A Passionate Bunch

Open Kitchen Feeds Entrepreneurial Spirit

By Aisha Salazar

Open Kitchen truly understands its clients.

It was almost three years ago when owner Hue-Chan Karels was in the same shoes as them, looking for a place to prepare and develop her artisan cookie business. So began her quest to find an affordable and flexible kitchen where she could legally produce her product.

While conducting an extensive two-year survey, Karels and her husband, John, met chef Bernard Henry, who was also looking to transition from the corporate world into the culinary world. After looking for a place to start their small culinary company, David and Holly Camalier also joined. The collaboration resulted in Open Kitchen: a place where people could eat, cook and entertain.

It wasn’t long before clients began pouring in.

Asmaa Benkhraba is co-owner of Gateau Juliette, a family-run Moroccan bakery. Cooking skills run in the family; she works with her two brothers and her cousins to make traditional pastries using fresh and healthy ingredients. Though they have only been working for a few months, they hope to one day open the first Moroccan bakery in Northern Virginia. Until then, she makes her delectable treats at Open Kitchen, which she believes is the right place to grow her business.

For Maureen Lalor of The Unintentional Chef, it all began with a Christmas gift. Her husband gave her a one-on-one cooking session with Open Kitchen executive chef Henry, and soon things began taking off with her marinades.

“[It’s] almost like a science project because you’re creating new things,” Lalor says.

Alison McConnell Pierce of The Humble Gourmand was a financial journalist who turned her love of healthy foods into a new career. To make the transition, she took cooking courses at L’Academie de Cuisine during the evenings.

In the summer of 2009 she traded pen for spatula. Pierce now delivers prepared meals and has a buyers’ club in Arlington for those interested in fresh, natural and organic foods from local farms. The meals are ideal for people who are constantly on the run but interested in supporting local agriculture.

“They all have a passion that motivates them to take the next path forward,” Karels says of the aspiring hospitality professionals.

Space Invaders
Although there are other commercial kitchens in the area that rent out space, none are as unique as Open Kitchen. It’s not just a rental kitchen. Open Kitchen can be transformed from a bistro to a cooking class venue and provides catering services and a small market.

As customers wine and dine in the bistro at the front of the house, clients use the timeshare kitchens in the back to create their own works of art. Clients can choose from the Santa Fe Kitchen, designed for caterers, personal chefs or artisanal food producers, and the Tuscany Kitchen, designed for baking needs.

For catering operations like Cyrus Coleman’s Ripe Food & Events, it’s difficult to keep a company running afloat without a place like Open Kitchen. While Coleman had explored other options, none seemed to be the right fit (other kitchens seemed too industrial).

But he believes the Open Kitchen bistro could prove useful if he decides to do an event in the future.

“It’s a good concept. It’s easier to put out high-level, quality food,” chef Chris Buckler, who works with Coleman, says. “The equipment and products make a chef’s job easier.”

Pierce uses the kitchen to prepare her clients’ meals and finds the spotless, brand-new facility favorable. She likes knowing that everything will be exactly where she needs it and that an Open Kitchen staff member is always available while she uses the kitchen.

Sage Advice
While Karels’ own cookie business plans are on hold for now, she helps others work toward their culinary ambitions. She spends the majority of her time at Open Kitchen, chatting with customers, overseeing every portion of the restaurant and advising clients.

Open Kitchen welcomes all kinds of clients, ranging from baked goods to catering companies. For several clients, having a business background has proven invaluable in making the transition to full-blown entrepreneurship.

The staff at Open Kitchen provides guidance, support and exposure. They help clients understand the fundamentals of running a business, interpret health and food safety regulations and provide a space to legally create their product.

Open Kitchen’s amicable relationship with the Fairfax County Health Department and the Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services is crucial for clients, who have to comply with state and local guidelines. The constant inspections keep Open Kitchen’s standards high and help keep them honest with their customers and clients.

After having worked in an idea incubator of her own, Rebel Heroes co-owner Tan Nguyen finds that “Hue-Chan’s willingness to help others with their business by sharing her space and resources is a great model for other business owners to aspire to.”

Whether customers are eating or clients are cooking, it’s all about the love of food at Open Kitchen.

It’s the kind of space Karels envisioned for culinary entrepreneurs like herself.

To learn more about Open Kitchen or its clients, please visit: openkitchen-dcmetro.com/chefstimesharekitchens.

Open Kitchen alumni include:

- American Catering Inc
– Chez Bienvenu Cuisine
– Cookies to Cocktails
- Creative Gourmet Catering
– Gateau Juliette/FHATZ, LLC
- Humble Gourmand
- Mama Maples
- Rebel Heroes, LLC
- Ripe Food & Events
- Simsima Catering
- The Unintentional Chef