Hermiston herald., September 09, 2020, Page 8, Image 8

BUSINESS
A8 • HERMISTONHERALD.COM
WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 9, 2020
In-home catering comes to Hermiston
Gusto’! Made From Scratch off ers
menus to meet many needs, including
vegetarian and gluten-free
By JADE MCDOWELL
NEWS EDITOR
What do you do when opening a restau-
rant is your dream, but a global pandemic
keeps shutting restaurants down?
In Kylara Ward’s case, you get creative
with your business model.
“I thought, what if we can bring it to
you?” she said.
Ward has launched an in-home catering
business called Gusto’! Made From Scratch
that brings a chef directly into customers’
kitchens. The business offers three differ-
ent levels of service, starting with one-time
events, such as a party or a romantic date
night dinner at home.
Customers can also have a chef come
in once or twice a week and do some meal
prep cooking that will help feed them
throughout the week, or, at the highest
level of service, can have someone come
in and cook for them as often as three
meals a day.
Ward said they can work with people
to come up with a schedule that is right for
them, and to create menus that cater to their
personal preferences and any dietary needs,
from vegetarianism to gluten-free to special
diets, such as Keto.
“Ask, and if we think it’s unrealistic, we
will tell you,” she said. “We’re a very small
group, but we will do what we can.”
Ward recently retired from about nine
years of military service, and said she worked
for a local Hermiston restaurant before cre-
ating a blog about Italian food. She said
she has always known she wanted to work
with food, but knew that opening a restau-
rant during the pandemic would be nearly
impossible. When a massive wind storm tore
down trees and fences all over Hermiston at
the end of May, she got the idea to prepare
premade lasagnas to donate to families that
were affected, so they could just pop them in
the oven and cook them.
“I realized I didn’t have the materials to
cut down trees, but I did have the materials
These dishes are some
examples of meals
and desserts prepared
by Gusto’! Made from
Scratch, a new in-
home catering service
in Hermiston.
to provide meals for people cutting down
trees,” she said.
From there, Gusto’! Made From Scratch
was born. Ward said while some people are
willing to risk the consequences of getting
caught selling food to strangers from their
unlicensed home kitchen, she is intent on
following all rules. That means for now,
what she and her small group of cooks are
licensed for is only preparing meals for peo-
ple in the same home or business where they
are to be consumed. They can’t cook it else-
where and bring it in.
The business has built up a good amount
of cooking supplies, from spatulas to blend-
ers, however, so Ward said people don’t have
to worry that their kitchen is inadequate.
Gusto’ employees will bring all supplies
needed, including food purchased according
to the customer’s wishes, whether they want
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the shopping list to be all organic or focus
on fi nding the cheapest ingredients. Dishes
and cleanup after the meal are also provided.
Even though it is a challenging time to
be opening a new business, Ward said she is
looking forward to the challenge.
“I’m really excited to be here,” she said.
For more information, call 253-459-9854
or visit the “Gusto’ — Hermiston” Facebook
page.
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