Story & Lesson Highlights with Candice Quick of Columbus

We recently had the chance to connect with Candice Quick and have shared our conversation below.

Candice, we’re thrilled to have you with us today. Before we jump into your intro and the heart of the interview, let’s start with a bit of an ice breaker: What do you think is misunderstood about your business? 
I find that most people who have not spent a significant amount of time working in the hospitality industry don’t realize how delicate and fragile the industry actually is.

I give so much credit to all the businesses, but especially food service business, for making it through covid and are still making it through the serval set backs they most likely experienced. Covid was quite possibly the most intense, multi-dimensional pressure test the industry could have gone through, and truly exposed all of the most vulnerable operational systems.

Most restaurants are always having to prepare for a late delivery truck, short staffing, unpredictable trends in business or the economy amongst 100 other possible scenarios that could play out at any moment.

We are very fortunate with our specific business model to have the ability to avoid many of the obstacles that most restaurants have to contend with, but we have plenty hurdles of our own from week to week and month to month.

Many people for instance will see us as business owners and think that we have special immunity from having to deal with or handle day to day grunt work, but it is quite the opposite. We don’t have a team of people working with us, it is just the two of us which can be great, also provides a never ending to-do list. We get to be the CEO’s, dishwashers and everything in between, which makes for long days and full weeks.

We recently spoke with another husband and wife owned business who stated ‘Having your own business is great, because you get to choose which 80 hours a week you’d like to work’, which is the most accurate description I think I have heard.

Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
We are a wife and husband owned business that was able to form thanks to the covid pandemic. We decided back in May of 2020 that we had our fill of working traditional chef and restaurant manager jobs and wanted to build something together, hopefully creating a future we could both feel great about long term.

The largest part of our business is Custom Meal Delivery, and this is what truly sets us apart from so many other businesses. We work one on one with clients of all family sizes and needs and help to create a weekly menu they will love. We prepare everything fresh and deliver right to their door.

Thanks to my extensive culinary background (graduate of the Culinary Institute of America, and a decade worth of chef experience around Columbus including New Albany Country Club,The Athletic Club of Columbus and several other high end establishments) we are able to creat truly amazing and custom options, high end restaurant quality for a very reasonable weekly rate.

We also provide catering for smaller events, in-home or offsite at event spaces around town. We have catered events (weddings to be specific) up to 130-150 people, all buffet style, and can even help plan a courses wine/beer/bourbon dinner as I am a level one Sommelier, Certified Cicerone Beer Server and Certified Bourbon Professional!

Our services are vast, and we’re always looking to expand into additional things like corporate lunches, weekend retreats and similar group events!

Great, so let’s dive into your journey a bit more. What relationship most shaped how you see yourself?
It may sound cheesy, but meeting my husband renewed a lot of faith in myself that had been lost for a very long time. He is so wonderfully supportive and saw the ability for us to start our own project long before I did. I will be eternally grateful for all of support and love over the years (and for all the years to come!).

Was there ever a time you almost gave up?
Almost everyday!

Not really, but owning your own business is truly brutal at time. No matter what you are selling or creating, everyday there is the chance a moment may make you question ‘is it still worth it?’ and sometimes for some people that answer becomes a ‘no’.

We have had so many days over the last 5 years where I really thought the answer might be a no, but then we cater an event, or get to catch up with a client during regular drop off and receive feed back on amazing something was that we prepared. Those moments when you see, not just the effort of that day or week, but the effort of the last 20yrs paying off. The years of learning paying off in a way that made someone else’s day easier or created a memory lasting event that much more magical.

Every time we have those moments, we remember that’s why we do this work, and suddenly we find ourselves answering ‘Yes, those moments are always worth it!’.

So a lot of these questions go deep, but if you are open to it, we’ve got a few more questions that we’d love to get your take on. What are the biggest lies your industry tells itself?
“That’s they way it’s always been done”. A phase not specific to our industry, but still one that can plague a business with mediocrity. More times than not, a restaurant sticks with certain processes because they have only ever done it that way and it’s what their customers expect, but sometimes, it keeps a restaurant from exploring new and better ways to produce better product.

This was another facet of the industry that was fully exposed by covid. It has been interesting to see how places adapted to it and moved forward from it, ours included. Embracing new ideas, technologies or systems can be intimidating and sometimes even expensive, but is really integral to staying adaptable to future hurdles that may come along.

Before we go, we’d love to hear your thoughts on some longer-run, legacy type questions. What will you regret not doing? 
Traveling more. I have had the privilege to travel a lot most of my life. Growing up included a lot of family road trips mostly over the east coast, south and lower west states. As a young adult I was able to visit Spain, Ireland and the Caribbean, but obviously life can take over and those types of trips become fewer and fewer.

I find travel to be so important to us as people but also so important as a chef. Understanding other cultures and their cuisines is fascinating and cannot wait to do more of that in the upcoming years!

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.mise33.com
• Instagram: Mise_33
• Linkedin: Candice Quick
• Facebook: Mise 33