Q & A: Caryn Roland of Heirloom Cuisine

Sponsored by Heirloom Cuisine

Caryn Roland, manager of the catering company Heirloom Cuisine, chats about her years of event experience, her husband and partner Chef Jason Roland, and the attention to detail that has brought their company fifteen years of success.

Q: Why did you and Chef Jason Roland decide to start your own catering company?

Caryn: Both Jason and I have extensive experience in restaurants and hotels. We met at the Windsor Court Hotel, where we both worked back in the ‘90s, when it was rated the number one hotel in the world! From there, we traveled to other four- and five-star hotels in Aspen, Newport, and Naples. We moved back to Louisiana to start a family and follow our passion.

Q: What kinds of events do you cater?

Caryn: Just about anything you need food for! Most of our events are wedding receptions and galas, but we also do corporate events and bar and bat mitzvahs.

Q: With your experience as an event coordinator, what would you say Heirloom offers that goes above and beyond catering?

Caryn: I come from a hotel background and when doing events in hotels, there is a hand-off that happens, meaning the person the client has dealt with is not the person running the show the night of the event. When that happens, things fall through the cracks. When we decided to start Heirloom Cuisine, I knew from the beginning I wanted things to be different.  From day one with Heirloom Cuisine, our clients work directly with my Catering Manager, Britni Matassa, and/or myself. We do not book more than two events in a day because it is important that one of us is at every event to make sure no details are left undone.

We also like to be very hands-on in the planning of the event. Guest flow is very important. We work very hard with our clients to create the best possible flow during their events. This often means we create the layout/diagram for not only the food tables and the bars, but also the guest seating tables. I often say to my clients, “Hire the vendors you trust, and trust the vendors you hire.”

Q: How specifically do you work with a client to create a catering spread that fits their vision?

Caryn: We talk to our clients about who they are feeding, what their vision is for the event, what kinds of food they like, or what they would like to showcase at the event. Then we figure out what their budget is and how we can combine the different food options into a menu that works for their event and budget. It sometimes takes a little time to create a custom menu, but we enjoy getting to know our clients in the process and have a lot of fun coming up with new and different menu ideas. A lot of our regular menu items were once someone’s special request that turned out to be a big hit!

Q: Do some people come to you with a general idea, and let you sort out the rest?

Caryn: Yes. And it’s so fun. In fact, my Catering Manager and I just met with a client yesterday and literally high-fived each other when she said we could have the run of the show!

Q: I’m sure your job allows you to be creative. What’s your most recent favorite example of something a little different, that maybe you don’t see at a catered event every day?

Caryn: Gosh, we do so many things. We did a really cool seafood paella with scallops, shrimp, lobster, and mussels that was unbelievable. And we served it on a three-foot paella pan, so the presentation was spectacular.

We also catered a wedding for a groom named “Boots.” During the cocktail hour, we tray-passed homemade cracklins and Abita “Boot” beer shooters in mini cowboy boot cups. We’ve also done gelato bars, risotto stations, French fry bars… The list can go on and on.

Q: Tell me a little bit about Chef Jason Roland.

Caryn: Jason was born and raised in Baton Rouge. He knew he wanted to be a chef from a young age. He graduated from the Culinary Institute of America and trained under a Master Chef. His experience in hotels and restaurants is amazing, and his knowledge is unbelievable. He doesn’t often use a recipe, and I never have to worry about our food quality.  He is a wonderful chef, a fantastic daddy, and a great husband.

Q: You guys do custom menus for every client. What are your favorites, and what made them so good?

Caryn:  Every client has different tastes and different budgets. It is important to us that we create menus that cater to the individuals and really reflect the couple or the theme of the event. We did a corporate event with a Hawaiian Luau theme, and for that menu, we tray-passed Conch Fritters, there was a Kalua Pua’a (a whole pig roasted over open flames) and a Fish Taco Stand. If we can complete the experience for the guests through the food, that is our ultimate goal. We also catered a wedding for a couple with extensive allergies, and they were also extreme foodies! For them, it was imperative their guests had delicious food that the couple could also enjoy. The chef went above and beyond, and after extensive research, he was able to create a menu for the couple that catered to all of their eight food allergies. And the best part, the guests had no idea every menu item was dairy, gluten, soy, seafood, sesame, sunflower, lettuce, and peanut free! That is the best part of our job: Making peoples’ visions come to life; their dream into reality.

For more information, visit heirloomcuisine.com.