Conversations with the Inspiring Caitlin Brome

Today we’d like to introduce you to Caitlin Brome.

Caitlin, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
My husband Tom is a Chef by trade and my experience is in Event Management. We both worked in these fields for many years where we learned and lot and had a great time doing it. At a certain point, we both were feeling ready for something bigger, but our passion for food and entertaining was still strong. One day, Tom came home from work and told me he had quit his job… and his heart was set on buying a food truck! After my initial shock and nerves, I was all about it. That is where The Butcher and the Blonde’s journey began!

I, of course, had bigger plans than selling French Fries, so I started getting creative and dreaming of all of the ways we could step up and go beyond the typical food truck experience. At this same time, craft breweries started popping up like crazy within a 10-mile radius of our Lafayette home. So, we started booking out the truck to these breweries and got the entire town hooked on our Tijuana Street Fries and other fun menu items! From there, we started to network with local event planners and event venues in the north Longmont and Lyons area and our catering business took off.

We are now halfway through our 5th season of food truck life with two food trucks, a brick and mortar location, and a successful catering business! Oh! And a 3-year-old daughter who will probably be our best employee!! Right now, she’s pretty much our mascot… Our customers love her. Sometimes we wonder if they’re coming to enjoy our food or to hang out with her! Probably both…

Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Haha! A smooth road? Definitely NOT!

Most the struggles we’ve had are mechanical related to the trucks or with staffing. With old food trucks, you never know when something is going to go wrong, and you never know how long it will take to get it fixed.

As for staffing – growing so fast meant we needed to grow our staff and give up some control. We had to learn how to hire a solid team that and trust them to get the job done. Staffing seems to be tough industry-wide.

Some advice: Starting out, growing and changing is scary and difficult. BUT on the other side of that fear and struggle is a feeling that makes it all worth it. The feeling that validates your sweat and tears! All you can do is learn from the hard times, enjoy the good times and fruits of your labor, and always keep moving forward.

What should we know about Butcher and The Blonde? What do you do best? What sets you apart from the competition?
What do you do – We started out as a food truck serving at breweries and festivals, then found ourselves catering weddings and  parties, and now have a brick and mortar location that allows us to cater more events year-round and to serve our customers face-to-face in the comfort of a dining room!

What do you specialize in – We like to say we serve fun comfort food.  We specialize in wedding catering for parties 50 – 200+. We are able to bring our trucks to unique venues to cook hot and fresh food on site.

What are you known for – Tijuana Street Fries, Pork Carnitas, and full-service Food Truck Catering. Also, our Chicken and Waffles!!

Most proud of – I am so proud of the business we have built together. We went from an old food truck and a passion for entertaining to a full-fledged catering business and brick and mortar location. We did this by always striving to do our best and by thriving on the joy we see in our customers when they are enjoying our food.

Do you have a lesson or advice you’d like to share with young women just starting out?
It takes time and hard work to build a business. Count the small wins because they all add up!

Contact Info:

• Address: 515 Oak Street Frederick, Co 80530
• Website: www.butcherandtheblonde.com
• Phone: 3039318337
• Email: Butcherandtheblonde@gmail.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/butcherandtheblonde/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/butcherandtheblonde/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/butcher_blonde

Image Credit:
Kimberly Mitiska

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