook, and I really get a lot of satisfaction in serving food that’s delicious and just a little more elevated than people might expect from that venue. I mean, we flip burgers, for sure, but I love to add a micro green, carrot flower, or hen egg straight from the farm where I can. I hope when you eat with us, you can tell how much I care about what I’m doing here in my little corner of the yard.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
If anyone who has opened a business ever tells you the road was smooth, they aren’t telling you the truth, haha! I will say, a mobile kitchen does come with its own set of challenges, and there have been some pretty big bumps. I had a lot to learn about permitting, inspections, and general maintenance of a mobile kitchen. I know more than I ever thought I would about pvc plumbing and what happens when you accidentally overfill a clean water tank, haha! (Hint: It’s expensive.)
Honestly, I find one of the biggest ongoing struggles is actually promoting myself and my food. I know that sounds crazy, but I’m not naturally someone who likes to draw attention so I have to constantly work at putting myself out there and letting people know that I’m here and I want to feed them!
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
I took a break from cooking and worked in operations at a prominent catering company here in Austin. Part of my work there was intensely focused on sourcing and also environmental accountability. I was able to really hone in on our local resources including farms, products, ranches, composting, and food donation. It became a passion of mine to make sure we were donating, recycling, composting, reusing, etc.
I strive each day to bring those philosophies into my work here at the Concession Stand. I might be serving bar food, but I’m going to source fun, beautiful herbs from Hausbar when I can, and I’m going to make sure I compost and recycle what I can. I am going to use all of my products and work hard at not wasting anything. Even little changes in the environmental awareness of a business can make huge difference!
Do you have recommendations for books, apps, blogs, etc?
I love to read cookbooks and trade magazines. I find the visuals very instrumental in my creative process. Photographs of food and cocktails often spark ideas I never would have considered. I have been into live fire cookbooks lately- The Outdoor Kitchen by Eric Werner and Finding Fire by Lennox Hasti are two of my favorites. I also just finished Understanding Mezcal by James Schroeder. Learning about mezcal is kind of a new obsession, thanks to a chef friend of mine, and I have really enjoyed toying with weaving it into my cooking. Another favorite is a book called Shrubs: An Old Fashioned Drink for Modern Times. I have pulled several flavor profiles from that recently. Honestly though, I find my best resources are the kick-ass women I know. I am surrounded by some seriously amazing ladies who are unbelievably knowledgeable on a range of topics: cocktails, spirits, business, natural wine, design, events, and the list goes on.
Contact Info:
- Email: vegasconcessions@gmail.com
- Website: www.texashotelvegas.com
- Instagram: vegasconcessions
Image Credits
Photos of food by: Staci Thavirat Photos of Katrina by : Patrick Waites
