We were lucky to catch up with Tanya & Xezavier recently and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Tanya & Xezavier thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. The first dollar your business earns is always special and we’d love to hear how your brand made its first dollar of revenue.

Our very first customer who wasn’t family or a friend happened before we had a food truck, before we had a catering kitchen, and before people even knew the name Beyond Flavor.

Back then it was just me in my home kitchen with a deep fryer, some seasoning passed down from my ancestors, and a belief that if I cooked food the way my family taught me, people would taste the love in it.

I remember posting a plate online — nothing fancy, just good food. Catfish, wings, and the kind of sides that make you want to sit down and take your time eating. A stranger messaged me asking if the food was really as good as it looked.

I was nervous because this wasn’t someone who knew me. If family says your food is good, you expect that. But a stranger? That’s different.

They pulled up, grabbed their plate, and left. I remember watching them drive away thinking, “Lord, I hope they like it.”

About 30 minutes later my phone rang.

They said, “Who made this food?”

I told them I did.

They said, “I need two more plates tomorrow.”

That moment meant everything. It wasn’t just the money — it was proof. Proof that what started in my kitchen could actually become something real.

That one plate turned into more plates.
Those plates turned into catering orders.
The catering orders turned into our food truck at 2301 San Pedro.

Today Beyond Flavor serves hundreds of people, but I still remember that very first stranger who believed in the food enough to come back for more.

Because every business has a first dollar.

Ours started with faith, a fryer, and a plate of food made from the heart.

Tanya & Xezavier , 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?

We are Xezavier Westbrook and Tanya Manuel, the owners and chefs behind Beyond Flavor, a food truck and catering company based in San Antonio, Texas.

Beyond Flavor didn’t start with investors, culinary school, or a big business plan. It began the way many real businesses do — in our kitchen, with faith, family recipes, and a determination to build something of our own.

Cooking has always been part of Tanya’s life. She didn’t attend culinary school; everything she knows about cooking came from her ancestors and the kitchens she grew up in. The women in her family taught her that food is more than something you eat — it’s comfort, community, and love on a plate. That influence continues to shape the way we cook today.

Before starting the business, Tanya worked in healthcare as a nutritionist assistant, which helped develop a deeper understanding of food and how it impacts people. At the same time, she always had a strong entrepreneurial spirit and knew she wanted to build something for herself rather than spend her life working long hours building someone else’s dream.

Xezavier’s story is rooted in that same entrepreneurial drive. He always had a desire to build something of his own and create opportunities beyond the traditional 9-to-5 path. Instead of working endless hours helping someone else grow their business, he wanted to invest that same energy into building a legacy for his own family. That mindset and determination played a major role in helping turn Beyond Flavor from a small idea into a growing brand.

Beyond Flavor began when Tanya started cooking plates from home and selling them locally. Word spread quickly because people weren’t just getting food — they were getting bold flavors, generous portions, and creative combinations they hadn’t experienced before.

Today, Beyond Flavor operates as both a food truck and catering business, serving everyone from everyday customers to private parties, corporate events, and large gatherings.

Our menu is known for combining comfort food with our own signature twist. Some of our most popular items include:

• The Threesome – crispy catfish, flavorful wings, and Henny shrimp
• The FourPlay – stuffed catfish filled with seafood mac or dirty rice
• Our signature Henny Shrimp and Henny Burger
• The Cajun Drip Loaded Baked Potato
• And our colorful house drinks known as Foolaids

One thing that truly sets us apart is our signature sauces, especially our Henny sauce, a top-secret recipe that customers constantly ask about. It’s one of those flavors people remember and come back for again and again.

But Beyond Flavor is about more than just food.

What makes our brand different is the story and the hustle behind it. We’ve both overcome challenges along the way, but those experiences became motivation rather than limitations. Instead of letting them define the future, they helped fuel the drive to build something meaningful for our family and community.

We’re proud that Beyond Flavor is a family-driven business. We work hard, cook with passion, and treat every customer like they’re sitting at our own table.

One of the things we’re most proud of is watching something that started in a home kitchen grow into a recognized brand with loyal customers, catering clients, and a food truck that people know and support throughout the city.

Our bigger vision for Beyond Flavor is to continue growing into a full brick-and-mortar restaurant, while still maintaining our food truck and catering services.

We’d love to hear about how you met your business partner.

Xezavier and I met in a way that neither of us expected, but it turned out to be one of those moments that changed the direction of our lives.

At the time, we were both in different seasons of life, learning lessons and figuring out what we wanted for our futures. When we first met, there was an instant connection — not just personally, but in the way we both thought about life and the importance of building something meaningful.

One thing that stood out about Xezavier early on was his mindset. He always had the desire to build something of his own instead of spending long hours helping someone else build their dream. That entrepreneurial spirit matched mine.

As our relationship grew, so did our conversations about business, goals, and creating something that could provide for our families and leave a legacy. Around that same time, I had already started cooking plates from home, and people were loving the food.

Xezavier immediately saw the potential in what I was doing. Instead of just cheering me on from the sidelines, he jumped in and started helping however he could — whether that meant supporting the vision, helping with the business side, or putting in the long hours it takes to build something from the ground up.

What started as a relationship turned into a partnership in life and business. Together we took those early plates being sold from home and grew them into what is now Beyond Flavor, a food truck and catering company serving customers across San Antonio.

Nine years later, we’re still building together — side by side — as partners in life and as co-owners and chefs of Beyond Flavor, continuing to grow the dream that started in our kitchen.

Any insights you can share with us about how you built up your social media presence?

Building our audience on social media honestly happened the same way we built our business — one plate and one person at a time.

When we first started Beyond Flavor, we didn’t have a marketing team, paid ads, or a big following. It was just us posting pictures of the food we were cooking from our kitchen. The photos weren’t perfect, but the food was real, and people could see the flavor through the screen.

At first, most of the people supporting us were friends and family. But once strangers started ordering and posting their plates, things began to grow organically. People started sharing our food on their own pages, tagging us, and telling others about it.

One thing we learned early on is that people don’t just follow food — they follow stories.

So we started showing more than just the plates. We showed the hustle behind the business: the long nights cooking, the busy days on the food truck, the moments when things were going great, and even the times when things were hard.

That authenticity helped people connect with us. Customers felt like they were watching the journey in real time, and many of them have supported us from the very beginning.

Another thing that helped us grow was simply engaging with people. We respond to comments, thank people for supporting us, and treat social media like an extension of our community.

For anyone just starting to build a social media presence, my biggest advice would be:

Be consistent. Be authentic. And don’t wait for perfection.

Post your work, show your process, and tell your story. People connect with real journeys more than polished marketing.

Also remember that growth takes time. The audience you want won’t appear overnight, but if you stay consistent and keep delivering value, the right people will find you.

For us, social media didn’t just help us get customers — it helped us build a community around Beyond Flavor, and that support has played a big role in helping our business grow.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://Www.beyondflavor.net
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/beyond.flavor?igsh=YXVqaXc2MGttendu&utm_source=qr
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/share/1B5uw8h5DS/?mibextid=wwXIfr