Meet Allen Guy

Today we’d like to introduce you to Allen Guy.

So, before we jump into specific questions about the business, why don’t you give us some details about you and your story.
I first fell in love with food when I was around eight years old. My dad loves to cook and I would always watch him in the kitchen. My favorite part about being with him is that whenever we would go to a restaurant, he would let me order whatever I wanted on the menu. As a kid i thought that was so cool and I was always excited about being able to try something new & different. My mom loves to cook also. So much that she would actually make breakfast, lunch, and dinner for us almost every day. She’s a school bus driver so during her break she’d spend it cooking for us most of the time. So, I always enjoyed home cooked meals versus fast food restaurants because of that. The first food I ever attempted to cook was eggs, scrambled eggs. They came out pretty good, I’m assuming because it’s like the easiest thing to make in the world. Over time I started trying to cook more for myself, especially when I moved out of my mom’s house. I would always call her or my dad asking for recipes, now it’s like they call me asking for tips. LOL. I definitely had some meals I prepared that were not so great, but I would always try again to work on whatever mistakes I noticed. I enrolled at the Art Institute Of Houston in the spring of 2014 for their Culinary Arts program. I learned so much while I was there and I’m literally in the position I’m in because of that place. I graduated Summer of 2016, with an Associate’s of Applied Science in Culinary Arts degree. When I first started going to school for this, honestly, I never thought about making a business out of it. I never worked in a restaurant and never had the desire to, I just really loved to cook. I would always post pictures of food that I made in class and at home on social media to share my journey with everyone. Then from there, people started reaching out for pricing on catering to small events. People at my full-time job where I work, would always pay me to cook for them and make lunch plates. So this whole business started with people wanting food that I posted on social media. Over time I’ve learned so much more that I wasn’t able to learn in school. About being consistent with product & pricing, making sure that my customers who spend their hard earned money are completely satisfied with my service and just about the ins and outs of starting a business. Its been a lot of hard work, but I know this is part of my purpose here on earth!

Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
Honestly, so far it’s been a smooth road. Partly because I still work full time, so I always have that to fall back on. My business has grown tremendously and I’m consistently busy nowadays. Eventually I’ll be leaving my full-time job later this year, so I’m sure things will be different but I finally feel like I’m ready for that transition. Some of my struggles along the way have really just been opening up to share my gift with the world. Being scared of public perception was a battle for me when I started to share my work. I have really tough skin when it comes to everyday life, but humans can be tough critics so I was nervous about sharing and inviting all those different opinions in. So I wanted to learn as much as possible before sharing my work professionally, just so that I can already kind of set myself up for the most positive feedback. Of course there are some people who you’re just not going to be able to impress. But as long as I leave a positive mark on a bigger percentage, thats what brings me peace. Also, juggling school & work while I was getting my degree was one of the hardest times in my life. I was so exhausted, but grateful for the experience now that I look back on it with all that I’ve learned.

Please tell us about Food Vibes by Allen Guy.
So as of now I currently offer event catering, meal prep options for customers who are trying to eat healthier or for customers who just simply don’t have time to cook or go out to eat. So they can select the meals of their choice to have on hand at their home. I also offer pop up lunches in the downtown area. This started with people at my full-time job asking me to bring them food and it just grew from there. So, whenever I have free time during the week, I will make meals that change weekly to accommodate 40-50 of my followers who are available during the time that I’m offering the special. I think my food style can be classified taste wise, as a mix between American & Cajun cuisine. I grew up on southern/soul food so that’s always a great avenue for me as well. I love taking foods from different cultures and giving them an urban cajun/soul food kind of twist. Usually works out pretty good now that I’ve had a lot of practice with all the different flavors. I’m most proud of how far I’ve come over the past couple of years. I kind of just been winging it since I left school, with no clear career path on what I wanted to do. During this process of growing along the way, I’ve made some mistakes that I’ve had to learn from. But What sets me apart from a lot of people is that I’m super passionate about how my work is presented and received. For some people, it’s just about the hustle and the extra money but for me its more about the experience and connecting with all of my customers on a deeper level through the food. Which is why I’m just now getting to a place that I’m working with my team on getting a food truck business started to be opened by Fall 2019. I have tried my best to take my time and do what I feel is best for me & so far it has worked in my favor.

If you had to go back in time and start over, would you have done anything differently?
Honestly, nothing that I can think of off top. I’d like to think of myself as someone who makes the best out of any situation. Although things may not always go as planned or how we’d like for them to go, you just have to keep pushing. Mistakes are one of the biggest parts of our lives in my opinion. Although we don’t necessarily have to experience a mistake in order to learn, I’ve learned some of my greatest lessons from the mistakes that I’ve made. There was a situation recently that I was cooking for some coworkers and nothing was going right. All because I didn’t manage my time correctly and found myself rushing. So, it was a tough day that brought me to tears but as always I made the best of it. Looking back on it, there were some things I could have done differently. But more importantly, for me was the mistakes that I made at that moment, so that I can learn from them and make sure they never happen again.

Contact Info:

• Email: chefallenguy@gmail.com
• Instagram: instagram.com/chefallenguy

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