We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Daniel Castro. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Daniel below.

Hi Daniel, thanks for joining us today. Let’s start with the story of your mission. What should we know?

When I first started Eversoul Culinary, my main goal was to rejuvenate people through food. After all, I was cooking healthy food for people who had led healthy lifestyles, or by choice because they had health related situations. The ethos of that fell under deaf ears and eventually I gave up on it.

What’s inspiring me lately, and my guiding compass is Chef Dan Giusti of Brigaid. He consistently turns the world of dining on its head saying that the underserved such as people who are in public schools or prisons need to be just as well fed as everyone else. As a result, his company pays lucratively for well trained chefs to run these programs as they serve great food and hospitality for these groups of people.

Being a personal chef, it is SO easy to take it for granted because we get paid lucratively for what we do. Food is a tool. It can be a bridge to a celebration, it can help save someone’s life, or maintain it for that matter, and if we are really talking about it in a sadistic way, we can weaponize it in case someone has a severe allergy. As a private caterer or a personal chef, I am a bridge to a celebration more often or not. But it made me question why I am doing this especially in my third year of business.

I did a party recently where the guests were from affluent places such as New York and Miami. I made a menu, and they were somewhat snooty. They got drunk, listened to Lil’ Jon, and ultimately I got stiffed/undertipped as a result. Somewhere in planning that party whether it was the initial conversation, the execution, my presence, something made me question my existence as a private caterer.

Why?

Lately, as it is slow in Austin, I’m slowly rediscovering it. I’m starting up my passion projects again but this time with a little help from my friends. I’m showcasing Filipino food out of desire and not out of necessity. I want to showcase my culture, and I recently did a Kamayan because it gave awareness that it was Filipino Independence Day. That Kamayan, and the food that surrounded it had a why.

I am also starting my meal prep project coming back to the same promise of rejuvenating people. But the biggest piece that I have been missing is building that genuine relationship with my clients, which I missed. So in that regard, I am restarting it again with a client cap at 5, then at 10. Honestly, I would do a full stop at 20. I would rather have quality relationships, as I don’t know where it gets me.

Since I am a significantly better writer at 11 in the evening with nothing else on my mind, a newsletter is not a bad thing to start. I am developing relationships there much like I am showing face in social media nowadays. There is so much content in my life that needs to be shared, but I am having to pump the brake on some because I’ve lost my temper and showed frustration in a few of them. Does this help my why? Not really.

My mission is to build genuine relationships with people through food. When people say it’s not personal, it’s business… well it somewhat is. The personal chef market is so saturated lately with competition that people are shopping more often than not. At this point, I can leave tomorrow and people wouldn’t care. But, by developing a relationship with my future clients, not only do they get a window of who I am through my food, but they get a window of who I am as a person by planning their event and trusting me to cook, clean, and talk to their guests at their parties.

That is my why.

Daniel, 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?

Halo Halo!

My name is Dan Castro and I am from Los Angeles, California. But hang on, before you get mad at me for being a Californian transplant in Texas, that’s not really the case. I went to the Culinary Institute of America in New York, then The Broadmoor in Colorado Springs and worked at Uchiko here in Austin. So, I’ve been everywhere.

Primarily, I am a private caterer for smaller events between 2-20 people. Doing a party of that size allows me to get to know my clients in a more intimate setting with a menu that best suits their needs and tastes. In that regard, I also meal prep deliveries or personalized ones. I have had clients with Type 2 Diabetes and Autoimmune Protocols among others. Even though the environment is much less intimate in a party atmosphere, the need for healthy food keeps them alive and allows them to do the things they do in their lives while being fueled with thoughtful and heathy foods.

I solve the problem of planning, going to the grocery store, cooking, cleaning, and serving for my clients. I am basically a hospitality Swiss knife, a jack of all trades, a master of none. What sets me apart from others is my unorthodox and candid approach. I’m wiling to try weird combinations with food if my client trusts me enough to do so. I take time to get to know my clients.

I am proud of where my career has taken me so far, whether it’s expanding my network in culinary school and now. Things to know about me? I’m obsessed with competition. I love puns. Why not both? I did the World Pun Championships in Austin last year and I think I’ll stick to it as a hobby. I might come back next year, who.knows? If I get that lottery roster spot. But I love competition. Tennis? Crossfit? Running? Done it. My main goal is to be in a cooking competition show. So if you see my face in my instagram, that is my not so subtle attempt at creating content to be able to give material for it.

I’m still learning the ropes of what aspects of my life to share on social media, so bear with me. But a lot of those are very candid because I just don’t have the time to edit anything in or out! Looking forward to meeting y’all. :)

Can you talk to us about how your side-hustle turned into something more.

Eversoul was my side hustle. When I was working at Uchiko and got a serious pay raise, the first thing that I did was join a Crossfit gym. Somehow, after winning a weight loss competition, people thought I was a serious threat in food and fitness. People got a hold of information that I cooked in fine dining/etc and wanted me to cook for them. I didn’t know any better at the time and went at it. Cooked in my studio with an electric stove then switched into two campfire burners and made it happen.

COVID happened and we were on lockdown. A lot of restaurants closed down except for ours. Thank goodness for the opportunity. So when I meal prepped for people, it was in their houses with a mask on. When I worked at the restaurant, I got tested everyday before I even got to the door. Eventually when things slowly started to reopen, I was working 60 hours at the restaurant and around 20-30 on Eversoul. Something had to give, and I told my boss that I needed to go. He gave me his blessing but wanted me to stay until the end of the year to find my replacement.

When I left, It was terrible. I didn’t know how I was going to survive. But I still had social acumen and I networked like crazy. So here I am with a solid network and continuing to grow it. The great part about referrals is that word of mouth isn’t cheap and a lot of work has to be put behind it. So there is a bit of satisfaction when that happens for me.

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

This is very recent. I posted something out of anger which related to a client not paying me when they had four restaurants as a source of income. I posted this on social, and my girlfriend and I got an argument on the way to our hotel where we were staying before the wedding. Mind you, I had a very expensive dinner planned beforehand so just having this argument alone was terrible.

Nothing good came out of it, and it made me question myself as a business person. Sure, posting that screenshot out of anger was great in staying in my power, but I don’t know how it would really benefit me in the long run, so I just deleted it and that was the end of that chapter. Because really in that situation, I had nothing to gain and everything to lose (including those dinner reservations, or even my girlfriend. Yikes.)

Contact Info:

• Website: www.eversoulculinary.com
• Instagram: @manila__rice OR @eversoulculinary
• Linkedin: Daniel Castro

Image Credits
Jose Griego