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

Alright, Kevin thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Let’s jump right into how you came up with the idea?

Funny story my love and passion for cooking came out of a place of sort of annoyance, to be honest. To give you some background heritage-wise wise I am Afro-Laino, and both my parents are from Costa Rica. Also growing up in the Flatbush section of Brooklyn NY, I had the opportunity to experience many different and diverse cultures. However, I wanted to just be American so badly (obviously I am lol). At the time however I just simply did not see my heritage as a positive, so much so I can no longer even speak Spanish. To further explain, my passion for cooking was born because as a child I just did not enjoy or want to consume the food my family made, so I was determined to make food I would enjoy by myself. I took it upon myself to learn different recipes by utilizing my local library to expand my knowledge. I would test different dishes out on my family. One of the first dishes I taught myself to make was chicken parmesan which by the way I have perfected.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

As a child, my passion for cooking grew out of a curiosity for other cuisines i.e. Italian, and Asian, and came full circle back to my afro Latino (Costa Rican) dishes my family would make. I for some reason tried very hard not to embrace my heritage, so out of that misguided view my culinary acuminate was born. My sister and I would go down to the Brooklyn Public Library in downtown Brooklyn, I would get various recipes from a variety of books and try different cuisines from Italian food to Asian. As I matured, I started to embrace my culture, I pivoted in a sense to expanding my native culinary dishes tweaking them into my creations combining various techniques and flavor combinations I learned from my readings. I honestly never took my cooking seriously; I would always just cook for my family and friends because food brings people together. It was not until years later my mother’s best friend asked me to do her 50th birthday party and that is when my business was born. Originally called 4HEARTSCATERING after my 4 kids, it has since evolved into @REIDDAMENU (YES!! This is absolutely a shameless plug, please follow me on Instagram). I love to see the enthusiasm and satisfaction people receive from enjoying my culinary creations.

Is there mission driving your creative journey?

Honestly to put it simply my main goal consists of two parts, Firstly I strive to make my MOMMA proud! She has been the backbone of my life I lean on her daily. She is the reason for my existence and everything I accomplish I owe to the woman I call Mother. Secondly, I see cooking as a way to create a family legacy. It’s a way to ensure my children will obtain future success by joining the family business., I want my children to be proud of the legacy their father will leave behind. I just enjoy the process of cooking and bringing joy to people through the dishes I create. The look of enjoyment I see when people try my creations for the first time or 100th time just elates me. For me it’s not about money, it’s about providing a good meal to the masses. At the end of the day. We all need to eat right, why not enjoy every bite (I copyrighted that, just in case I become famous one day),

What’s been the best source of new clients for you?

For me the best source of new clients would be social media, which I am currently working on improving my online presence via IG, YOUTUBE, and FACEBOOK If I am being completely honest making videos and posting on social media is just something that is not inherent to me, luckily for me I have a great support system that just does not allow me to sit in my comfort zone. I strive to reach for a bigger clientele here in Florida and eventually across the globe.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: @reiddamenu

Image Credits
Victoria Delegado