Meet Raymond & Denise Kelly of The Chef & The Planner in Loganville

Today we’d like to introduce you to Raymond & Denise Kelly.

Raymond & Denise Kelly, also known as “The Dynamic Duo of Catering and Events”, have honed their gifts to marry his expressive zest for the culinary arts and her ardent zeal for visual design, to embrace their fervor for catering, event design, and hospitality.   Together they reign supreme with a client base that spans from New York to Atlanta, rolling out the Red Carpet to capture a client’s vision and create the celebration of their dreams.

Raymond is a graduate of the Arts Institute, where he acquired various certificates in Culinary Arts and the Food Service Industry.  He has showcased his talents, serving with prestigious culinary teams and has collaborated with some of the industries finest culinarians in highly esteemed establishments such as The Lincroft Inn, The Speak Easy, The Newark Club and NOBU Next Door.

Denise is also an entrepreneur, having owned several businesses in which she utilizes her skills to tap into God’s creativity, often creating works of art through computer imaging, home decorating, fashion and Special Event Design.  She has also attended various courses in which she has further enhanced her gifts and talents.

Together they have crafted a myriad of events, from intimate dinners and private functions to large scale conferences, corporate and institutional events.  Raymond’s quest to prepare the highest quality, freshest and tastefully satisfying dishes, coupled with Denise’s flare for event planning and design, have made them hospitality dynamos.

They began their culinary journey over two decades ago, often catering to friends, family, and private events. Their love for good food and good times have led them to where they are today. They began catering under the name “Say Your Blessing” in 1998. Delivering Friday lunches to places of employment around New York City. They then expanded to catering part-time for events such as Family Reunions, Church Events, and Private Parties.

In 2012, after going through some challenging times, Raymond and Denise decided to relocate their family to Atlanta, Georgia. After a few months, the church they attended enlisted their help in planning an Anniversary Celebration for its Pastors. They once again were back in action. Him as the Chef and her as the planner….Thus the new name was born….and they haven’t looked back since!

Has it been a smooth road?
If you’re not going through challenges, then you’re not going anywhere! There will always be challenges…but the greatest reward is overcoming them.

One of the biggest challenges anyone can ever face is “Public Opinion”, especially when it comes from respected places. We have had people we’ve loved, “wise-Counsel” and others try to dictate our timing. We’ve heard, “Not yet”, “It’s not the right time” and “Are you sure you heard from God?” an unprecedented amount of times. It’s easy to get discouraged, when others cast a seed of doubt. People pleasing is often the first hurdle one needs to get over. But once you do, you begin to see the possibilities and the open doors like never before. I’m glad we finally decided to close our ears to the naysayers and open our ears to the will of God for our lives.

The second biggest challenge was getting strangers to believe in our vision. It takes a lot of patience to market yourself because you need to stay humble. I heard someone say “Stay small enough long enough, you’ll grow big enough soon enough!” It’s hard to convince others of your BIG VISION. Staying humble and having faith in yourself allows you to continue to hold your head high even when you get a “No”. When we moved to Atlanta we knew very few people. When I say a few, I mean you can count them on one hand, and some of those were in the same family. We had to learn a whole new land, a whole new demand, not knowing what to expect!

Acquiring clientele has required a lot of research and trial and error.

So, as you know, we’re impressed with The Chef & The Planner – tell our readers more, for example what you’re most proud of as a company and what sets you apart from others.
The Chef & The Planner is a husband and wife team that is setting the bar high for the catering industry. We cater to social, private and public events from New York to Atlanta. We specialize in good food, serving eclectic cuisine. But not only do we make our food taste good, it also looks good. We take our client’s vision and turn it up a notch. It is often unexpected but always well accepted, It won’t leave our kitchen unless it has both elements, taste and beauty! I have seen a lot of caterers under embellish. You eat with your eyes first. Beauty before taste. It’s got to be visually appealing as well. If we’re doing drop-off catering, we don’t just drop-off. We make sure that the food is not only properly handled, but it is also properly placed, giving it the best visual for the guests. We make sure the décor is on point, coordinating with the clients overall theme and color schemes.

What also sets us apart from others is that we put people ahead of profits. Everyone deserves to be celebrated at one point of another. Unfortunately, we don’t all have a rock star budget. Which is why we try to work with every client, giving them 5-star service, no matter what the budget.

We are also proud to engage in our community. We have committed ourselves to helping those less fortunate by donating food products to the local food bank, cooking dinner for families in residential facilities and consistently going on the streets of Atlanta to provide hot cooked meals for the homeless.

Food is our “Ministry” and we are happy to do it together!

Let’s touch on your thoughts about our city – what do you like the most and least?
Atlanta is a far cry from New York City where we were raised and spent the formative years of our marriage. The warmth of Atlanta is a far cry from the cold streets of the Big Apple. A wave and a “Good Morning” go a long, long way. They best fit our persona and we have acclimated well. We have a love for people and Atlanta makes that love a little easier. We also like the fact that it is more family oriented.

What we like least about the city is seeing the adversity of so many on our streets. It seems like we should be able to give more, do more, be more to the ones that need help the most.

Contact Info:

• Address: Loganville, Georgia
• Website:www.thechefntheplanner.com
• Phone: 770-265-7734
• Email: chefnplanner@gmail.com
• Instagram: bossladyexec
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/chefnplanner
• Twitter: twitter.com/chefnplanner
• Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/the-chef-and-the-planner-catering-and-events-loganville
• Other: https://www.weddingwire.com/biz/the-chef-the-planner-loganville/57a9525b6d5ef77c.html