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

Mona, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Let’s kick things off with your mission – what is it and what’s the story behind why it’s your mission?

Our mission is to create vegan food that feeds the soul. We wanted to be something we strive for when folk taste our food; for our food to be comforting and nourishing. Often times, when I tell people I’m vegan they expect for us to only eat salads or think that certain foods cannot be made vegan, and we are here to change that. We want to engage people in the idea that their meals can be plant-based and they do not necessarily need to stop eating the foods that they love to transition to plant-based.

Mona, 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?

I got into this industry during the pandemic; I love cooking and baking and my friends actually suggested I make a business out of it, maybe its because they love taste testing recipes. I really enjoy food and how community-centered it is. You can be eating alone and there’s still so many people involved in the process of you eating. The people that picked your vegetables; packed your groceries; delivered them; so many ways in which folk helped you get that meal on your plate. We strive to be ethical not only by being vegan but also through the products we use. We aim to use products that are also ethical in their production; that means if workers are on strike then we are too.

I use to stick to only my family’s recipes and make plant-based adaptations. However, now we try to veganize anything and make it easier for people to open their minds to veganism. We make pozole, menudo, ceviche, pot pies, shepherds pie and so much more; dishes that people do not expect to be made vegan.
Although I love making tamales, due to lack of person-power it is only the holidays that we do them.
Cookies, Cakes and other treats are my favorite to make especially during the holiday season.
My biggest critic is my daughter and I love that they will tell me whether something tastes good or if I should return to the kitchen and start over again.

Additionally, I am actually working on my Master of Social Work and I integrate what I learn to my business. Food deserts and food insecurity are a social problem and we hope that as we grow we will be able to help address that.

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

We actually met at an outdoor event. We were told there would be vegan meals and we began wondering what it would be. Come to find out the only thing we could eat were veggies and hummus. And we started talking about how that is something that happens often, people thinking that we can only eat raw veggies. We started talking about the things we cooked and how they wanted to open up a restaurant and I began telling them my business and ideas about food being community centered. We were both ecstatic about meeting someone like-minded and then began to set up meetings to discuss further. all in one morning!

Are there any books, videos or other content that you feel have meaningfully impacted your thinking?

There are various books and podcast that impact my management style and the way I view how one leads. I see food as an agent of social change and use social justice leadership frameworks. Adrienne Marie Brown’s Emergent Strategies have been instrumental in how I view and practice leadership. Additionally it really is helpful to see food and the creation of dishes through their principles. Also, Rath and Conchie’s strengthsfinder was super helpful in helping me engage with my strengths and think about my weaknesses and what I should work on.
I am currently reading Juana Bordas The Power of Latino Leadership Culture, Inclusion, and Contribution and am excited to integrate it into how I do business.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.monafresa.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mona.fresa/?hl=en

Image Credits
Berenice Ramirez Faith F.