Today we’d like to introduce you to Dany Kamkhagi.
Dany, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
Mostly Chocolate & Catering is a family-owned and operated business, based in Houston, TX, that specializes in full-food catering services and hand-crafted artisanal chocolate truffles. With a focus on premier customer service, we offer our clients a fully customized experience with high-end chocolates, refined dishes, and beautiful presentations. With a local office and corporate kitchen, we work with each client on a case-by-case basis to personalize menu items and create unforgettable, high quality experiences. The company was founded in 2004 by my mother, Rina Kamkhagi and my father, husband, David Kamkhagi. Raised in Lebanon with a passionate love of food, mom was taught by her mother to create unique Lebanese dishes and pastries. As a child, my mother inherited my grandmother’s patience and dedication, quickly becoming a whiz in the kitchen and creating endless crowd pleasers. After living in various places around the globe, my parents settled into Houston, Texas and continued to amaze our family and friends with her decadent dishes and desserts. She realized that her passion and talents were more than just a hobby when she created a pistachio filled chocolate pastry over Thanksgiving. Her friends were astonished by the texture and taste, and she was convinced to replicate the pastry for a friend’s daughter’s wedding. From there, the demand and publicity grew, and Mostly Chocolate was open for business. In an effort to expand her capabilities, my mom completed specialty courses with local Houston chef and chocolatier, Ana Gomes. Additionally, she attended The Chocolate Academy in Sainte Hyacinthe, in Montreal, Quebec, with world-renowned chocolatier Christophe Morel. A few years later, my mom’s customers began approaching her for more than just desserts, which sparked the addition of the catering piece of the business. Her scope quickly grew to include gourmet truffles and dessert tables, as well as full catering services for private and corporate events.
I joined the company in 2011 and became the head chocolatier in 2015 in order to expand our customer base. Since then, we’ve won three Dessert Grand Champion Buckle awards at the HLSR Best Bites competition for the Goat Cheese truffle, Pecan Pie truffle, and Hazelnut & Poprocks.
Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
It hasn’t been too rough, but our initial challenges definitely had to do with learning about the market and the uncertainty of taking a gamble on ourselves. We started very small working from home, and didn’t take any loans. The financial pressure was on, and we didn’t really have much of a direction or a brand. But as the years went by, we found new stepping stones and slowly established new goals, and eventually moved into an industrial kitchen, which definitely paid off as we continue to grow!
Please tell us about Mostly Chocolate & Catering.
Mostly Chocolate & Catering is a family-owned and operated business, based in Houston, TX, that specializes in full-food catering services and hand-crafted artisanal chocolate truffles. We are known for our premier customer service, and for providing a fully customized experience with high-end chocolates, refined dishes, and beautiful presentations. I am the head Chocolatier and my mother runs the catering portion.
If you had to go back in time and start over, would you have done anything differently?
Nothing. I think that everything happens for a reason, and all of the mistakes we’ve made in the past have made us stronger today.
Contact Info:
- Address: 1050 N Post Oak Rd. Suite 220
Houston, TX 77055 - Website: mostlychocolatecatering.com
- Phone: (713) 446-5826 /(832) 647-8955
- Email: info@mostlychocolatecatering.com
- Instagram: http://bit.ly/mostlychocolateINSTAGRAM
- Facebook: http://bit.ly/mostlychocolateFACEBOOK
- Yelp: http://bit.ly/mostlychocolateYELP
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