6 Catering Business Success Stories [2023]
A catering business is responsible for providing food & beverage-related services for vast types of events.
Catering businesses are known to be more flexible than other businesses because they don't have to worry about location or pricing and can even work 24/7. They can cater anywhere and offer any price point that they want.
However, starting a catering business requires a lot of planning. To start a successful catering business , you'll need to plan and prepare menus, manage budgets, handle clients, and more. In addition, catering allows you to meet more people and show off your cooking skills.
Here are some real life success stories of starting a catering business:
1. Elegante Catering ($240K/year)
Nestor Nidome (from Crestmore, California, USA) started Elegante Catering ago.
Hi, my name is Nestor Nidome and I am the founder and owner of Elegante Catering. Serving the Inland Empire (San Bernardino and Riverside county) and now have expanded to serve all of Southern California. Our customers, mostly higher middle class, have enjoyed our delicious menu ranging from full service plated meals, made to order pasta bars to buffet-style menus such as Mexican fajitas bar and tacos.
Weddings because there is no higher compliment than to have the bride and groom come up to us complimenting us and letting us know how all their guests are raving about the food. As for corporate caterings we like to make it as simple as possible for them. We have 12 different menus they can choose from so that every month their employees enjoy a different menu. Plus once we have their information all they have to do is text us the Date, Menu, and Time they want. We understand that they have better, more important things to do than order food. This has allowed us to grow our monthly sales to $20,000.
2. Bradford Bakery ($48K/year)
Amanda Bradford (from Mckinney) started Bradford Bakery over 2 years ago.
My name is Amanda Bradford and I own Bradford Bakery. I started in the culinary industry 15 years ago and have done everything from restaurants to the Dalai Lama’s 80th birthday cake and celebrity catering events.
Our customers reach out to us because they know they are getting quality products that will meet the needs of their event and their dietary restrictions if they have any! We are a favorite of our local community and love that people are spreading the word about our business to their friends which we are seeing in our growing client list! Even in the past few months we have seen a 550% increase in our SEO on google and filled more orders for the community just by them recommending us and searching us on the web!
Learn more about starting a catering business:
Where to start?
-> How much does it cost to start a catering business?
-> Pros and cons of a catering business
Need inspiration?
-> Examples of established catering business
-> Marketing ideas for a catering business
-> Catering business slogans
-> Catering business names
-> Catering business Instagram bios
-> Catering business Instagram captions
Other resources
-> Catering business tips
-> Email templates for a catering business
-> Blog post ideas for a catering business
4. Truffle Tangles By ILA ($45K/year)
Home bakeries are not only about having a strong passion for baking but also about management and earning by baking
Ila Prakash Singh (from Gurugram, Haryana, India) started Truffle Tangles By ILA over 16 years ago.
- Ila Prakash Singh started her home bakery and catering business in 2007 with just Rs. 5,000.
- Before starting her journey as a business woman, she spent around a decade working in the hospitality industory. She also worked for renowned hospitality giants like such as the Sheraton Hotel and Taj
- Her home-run bakery is called Truffle Triangles and presently she is selling baked items worth of approx Rs. 10,000/day.

Read the full story on whatshot.in ➜
6. Teranga ($580K/year)
Pierre Thiam was robbed within days of arriving in New York City. It was 1989, and he had just traveled to the U.S. from Senegal to study chemistry and physics. This chance incident, however, set Pierre’s life on an entirely different course. Today, he’s a renowned chef, restaurant owner, cookbook a…
Pierre Thiam and Noah Levine (from New York, NY, USA) started Teranga over 5 years ago.
Pierre Thiam & Noah Levine co-founded Teranga, an African superfood joint and catering business. The business focuses on supplying a fresh new take on African food culture. The acclaimed Senegal-born chef and cookbook author Pierre runs it.
It offers a culinary lens into Africa through African-grown ingredients and flavors dating back to colonization. The name Teranga translates to “good hospitality” in Senegalese, although it’s a fast-casual spot.
Pierre Thiam is a renowned chef, author, and social activist best known for bringing West African cuisine to the global fine-dining world. Pierre has cooked for numerous government officials, including the King of Morocco, French President Emmanuel Macron, and Former UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon.
He has authored three cookbooks, including The Fonio Cookbook: An Ancient Grain Rediscovered (2019), Senegal: Modern Senegalese Recipes from the Source to the Bowl (2015), and Yolele! Recipes From the Heart of Senegal (2008). He has won numerous awards and accolades for his cooking and advocacy.
Co-founder Noah is a social entrepreneur who creates purpose-driven enterprises that have a significant effect. Since 2012, Noah has served as the Executive Director of SEED Project, an educational non-profit that employs basketball to train African leaders in Senegal, West Africa.
Teranga’s tradition-inspired seasonal menus focus on creating bowls with African grains like Liberian ruby red rice, the ancient grain fonio, or attieke, a fermented cassava couscous. Diners can add proteins like roasted salmon with Moroccan spices, free-range grilled chicken, or vegan options.
Key information:
- African restaurants are rare treasures in New York, and Teranga has drawn the culinarily curious from across the city.
- Pierre Thiam serves on the Board of Directors for IDEO, SOS Sahel, and CorpsAfrica, as well as on the African Cuisine Advisory Board from the Culinary Institute of America.
- Teranga works like most of these build-a-bowl places: select a base, a protein, a couple of sides, and a sauce.

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