Barelas Central Kitchen will soon be home to SFI

Street Food Institute breaks ground on new home in Barelas

Copyright © 2022 Albuquerque Journal

BY ALAINA MENCINGER / JOURNAL STAFF WRITER
PUBLISHED: FRIDAY, AUGUST 19TH, 2022 AT 10:05PM
UPDATED: SATURDAY, AUGUST 20TH, 2022 AT 12:05AM

Elizabeth Bibiano, owner of vegan New Mexican restaurant Vegos, can’t say enough about her time at Street Food Institute.

“The access and resources, the plethora of knowledge — wow, holy cow,” Bibiano said.

And soon, more New Mexican foodies will be able to access those resources as Street Food Institute breaks ground on its new facility, Central Barelas Kitchen. The new building will triple its size.

When Bibiano went through the program, she said there were only a handful of other students. Now, Street Food Institute leaders said they hope it will be able to support 20 or more hopeful restaurateurs after it moves out of the Central New Mexico Community College space it currently uses.

The nonprofit, which provides business and culinary training to New Mexicans looking to open food businesses — ranging from food trucks, catering businesses, brick-and-mortar stores and wholesale businesses — celebrated the groundbreaking of its new facility on Friday. The organization has been training food-loving students since it opened in 2014.

The new 11,000-square-foot building, Barelas Central Kitchen, is scheduled to open in summer 2023.

The two-story building, which is a collaboration between Street Food Institute and nonprofit Homewise, will feature a commissary kitchen, culinary classroom, as well as office space and studios for local artists. Johanna Gilligan, senior director of community development at Homewise, described the space as an “ecosystem focused on helping small businesses.”

“This just makes my heart burst,” said Frossene King, an alum of the program and owner of wholesale bakery Kalamata 505, who spoke at the groundbreaking ceremony and served baked goods.

Other alums, including the respective owners of Hippie Dayz Brew and Juicy J’s food truck, were in attendance at the event.

Jacob Chavez, a recent graduate from the program and owner of Juicy J’s, said that Street Food Institute helped him with everything from filling out health permits to transforming the landscaping truck his dad bought into a mobile juice bar. He opened his food truck just last month.

“They’ve helped me really along the way,” Chavez said.

Tina Garcia-Shams, executive director of Street Food Institute, told the Journal that watching food entrepreneurs grow throughout Street Food Institute’s 12-month program is like being a parent.

“It’s like, you know, you watch them slowly take those first steps. And they’re nervous and they’re scared and they’re not sure,” Garcia-Shams said. “But they start to get that confidence and you see their confidence grow. And you see when somebody tastes their food and tells them how great it is, the pride when that happens.”

Garcia-Shams has been working at Street Food Institute since 2017. She said the new facility should increase the number of prospective business owners the program can support.

“There’s only so many businesses they can fit in the current space,” Bibiano said. “… They’ll fill those seats like crazy.”

The program has been housed at CNM since 2017, although the partnership between CNM and Street Food Institute goes back much further. Even though the program collaborates with CNM’s culinary department, Street Food Institute is open to everyone, whether or not they are CNM students.

The curriculum at Street Food Institute has three phases: a theory phase, where students learn about running a business; a practical phase, where they develop recipes and hone their cooking skills in the kitchen; and an internship phase where students cut their teeth in local kitchens.

Karla Moore, owner of Simply Sinful Donuts, started taking courses at Street Food Institute in 2021. She found out about the program when she heard Tania Parillo, owner of Tania’s Tasty Kitchen and alum of Street Food Institute, talking about the institute on a podcast.

“Street Food has been like a godsend to me,” Moore said. “Without them, I wouldn’t have been able to get my brick-and-mortar.”

Moore opened her donut shop on Gold and Third last November. She said that when she has business questions, she still calls up Garcia-Shams.

“We’re just a little organization, but I hope that we have a giant impact,” Garcia-Shams said.

The new building is located at 1411 4th SW, across the street from Barelas Coffee House. The space has a history in food production — it used to be a produce bay.

“We wanted to keep that thread alive,” Gilligan said.

Homewise did a survey of Barelas in 2020 and found that a third of the respondents wanted more job training programs in the area. Garcia-Shams said she hopes that the space will be a gathering space for both students at the institute and Barelas community members.

“It’s not just a building to me — to us,” Garcia-Shams said at the event. “It’s a home. It’s going to be our home.”

by Street Food Institute

WORLD CENTRAL KITCHEN ‘FIGHTING HUNGER WITH TRADITION’

2020 was a difficult year, to say the least. Many businesses faced new obstacles and had to reevaluate how to operate their business entirely. SFI was no exception to this. The pandemic forced us to refocus our efforts and to come up with new ways to connect with and serve our community. So, we were greatly honored to work with World Central Kitchen and provide free meals to our community. The article below from May 8th 2020, written by Tamara Bicknell-Lombardi of The Independent, gives you a glimpse of all the hard work that went into providing free healthy meals for NM residents. SFI is forever grateful to have been apart of this meal distribution network and through our experiences with WCK, we are expanding our efforts to help even more families in need of a hot meal.

A unique partnership is bringing free meals—prepared by chefs—to Edgewood once a week.

World Central Kitchen brought together Santa Fe County, the Santa Fe Community College, Salvation Army, YouthWorks and the Street Food Institute to get food prepared and distributed from Edgewood to Española.

The free meal distribution started May 5 and will continue weekly, until further notice. The food truck will be at the Edgewood Fire Station at 1 Municipal Way from 3 to 5 p.m. on Tuesdays.

Meal distribution will comply with all social distancing guidelines under the state’s coronavirus public health order.

The food truck is serving locally sourced, traditional New Mexican food, cold or frozen. Anyone can come and get a meal for free, no questions asked.

People may also request more than one meal for other family members or high-risk individuals to help avoid unnecessary exposure. The food is first-come, first-served.

This week, 3,800 meals were given out around Santa Fe County. Next week, they will be producing 8,000 meals a week to give away.

The food is bought by the World Central Kitchen and is being cooked at the Santa Fe Community College by culinary students, chef instructors and local volunteer chefs. They are partnered with Shamrock Foods and using the college greenhouse.

This week, they will also be introducing vegetarian options as well.

The World Central Kitchen is a non-profit organization that provides meals to people as a form of disaster relief all over the world.

In addition, they offer programs that give people access to job training and the opportunity to gain skills for employment. World Central Kitchen was founded in 2010 by celebrity chef José Andrés.

When the pandemic began, World Central Kitchen activated and began to feed people across America by working with local chefs—along with supporting small businesses by buying food from independently owned restaurants and by buying local food.

Using the hashtag #ChefsForAmerica, World Central Kitchen is providing 250,000 fresh meals every day. They started in “ COVID hot spot” cities and are now expanding to other locations.

Robert Egger, is on the organization’s Board of Directors and friends with Andrés. He said Andrés reached out to him and wanted to help get something going in New Mexico to help out during the pandemic.

“New Mexico has some of the oldest food culture in America,” Egger said, adding, “I was worried that the farmer’s markets might slow down, that the demand for CSA boxes would be greater and that regional growers might be struggling.”

He said the reason they decided to use traditional food is because the price is low and because they are interested in “fighting hunger with tradition.”

“I started the DC Kitchen in 2000 and I remember when José approached me about WCK and taking his work to the next level,” said Egger. He said Andrés travels all over the world to help people and that he was happy to have him reach out during the pandemic.

All of the food preparation is being done at the Santa Fe Community College. “We are building links in the community from a smaller perspective, ” said Jerry Dakan, lead faculty for the culinary program.

The food is being cooked by students and chefs. The kitchen at the college is small, and there are four students and four volunteers running the kitchen.

“When the schools got shut down, we had two weeks left in our Intermediate Culinary Skills class and the students needed to finish,” said Dakan. As a result, students were invited to the kitchen to help out with the project and to earn the credit hours they are lacking.

Students can now earn three credit hours toward an Advanced Skills Class and finish up the other class, also worth three credit hours. Dakan said the students can get 150+ contact hours as they progress through the program.

Using Canvas, an online teaching tool, the faculty set up assessments online to test the students’ skills. In the kitchen, culinary students shadow a chef and help with whatever project is needed.

There are five New Mexico chefs involved. Rocky Durham, Executive Chef at Sunrise Springs, David Sellers, Chef for the Street Food Institute in Albuquerque, Slinn Crews, Chef at Geronimo Restaurant, Jennifer Doughtey, from Santa Fe School of Cooking, and Sandra Nitschke, the current pastry chef at Santa Fe Community College, are all volunteering their skills.

In response to this collaboration, Dakan wants to create new classes for the school’s culinary curriculum, embedding a disaster relief style program. “We are slowly building a culinary army to help with disasters,” Dakan said.

For more information about the World Central Kitchen and their efforts, or to get involved in or learn more about #ChefsForAmerica, visit wck.org or find them on Instagram.

Santa Fe County “has really been on the forefront of getting organizations together to help those in need during the COVID-19 pandemic and we will continue to create innovative programs to reach everyone in our community,” said senior county planner Lucy Foma.

In addition to a stop in Edgewood, the program will bring the food truck weekly to Española, Chimayo, Pojoaque and La Cienega.

Article Written by Tamara Bicknell-Lombardi | May 8, 2020 |

by Street Food Institute

4 Non-Food-Related Things to Keep in Mind When Starting a Food Service Business

If you are in the process of starting a food business, it is likely you have or will come across unexpected obstacles. As is the reality when starting any business. It is important to remember that there are resources available to help guide you through overcoming these obstacles. The below article, written by Mattie Morgan, provides some valuable insight on how to avoid some of the pitfalls that can come with opening a business.

In 2019, the food marketing system (food retail and food service, collectively) supplied approximately $1.77 trillion worth of food. But $969.4 billion—more than half of the total value—was supplied by food service facilities, as reported by the U.S. Economic Research Service. The same report also revealed that there’s been a continuous upward trend in the value of the food service industry since the 1960s, as more people continue to buy food at establishments. And there’s no sign of it dwindling down anytime soon, even with the pandemic considered.

Starting a food service business could potentially be a very profitable venture if done right. So it’s just as important to think about the technical side of things as much as the food itself.

Choosing the right business structure

Often, people start businesses as a sole proprietorship since this usually doesn’t have many filing procedures. Indeed, sole proprietorships in New Mexico don’t even need to register with the Secretary of State, or create corporate reports. The downside is that you’ll be personally liable for all possible legal obligations and debts incurred by your business. On the other hand, forming an LLC here in New Mexico could be more advantageous if you’re looking for asset protection. Your business is viewed as a separate legal entity, so you’re shielded from total liability should things turn sour. While you may even incorporate your business, this may deal you with higher costs and lots more paperwork than is usual for startups; but it’s ideal if you’re looking to immediately grow your business and already have the funds to maintain it.

Keeping a roster of reliable suppliers

Running a food service business means you need to think about operations from end-to-end, including vendors and suppliers. Look for ones who have good track records, and, preferably, much experience. Before commencing your search, you first need to finalize your menu, storage availability, and projected sales volume. Beyond just the ingredients, your kitchen appliances should also be bought from reliable stores. Even something as simple as a mini rice cooker needs to be practical, cost-efficient, and multifunctional. Refrigerators, microwaves, and ovens should be energy-efficient. With these in mind, you’ll be able to narrow down your options for suppliers. Business content writer Mary King suggests that you start looking for vendors by going to wholesale retailers and local farmers markets, asking for recommendations from peers within the industry, or even conducting a Google search!

Knowing your competitors

Several businesses have pivoted online since the pandemic started, and this is both a challenge and an opportunity for you. This way, you get a better view of their product offerings and marketing strategies. F&B industry writer Domenick Celentano proposes that you evaluate your business idea by asking yourself if the market is saturated with concepts similar to yours. If the answer is yes, it doesn’t mean that you give up. Celentano encourages you to go back to the drawing board and polish your ideas even further, until you come up with the winning one.

Securing funding

Wanting to start a business doesn’t necessarily mean that one has the personal funds to do so. The reality is that several startups rely on external funding to get their business started. And there are several ways to secure financing for your new venture. In our state alone, there are a slew of investors both from the state's private sectors and the New Mexico government, such as the New Mexico Small Business Investment Corporation, which is a legislation that provides equity or debt capital to aid in business growth and expansion. There are even organizations like the New Mexico Small Business Assistance Program and WESST that offer loans and grants, as well as assistance in creating business plans. It’s also important to note that it may take a few years before you make your first significant profit, so money may be tight at first. Choosing the right investors and gaining the right support is an essential part of the process, as you’ll be working with them for a good while.

In addition to all the business and technical aspects of starting a food service business, you’ll also need to keep your passion for food alive to truly be successful. Read our write-up on Beatrice Montano, a woman who beat the odds with her passion for cooking, and persevered to be part of the food service industry.

Written by Mattie Morgan for streetfoodinstitute.org

by Street Food Institute

Kalamata 505: Bringing Greek & New Mexican Flavors Together

Culinary Student Opens Successful Wholesale Bread Business

Kalamata 505 is one of SFI's success stories. Frossene King, the owner and creative mind behind this unique business, is a graduate of the SFI program and also currently enrolled in CNM Culinary Arts program. We are proud to have her apart of the SFI team and fully support her culinary adventure.

SFI would like to thank CNM for writing the article below that documents Frossene's success story:

This article courtesy of Central New Mexico College

by Street Food Institute

Cooking: A Purpose in Life

SFI Is excited to share that our employee Beatrice Montano has been selected as a Face Of CNM. Beatrice is a prime example of how cooking can help people fight through times of adversity. We are proud to have her on our team and hope that her story will inspire others to find their purpose in life.

We would like to thank CNM for writing the following article that beautifully captures Beatrice's story:

With the support of her family, along with the Street Food Institute and CNM community, Beatrice has turned her life around and is on track for a prosperous future.

A few years ago, Beatrice Montano’s son passed away. As she struggled to cope with the tragic loss, she made some bad choices and her life started veering off in the wrong direction.

“I was in a bad relationship. I got into some trouble and I went to prison for two years,” said Beatrice, now 55.

During her time in prison, Beatrice found solace in her passion for cooking. She would cook meals for the other inmates, took multiple culinary arts courses and eventually became certified in food handling. She knew she was ready to turn her life around.

Her passion for cooking and her goal to eventually operate her own food truck led her to the Street Food Institute and CNM, where she’s working toward degrees in Business and Culinary Arts.

“I love to cook, and I cook everything,” said Beatrice. “I’d love to run my own food truck someday.”

When she was released from prison, Beatrice became a resident of Maya’s Place, a transitional housing facility for previously incarcerated women, run by Crossroads for Women.

“I didn’t want to be in trouble anymore. I wanted to take care of everything in my life,” said Beatrice.

At Maya’s Place, Beatrice learned about community classes offered through the Street Food Institute, a CNM partner that operates the SFI Café on Main Campus, as well as a food truck. She quickly became an intern for SFI, then was hired as an employee.

SFI’s connection to CNM also sparked her interest in becoming a CNM student. She got connected with Academic Coach Latoya Turner-Delgado, who helped her through the admissions process. Now, she’s a full-time student.

“Beatrice came in and we went through the admissions process together,” said Latoya. “I walked Beatrice through the enrollment process from start to finish, utilizing many available CNM and community resources.”

Beatrice said that she’s also grateful to the staff at SFI for fostering her passion for cooking and teaching her new techniques.

“They’re great! I love to ask questions and I can ask the chefs at SFI anything and they will explain it all,” said Beatrice. “They teach me new ways to cook all the time.”

Tina Garcia-Shams, executive director of SFI, said that Beatrice has become a shining star at SFI.

“We are so happy and proud of Beatrice for taking the step to enroll at CNM.  I have no doubt that she will be a great addition to the CNM community,” said Tina.

Beatrice said that being an older student can be a challenge. But CNM’s tutoring services have been a major help in easing her transition into college. She also said that her younger classmates have been supportive and encouraging.

“I’m in class with all these young kids, but every time we get to work together, they help me out with any problems I’m having with the work,” said Beatrice. “I’m confident that I can do this.”

Since immersing herself in the CNM community and deciding to pursue a degree, Beatrice has also reconnected with her once estranged daughter.

“I’m very lucky that my daughter let me back into her life, or I’d never know my granddaughter,” said Beatrice. “I did stuff I shouldn’t have done and I paid for it. I’m grateful that they’re not holding it against me.”

With the support of her family, along with the SFI and CNM community, Beatrice has turned her life around and is on track for a bright future.

“Beatrice has faced multiple obstacles in her life, but her determination is admirable,” said Latoya, the CNM academic coach. “Witnessing Beatrice attend her first week of school was truly a rewarding moment.  She is highly motivated and appreciates the opportunity to receive an education.”

This article courtesy of Central New Mexico College

by Street Food Institute

From Behind Bars to Success in the Kitchen: An Inspirational Story

Street Food Institute is Helping One Women Find Vocational Success in the Kitchen

SFI is proud to announce an ongoing partnership with Crossroads for Women, a program dedicated to empowering women to sustain a fulfilling life within their community post incarceration. Making the transition from prison back into ones community has proven difficult, especially when it comes to finding employment. According to a report by the Prison Policy Initiative, over 27% of formerly incarcerated people are unemployed, where a larger portion of these individuals are women.

SFI believes it is important to continue building our partnership with Crossroads for Women, which brings us to our first success story: Bianca, a twenty-two year old future chef in training. Bianca successfully completed SFI's 12 week internship program and now works 20-25 hours a week as a valued member of our food truck team.

"I’m getting all these new skills and learning different cooking techniques, and I love it! My boss and co-workers make the work environment awesome, and I like the challenging fast pace and variety that come from vending at different locations and events."

We hope that Bianca's story will serve as inspiration to others who face employment difficulties following incarceration. Click to learn more about Bianca's journey and the Crossroads for Women program.

by Street Food Institute

Students and Grads Create SFI Café

Artisan Breads, Craft Coffees, Cookies and More

The SFI Café, the latest partnership effort between CNM and SFI, opened in early January in the bustling Student Services Center on Main Campus, where it serves as a business incubator for current and former culinary students, as well as other small, local startups. Students, employees and visitors of CNM get to indulge in delectable café-style food and beverages, prepared by students and graduates of CNM’s renowned Culinary Arts program or early-stage food entrepreneurs from the community.

“We have a lot of regulars coming in, excited about supporting student businesses,” said Tina Garcia-Shams, executive director of the Street Food Institute. “The students are able to showcase their business concepts and their menus while getting immediate feedback from the marketplace to understand what people like and what they don’t like. Then they can make tweaks for next steps."

“I think things are ripe for this (SFI Café) concept right now. Our state’s economy has been struggling, so people are really thinking local and how to support our economy right here. My goal is to have eight to 10 local businesses being showcased here (in the SFI Café). And how do we get students who are selling their products in this café to be able to sell in another café, and another café? We want to support that, and have an impact on families and people who are trying to make their way in a business.”

There are currently four small businesses in the SFI Café. Atomic Age Bakery is owned by Kristi Rauth-Snider, who graduated from CNM in 2016 with an associate degree in Culinary Arts. Atomic Age offers cookies, pastries and made-to-order waffles. Kalamata 505 is owned by a current CNM Culinary Arts student, Frossene King, who created the concept for her artisan bread company while taking an Entrepreneurial Food Operations class.  Lily Marie’s Coffee Company, which offers fresh-roasted, direct trade and organic coffees from around the world, is owned by former SFI student Nicole Turrieta. And Hundred Hands Coffee is a local startup featuring nitrogen-infused craft coffee and teas.

SFI’s interns also prepare daily SFI menu items at the Café, such as savory breakfast burritos, sandwich wraps, salads and soups. SFI, a non-profit, entrepreneur-focused and workforce training culinary program, is dedicated to inspiring the success of small, local businesses in New Mexico.

“As a business owner and CNM culinary student, the experience that I have gained by selling my breads and pastries at the SFI Café has helped me to grow my business,” said King, owner of Kalamata 505. “I can reach new customers, test new products, and receive expert help from the Street Food Institute chefs when I need it. I love being able to offer my services to other CNM students.”

CNM and SFI began their partnership in 2014, when they teamed up to train CNM Culinary Arts students on how to operate food trucks and other mobile food ventures, from developing entrepreneurial approaches and business plans to learning the culture and culinary techniques of the street food movement. Students served internships and worked on all aspects of operating the SFI Food Truck, from food preparation to business plans. That partnership effort has been very successful and continues today.

The SFI Food Truck was the first food truck to operate at CNM. It spawned a big idea at CNM, which was to invite local food trucks from the community to regularly operate on campus. In 2016, CNM started inviting local food trucks to campus daily. It helped CNM eliminate the cost of a large, national contract with a cafeteria vendor while supporting local, small businesses. Since the SFI-CNM partnership began, eight CNM culinary students have launched their own businesses.

“The SFI Café is the newest evolution of our partnership, which supports CNM’s strategic efforts to help incubate more businesses in our community and create more student work experience opportunities,” said Donna Diller, dean of CNM’s School of Business & Information Technology. “The SFI Café gives our CNM culinary students an amazing opportunity to feature their culinary creations in an entrepreneurial environment, which is unique and extremely valuable for them. The support the students receive from SFI and CNM as they launch their businesses increases the chances for success and the sustainability of their business concepts. Our partnership with SFI has been fantastic for our students and we’re excited about the greater impact the SFI Café can have on our local food economy.”

In the short time the SFI Café has been open, Garcia-Shams says the student businesses are already establishing themselves as viable businesses.

“We’ve already seen great results,” she said. “The student business owners have customers engaging with them, asking questions about their products and complimenting the quality of their products. Since (the student business owners) already have some steady income, they’re able to start thinking about growing to the next level. The CNM community has been very supportive, and that’s been great.”

Garcia-Shams said Rauth-Snider, the owner of Atomic Age Bakery, is racing to keep up with demand. “She’s been hiring some of our baking students to help her during the week,” Garcia-Shams said. “Two of the food truck owners here at CNM purchase her products for their businesses.”

“I dreamt of owning my own business for years… but didn’t know how to make it happen,” said Rauth-Snider. “SFI has been with me every step of the way – through permitting, advising on costing, product selection, packaging, etc. I started my business a year ago with a booth at the farmer’s market, purchased a food trailer and continue to grow with SFI’s help and continued support.”

Garcia-Shams thinks this distinctive, food business incubator model can be replicated around the community and the country.

“This (SFI Café) is very unique,” she said. “There are a lot of different types of non-profits and social enterprises around food, but the partnership between a non-profit and a higher education institution is unique. I haven’t seen anything like it. We’re in a microcosm here, so we want to share these ideas so it can happen in other places around the community. I think this is a model that can be replicated in other places around the country too, and at other community colleges. This is a great model that can allow multiple entrepreneurs to explore and grow their businesses in a shared environment.”

This article courtesy of Central New Mexico College

by Street Food Institute