Today we’d like to introduce you to Chester Chambers. Them and their team share their story with us below:
Chester Chambers learned about plant-based living in 2017. He spent two years cooking for himself and others, and during the process, he realized his food could introduce a unique angle to the Houston vegan food scene.
In October 2019, Chester recruited Paige Daniels and started Bloom Foods. They served salads, dips, sandwiches, sauces, and more using ingredients from local farms like Plant It Forward, Sustainable Vegetable Garden, and Gundermann Acres. After a few months of product testing, they decided to focus on hand-crafting plant-based burgers with amazing local flavors.
When the pandemic hit Houston, Paige and Chester spent time visiting local farms, getting to know their farmers, and trying new flavors and ingredients. They invented a burger every week and created videos to share the process with their growing following. Some of their most popular creations were the Orca Smash Burger, Chana Masala Burger, and Chipotle Pink Bean Burger.
At the beginning of 2021, they got back into the pop-up scene at events like Vegan State Fair, Axelrad, and Urban Harvest Farmer’s Market. You can now find their burgers and nuggets on the shelves of Henderson and Kane and Kickin’ Kombucha. In October, they successfully completed a crowdfunding campaign to get their new food truck onto the road – making their seasonal menu of burgers, nuggets, tacos, and more accessible throughout the city.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
Starting our food business right before COVID definitely presented challenges. We made the most of it by creating content to build community, and we came out of lockdown with a long list of recipes to use throughout the year.
Operating a food business out of a tent is also quite challenging. We have cooked in the hottest days of the summer and the coldest evenings in the winter, with lots of rain and wind in between. We are very excited to be in a food truck so that we can stay safe and dry while serving food any day of the year.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know?
Bloom Foods is a plant-based kitchen serving food with intention. We focus on real food, local partners, community connection, and food education. Our food is vegan, but more importantly, it is plant-based. We use local ingredients, and a lot of the time, we know exactly who picked our food and when it was harvested.
We serve made-to-order food at farmer’s markets, events, and bars. We also sell our hand-made burger patties and nuggets in the frozen sections of Henderson and Kane and Kickin’ Kombucha.
What do you like and dislike about the city?
We love the people in Houston – and the diversity they bring in culture and food.
We dislike the traffic.
Contact Info:
- Email: contact@eatbloom.com
- Website: http://eatbloom.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bloomfoodshtx/
- Facebook: https://facebook.com/bloomfoodshtx
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/bloomfoodshtx
- Youtube: https://youtube.com/bloomfoodshtx
- Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/bloom-foods-houston
Image Credits
Setsvn
