We recently connected with Diana Kloepfer and have shared our conversation below.

Diana, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. What’s something you believe that most people in your industry (or in general) disagree with?

The outdated martyrdom that is expected when you choose a career in professional cooking. The number of times I had older peers with swollen joints, smoker’s lines, visual effects of addictive personalities, clear lack of self-care for their bodies & wild eyes – tell me that I would have no life outside of my job if I pursued a culinary career, was alarmingly high. I have always known the path I chose was not an easy one, but I have been on a mission to make my own story of it from day 1. I thoroughly enjoy proving people wrong, and looking for solutions to industry standards that strike me as crippling to the human soul. We are so lucky to be here, to breathe in oxygen, to express ourselves and spend time finding our sense of purpose in this lifetime. To sacrifice all of that and make your job your entire identity is not healthy, especially if your work environment is toxic. I do not believe that service industry workers should have to miss out on every single holiday, birthday, wedding, or milestone life moment because of work. The service industry has gotten out of hand with how available it has become. I have seen, too many times, time-off requests get denied, relationships fall apart, and employees made to feel that their life was not their own due to higher demands and an increasingly consumerist society. There have been jobs I held where it felt like I signed my life over to my employer, where I would go in for my shift start time and 90% of the time have no idea of when I would be allowed to leave. The amount of times I have had to hold off on using the restroom because I couldn’t walk away from the demand of the job is crazy. This was before I had taken on roles of leadership and was still very new to the kitchen world. I was laughed at for trying to use my PTO, I was told my mandatory breaks would be deducted from my paycheck even though I would never have time to take them, I worked through every illness, and I was consistently given more responsibilities without being compensated for taking on bigger roles. I had a Chef watch me trying to wrap up a deep cut on my finger, with blood all over my clothes, and leave me in the kitchen alone, saying “Well, I’m going to head out now. Lock up when you’re done.” The world is expected of you to make someone else’s business run smoothly. I have learned that at the end of the day, you are expendable/replaceable/faceless to those that rely on you, especially in corporate kitchens. I have been surrounded by discriminatory co-workers, high-stress environments, fights between employees, bodily injuries that are not for sensitive eyes, and have seen HR continue to employ misogynistic people in power roles despite them having numerous complaints filed against them. The system is broken. If you want to live this life of sacrifice, if you truly are that passionate about what you do, then your end goal should be to do it all for yourself and be able to break free from pouring your soul into a bottomless well. I am going to run my place knowing from firsthand experience what I never want to go through again, and knowing what employees yearn for to feel appreciated. If you’re going to spend a huge percentage of your life working, 1. You should love what you do, & 2. You should make the environment one that is fun to be in and be the person people WANT to work for. I do not regret any of my 14 years of experience in this field, I definitely have thick skin and a solid tool belt to show for it – but I do believe learning from experience doesn’t have to include the hurdles that are put in place by the egos.

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?

My name is Diana Kloepfer. I have gone by “The Aquarian Culinarian” for the last 3 years as I started to build a name for myself outside of my full-time Chef positions. I grew up on Long Island, and moved to Glens Falls in 2016. I have worked my way through professional kitchens for the past 14 years. I have always had the mindset of learning everything I possibly could at each job I held, and when I felt I was ready to learn more, I would move on to the next opportunity that came my way. I have added to my tool-belt with skills in culinary & back of house management throughout my journey. I started dabbling in baking, specifically custom cakes, a few years ago and that is what really got my name on the map within my community. I have always been an artist, but it took a while to find my medium – which turns out was food. I love experimenting with unique flavor pairings and learning about eating locally and seasonally. I want to use my platform as a small business owner to help the community get back in touch with caring about where the food they are buying comes from. I strive to accommodate for Gluten-Free and Vegan diets, because I believe everyone deserves delicious options when they decide to dine out. I also work with plant-based sources to bring color to my baked goods. I think artificial anything, especially food dye, does not belong in our food and certainly not in our bodies. Our food industry is failing us. I think it is so important to educate people on how to break free from the poison they put on the shelves and label as “food” for us. I aim to set an example within my community and eventually in the food world as re-building a healthy relationship with quality ingredients and supporting small and local farms. I also hope to come up with true sustainability practices for the industry that can reduce our carbon footprint in an industry that produces so much waste.

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

A few years ago, I was asked to cater a graduation party for 100 plus people from a co-worker’s parents. They only knew me through the food I would send home with their daughter at the end of her shift. This was a pivotal moment in my career – although at the time I had no idea how significant this would be. It was a huge learning experience for me. I learned the importance of pricing out your services BEFORE an event because at the end of the day, they thought that I was doing them a favor and just the cost of food was all I would need. Long story short, I worked the hardest I ever worked in my life and did not get compensated for it. At that moment, I said I would never cater again. However, a year later I found myself signing up for another challenge, one of hosting pop-up brunches at a local bar with a vacant kitchen available to rent. The turnout was phenomenal, and I was committed to finding my way to be my own boss from that point on. I created my culinary Instagram account, “The Aquarian Culinarian,” and started my official side hustle. I said yes to pretty much everything that came my way. I was hired for small scale private catering, and eventually was asked to make a cake. I grew my presence and name over the last few years and within the last 6 months I became serious about opening a physical location with my business plan for the space ready to launch. I was presented with an opportunity to take over a lease for an amazing location in Downtown Glens Falls, and I decided to take the leap! I will be opening “Kitch A Vibe,” a micro-eatery and event space, sometime in the early Fall!

Any stories or insights that might help us understand how you’ve built such a strong reputation?

I was raised to be respectful, honest, and hard-working. I believe that being authentically myself in every kitchen I worked in is a huge factor in the connections I have made along my journey. I keep in touch with people from every job I have had. I always make sure to greet everyone with a smile and create a safe space for everyone around me. I find the humor in every day and I do my best to make other’s laugh. I will show up with a super specific playlist, baked goods, or something that made me think of someone because in this industry, your co-workers quickly become a form of family. I come from a close-knit Italian family, so once you are part of my life, I treat you with the same love and respect as my own kin. I also thoroughly enjoy people and talking to them. I am a Back of the House employee with a Front of the House personality. I enjoy banter, storytelling, sarcasm, and the shared excitement in talking about common ground interests with others. I am forever inspired by the exchange of energy with those I share space with. I think when you vibrate on positive frequencies, you attract similar people to connect with. ALSO, a huge way to build your reputation in the small business community is by promoting other small businesses. A shoutout, review, or recommendation for a small business you love goes such a long way.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.kitchavibe.com
• Instagram: @the_aquarian_culinarian @kitch.a.vibe

Image Credits

Erin Covey Creative
Court L Photo