Today we’d like to introduce you to Kathleen Barbato.
Thanks for sharing your story with us Kathleen. So, let’s start at the beginning and we can move on from there.
Founder of 3 Italian Sisters Homestyle Cooking Classes, culinary adventure tours and food blogger, my passion for fine Italian food started early on inspired by my parents and their love of family, food and tradition. From a very young age, I was eager to learn how to make fresh pasta, create sauces and blend flavors. And at age 16, my sister and I were put in charge of having dinner ready every night for our family of six when my parents bought a business and my mother went off to work for the first time. It wasn’t always fun cooking every night but we learned a lot and had fun together experimenting and creating new dishes. My childhood memories are full of senses and flavors, family gatherings and celebrations. We cherished our trips to the Italian market where we would select the freshest vegetables, sample an assortment cured meats, cheeses and olives and then headed to the bakery for a warm loaves of crispy bread and sweet sfogliatelle pastry fresh out of the oven. Little did I know how these experiences would impact my life and future.
My first of many trips to Italy began at age eighteen. Each trip thereafter has given me a true appreciation for the Italian culture, its people and lifestyle. The simplicity of their dishes are very much like my mothers and I never tire of going back to learn and experience the beauty and warmth of its people as it continues to inspire me to follow my passion for cooking and sharing the wealth of food knowledge with others. After raising a family and having a successful career in healthcare and business marketing, I moved to SC, built a new home and a new kitchen and in 2014, and “3 Italian Sisters Homestyle Cooking Classes” was born. Five years later, it’s become a local hit and my daughters have become involved an intricate part of the business. Even though they live in three different states, they have join forces to help me design a blog and integrated into social networking. We hosted our first culinary adventure tour to Tuscany, Italy in 2016 and will be hosting our 3rd tour in 2020. Our plans for this year is to expand the cooking classes to national audience via TV and live videos, publish a cookbook and expand our culinary adventure tours to different regions of Italy. It is an exciting time and we feel blessed to share our love and passion for family, food and living well.
Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
Like every new business, we have had growing pains. Having my daughters in three different states makes it difficult for them to participate in all the cooking events and tours. Therefore, the time required to take the business to the next level of growth has been challenging.
Please tell us about 3 Italian Sisters.
Our cooking classes are still the most popular venue. Although organizing and planning each event requires detailed planning and time, it is always such a pleasure to see complete strangers become friends in the kitchen and work together to create a beautiful meal. I guess we are known for introducing our audience to wide variety of Italian dishes from all the different regions of Italy and introducing them to food they may have never tried before. I always strive to cook seasonally and use the freshest ingredients I can find. Of course, the menu has to be appealing, fun to prepare and consistently delicious. Thankfully, our growing number of patrons has been a testament to our success. Many patrons are repeat customers and attend every class just to socialize and develop new friendships and our popularity has organically grown just from word of mouth. What sets us apart from others is that we introduce our guests to the beauty of the Italian cuisine and create an unforgettable food experience to inspire them to recreate the passion of cooking in their own kitchen. Our slogan is “Taste the Passion! as our food is always be prepared with heart and passion.
If you had to go back in time and start over, would you have done anything differently?
I would create a centralized kitchen location where my daughters and I can all come together to support each other’s creativity and ideas and so we can take this business to the next level of growth.
Contact Info:
- Address: 1072 Wigeon Drive, Conway, SC -29526 – main location
private classes are also conducted in Canton, Georgia, Sarasota Florida, Philadelphia Pa. - Website: 3italiansisters.com
- Phone: 843-855-8768
- Email: 3italiansisters@gmail.com
- Instagram: @3italiansisters
- Facebook: 3 Italian Sisters
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