We recently connected with Derricka Clayton and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Derricka thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Let’s jump right into the heart of things. Outsiders often think businesses or industries have much larger profit margins than they actually do – the reason is that outsiders are often unaware of the biggest challenges to profitability in various industries – what’s the biggest challenge to profitability in your industry?

Simply put… Inflation. It impacts every aspect of my industry, from labor costs, materials, transportation and ingredients. Everyone in our industry, no matter if you are a private/personal chef, caterer or restaurant, it is imperative and a must to adapt to the changes in our economy in order for your business to survive. It’s so importatnt to manage rising costs and budget to ensure staff is compensated fairly as well as having the ability to attract and hire new employees. Not to mention, no matter what grocery store or food supply where you source your ingredients, one thing is for sure… Everyone is feeling the impact. Some ways to combat this is to offer customers new or seasonal items to choose from by periodically changing menu items to help justify the prices. Despite the rise in costs, there is one thing that will never change no matter what industry you are in… Clients will pay for quality, good service and exceptional experiences, so as long as that is your constant, consumers will support your business.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

I used cooking as a form of expression and continued to study and perfect my craft. For years I wouldn’t cook for people as I was too shy, but as I continued to acquire more friends and co-workers, cooking for them was my way of showing love.​ ​
In January 2019, I experienced tragedy where my ex-husband/co-parent of my autistic daughter passed away unexpectedly. Then 2 weeks after that, I lost my job. I was in the darkest mental space in my life, just very depressed, not sure what was in store for my new normal. I prayed over my entire situation and asked God for guidance. Shortly thereafter, I have stepped out on faith to share my passion, “My vision of food…” with fellow food lovers who enjoy quality “dope” mealz​.
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I wanted to learn as much about my craft as possible and be a subject matter expert of my passion, so I enrolled myself at Escoffier School of Culinary Arts in April 2019 and obtained my culinary degree trained in all Cooking & Baking Techniques specializing in Unique Plating, World Cuisines, Farm to Table and completed an extensive Externship which included hands on fine dining and wedding catering experience. I proudly graduated with High Honors at the top of my class in June 2o2o.
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Since then, I have been under the mentorship of Chef Kevin Johnson, Dallas Top Black Wedding & Events Chef/Caterer to become his protegé and our very own Top Chef All Star, Master Chef Tiffany Derry to help guide me into creating my own culinary lane. In November 2021, I self-wrote and self-published my first Cookbook series “Seasoned for the Soul – Vol 1” which includes Winter & Holiday Recipes that are popular not only from my family but from my clients as well.
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I now specialize in Private Dining Experiences, Spectacular Catering Services, Convenient In-Home Personal Chef Services, and Traveling Chef Services to accomodate the needs of all my clientele. I continue to share my culinary knowledge and experiences with up and coming chefs, while placing my unique thumbprint in the industry. Much more is definitely yet to come and I encourage you to support my journey.

Accolades, Awards & Features Include:
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Voyage Dallas Magazine (May 2019)
Black Restaurant Week
Bank of America
Brandi’s Food Diary
NAACP Dallas
Shout Out DFW (June 2020)
DC Website Consulting
The Vini Vegas Show
D Magazine
Yelp Dallas
National Black Chef Association
Black Restaurant Week Newsletter
Bacardi Rum
Bravo/Top Chef (Sous Chef to Tiffany Derry)
Shout Out DFW (August 2021)
Voyage Dallas (September 2021)
Dallas Black Chamber of Commerce
Common Threads
bulthaup
Black Girls of Texas
University of Cincinnati Alumni Association
Fort Worth Opera
Personal Chef to Professional Athletes
Provided Services during the Dallas Mavs vs Houston Rockets Game thru Black Restaurant Week

What else should we know about how you took your side hustle and scaled it up into what it is today?

I initially sold pans of food to get started and get my name out there. I would sell different flavor wings, seafood mac n cheese, shrimp n grits and several other items I knew I was good at making and that people would love. I did this for about a year while I was in culinary school, then right when my externship started as I was learning the ins and outs of private chef and catering services, COVID reared its ugly head. People were no longer having gatherings or doing any types of celebrations as we were all quarantined. When I noticed that people would still go out and get takeout food from fast food places or restaurants, I adapted my business with this change. On weekends, I would have a setup at Pop UP DFW to sell my food and sometimes my daughter’s desserts to help keep my business afloat. Between doing this and offering virtual cooking classes, my business started growing like wildfire. From there, I began to receive a plethora of recognition from multiple sources. As things slowly started opening back up and people were having events with masks, and social distancing protocols, my business began scaling up in the direction I prayed that it would. This allowed me to fully focus on my career as a Private/Personal Chef and Caterer.

How did you build your audience on social media?

I literally setup my business social media page right before I started culinary school as I knew my journey would be a story to tell and it truly has been. I never stressed over doing certain things in order to build my social media audience, I always stayed true to myself, my food and my flavors. I will say that my social media audience loves reels, how-to videos, and beautifully plated food. I pretty much stick to that and my audience has grown organically.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.chefderricka.com
• Instagram: www.instagram.com/chefderricka
• Facebook: www.facebook.com/chefderricka
• Twitter: www.twitter.com/chefderricka
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCD_MxV2VXJ7A9bZVfgEE4RQ
• Other: www.tiktok.com/chefderricka

Image Credits
Marques Hulett @CP_Photos