Feb 7, 2023
In Part 2, we continue our talk with Dontaye. He dives into his
own history of cooking and working in restaurants. It starts with a
program he got into in high school that had him serving meals to
non-English speakers in Burlingame and goes up through his time
doing an externship at Delfina. Delfina happened while
Dontaye went to City College, but the story of how he got connected
is more direct than that.
We talk in some depth about Delfina, including a nurturing
environment that its owners, Craig and Annie Stoll, have created.
Dontaye also was able to go to France as part of his program at
City College, which happened during his externship at Delfina. He
ended up being on the team that opened the first Pizzeria Delfina.
Then we really dive into gumbo. Dontaye remembers the dish being
made regularly at his house, and he describes lively scenes
involving his grandmother as the conductor, working at a cast iron
skillet slowly developing the roux.
Many years later, Gumbo Social got its
start when Dontaye wanted to do something food-centered to bring
people together. He wanted something edgy and controversial but
also appetizing. He started making gumbo for friends with shellfish
allergies, for example, which had him tweaking the recipes a little
depending on who would be eating it. Because the gumbo was being
served at private gatherings with friends and loved ones, the
social component was baked in. He was falling in love with it
all.
With pop-up days starting in the morning, they needed a breakfast
item—the breakfast sandwich was born. Originally, it was meant to
feed the farmers at the markets, but it was so popular that they
added it to the menu.
He never envisioned a restaurant. But he started to crunch the
numbers for the pop-up, and around that time, an opportunity
presented itself. It's pretty much as simple as that. Gumbo Social
will open its doors on Third Street this spring. Follow them on
social media or check back with us for an exact date.