Today we’d like to introduce you to Shannae.
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
Although the journey has not been so sweet, we look forward to pivoting to a more product and exclusive service-based business. The COVID-19 Pandemic proved to be a blessing and a curse to many businesses like ours. We were able to analyze and evaluate product and customer interests. The economy will forever be up and down, but the interests of most consumers will remain the same as creatures of habit. We continue to work on our menu items and branding. One thing I will say as the owner and CEO is that I have been running this business since undergrad and now Grad school; how an entrepreneur strives is always underestimated by the products/presentation.
This is no overnight success but a journey of passion and experience. I started out watching Food Network at the age of seven and have been printing out and exploring recipes since then. I began baking and cooking at the age of eight. My mom allowed me to use the microwave when I graduated from my Easy Bake oven. Being from London, my mom taught me how to make traditional English breakfast and we often made and enjoyed slightly burnt toast with melted butter and cheese (lol, iykyk). When I was able to use the stove at 10, I always felt accomplished and satisfied with the response from my family members after enjoying the dishes I made. I became most confident and successful at baking first; hence the cupcakery start. I often baked with my late Dad, and cooking dinner on weekends before my mom came home from work was our thing. Being from Puerto Rico he taught me how to make traditional Puerto Rican Pallela, Tostones, and Rice Pudding. My Mom and Dad both taught me how to make Traditional Lasagna but my Dad was definitely the Lasagna champion in my household but- I like to think I now carry the title. I also baked and cooked often with my older cousin, whom I affectionately call Auntie. She taught me how to carve fruit into animals like swans and how to make traditional Thai-style Spring Rolls and lots of Asian-inspired dishes and of course traditional Jamaican dishes. She once owned a restaurant in Queens, NY, and that is when I experienced the restaurant business. I helped out in the take-out area on occasion. On Sunday mornings, growing up in a Jamaican household, my late Great-Aunt would have us cooking dinner before church. This entailed me and my cousin (her daughter) beating the pimento seeds in a paper towel with a mallet on the floor and the garlic on the counter, for traditional dishes like stew chicken and rice and peas (with pigeon peas of course). This was my journey to now and my why.
Thanks – so, what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
I am an HR Professional of over 10 years and a new MBA graduate. I am a people person, yet an Ambivert; I enjoy cooking and baking. I hold a certification in Wedding and Event Planning thus, I am multi-talented with three other businesses (they all tie in together).
Today, I am most proud of the events and people we were able to reach. I see Artistic Delights as a tasteful movement. Centering Health and Wellness, we use fresh, organic, and natural ingredients in all of our menu items. We make 99% of items from scratch and with love- Love is our first ingredient and most prominent. We are most known for our signature Carrot cake and our take on my late Aunt’s Jamaican Black Cake. Partnering with My Wedding and Event Planning Business, SimBlissity, LLC we held Annual Mother’s Day Tea’s up until Lockdown when we held our first virtual one. As well as our Luau BBQs and Christmas vendor parties.
We hope to bring back these events by the end of this year into Spring of next year with our Mother’s Day Tea, held the day before Mother’s Day.
On the Catering and savory front, we are most known for our wings and appetizer-style dishes, from hand-rolled Spring rolls to our kababs. During the Summer months and Holidays, most customers order sides like our four Cheese Mac and Cheese and Jerk Chicken wings.
Lastly, I will say I am also proud of our Plant-based line which we launched five years ago and has been a huge success since then. Some of our most popular items are now in full size, as we started as bites. Our “Big Belly Mon” contains our Plant-based baked Mac and cheese, stewed veggies, and sweet fried plantain. Our goal here was to provide tasteful knowledge and omit ignorance regarding eating more vegetables and how to incorporate them in the Caribbean, Hispanic/Latin, and African American communities. Often, the words vegan and vegetarian receive a negative connotation. So, by providing similarly tasting items without processed vegan meats, etc., we have reached over 100 people in this launch and hope to reach hundreds more people, and their palettes- fore, not all tastebuds are alike.
What do you think about happiness?
I think happiness comes from doing the things you love and are passionate about. Happiness with Artistic Delights is seeing others excited to try our Menu items at a Marketplace or other events and watching them enjoy it. We are also happy when we meet other entrepreneurs in the Caribbean, Hispanic/Latin, and African American communities who genuinely are excited to meet us and try our products. Often our people try to compete and eliminate, but that’s not us- So, when we find our like-minded kin folk, it brings me personally- much joy! Networking is a game. Sometimes you’ll win by finding new teammates (friends) in business. Some become friends of a lifetime, like my good friend Jameelah of Enhance by Nature and Fatima Samad of Design by U Essentials. These ladies were my vendors or a vendor I met at an event and now are solid in our sisterhood. That- is priceless- knowing there’s a real community to be built and collaborating with one another is key!
Pricing:
- Candles start at $18
- Jamaican Black Cake start at $45
- Appetizers start at $35 p/doz
- Plant-based items at $35 p/doz
- Gift sets start at $40
Contact Info:
- Website: Artisticdelightsbk.com
- Instagram: ArtisticDelights
- Facebook: ArtisticDelights