We caught up with the brilliant and insightful James Delarosa a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

James , looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. What’s something crazy on unexpected that’s happened to you or your business

The food industry presents immense challenges by proxy , now building and opening your own food cart buisness is another level of unforeseen challenges! It takes an astronomical amount of patience. The first day I opened , it was about two hours before opening the doors to our first location , I had prepped all the food and layed out everything for I thought was gonna be a smooth opening. I had got my line set for service and began to turn on all my cooking equipment, for the first few minutes things were going good . We were gearing up for our first few orders , and as soon as I dropped my first batch of empanadas, flames began shooting out of the back of the fryer !! As this was happening I hear a very loud hissing and look to my right and see my brand new sink shooting out water !!! I was in disbelief, moments before customers arrived I’ve felt completely hopeless ! Knowing that I had come this far I wasn’t gonna let anything stop from getting our first customer ! I began to close my eyes and breathe to calm myself so I could assess what was happening. With a few moments of doubt I dig deep within myself and began to re tighten all the fittings from my propane lines and was able to stop the flames from shooting out of the fryer !! After this , I rushed to my sinks , and with water spewing everywhere I was able to reconnect the water main and stop the already hectic situation. This moment I learned more about patience’ than I have in my entire life , with so much in the line , I realized that even in the most adverse situations that calming the mind is the most important thing when presented with any type of challenge.

James , love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

I started my company after over 15 years in the food and beverage industry. I saw a need for thoughtful unique perspectives when it came to fast food , I felt that the industry needed a sense of balance . The philosophy behind my company is balance , fresco and Fryed (my brand) unvails familiar comfort food with a deep Latin thread thought my entire menu . We provide to our customer base an exclusive selection of food that not only satiate appetites, that provokes thought , this created not only a rare eating experience but also one that is visceral!

What’s a lesson you had to unlearn and what’s the backstory?

There are many things that run through my head when hearing this question . One thing I had to rewire about what I knew about the food industry was that , being an owner meant that was not delegated to one duty , I was responsible for a slew of things to keep everything running smoothly . I was not just cooking or able to focus on managing, but i had to wear the hats of every job that needed to be done . I had open my mind to the fact that I was in charge of the full scope of duties , from preparing food , to washing dishes , to ensuring the customers were informed of what we served as well many other things to make sure that we were a well oiled machine . I had to relearn what I meant to multitask and retrain my brain to be confident enough to handle the work loads .

Can you tell us about a time you’ve had to pivot?

When I open my company, I first envisioned it to be a classical authentic Mexican based food cart, but realizing that the market was saturated with the same idea, I began to study and hone in on a new set of culinary skills, I began to train my self about different Latin cultures, all across the world and not just Sheerly Mexican Food, I studied for months different, Latin flavor, profiles, and techniques that can allow my brand to be much more than a conventional Mexican restaurant. Through this process I learned that uniqueness and authenticity, much harder to achieve the night first thought. Pivoting away from the conventional Mexican scene. I was able to hone in on an array of different Latin cuisines that has allowed me to establish myself as one of the best food carts in Central Oregon.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://Frescoandfryed.myshopify.com
• Instagram: @frescoandfryed
• Facebook: Fresco and Fryed
• Other: Fresco and Fryed on google

Image Credits

Katie lippert
James Delarosa