Wedding Fare: Chowgirls Killer Catering
Table setting. Photo by Lucas Botz
Food. Not to be overlooked, it’s the key midpoint to any wedding celebration. Your chance to curate a crowd-pleaser that ties your special day together. Sustainability has become top of mind for many couples—a niche that Chowgirls Killer Catering has been serving for years. Along with killer cuisine.
Chowgirls Killer Catering consists of “a group of creative, passionate people who thrive on logistics, sustainability, and beautiful food. We embrace the challenge of creating events that are unique and special for every client who comes our way.”
Heidi Andermack and Amy Brown founded Chowgirls Killer Catering more than 16 years ago, as a force of two creative women with a shared passion for cooking and entertaining. The two had both recently planned their own weddings and saw room for new ideas in the Minneapolis catering scene—especially when it came to organic offerings. Their concept caught on quickly and grew into an award-winning catering company that has set the gold standard for organic, sustainable fare and top-shelf events.
“Chowgirls serves weddings and events throughout the Twin Cities area as well as greater Minnesota destinations. We also operate our own events venue, Chowgirls at Solar Arts, located in Minneapolis at 711 NE 15th Ave. More recently, in response to the pandemic, we helped launch Minnesota Central Kitchen, a partnership with Second Harvest Heartland that re-employs furloughed chefs, while meeting the growing need for emergency meals in these unprecedented times. To this end, we’re proud to produce over 10,000 meals per week from our commissary kitchen in Northeast Minneapolis.”
Setting them apart from the crowd is their approach. “Chowgirls has been “farm-to-table” since our inception 16 years ago, before that was even ‘a thing.’ Our chef-driven but approachable menus charm all types of clients, and our thoughtful hospitality extends from the initial planning process, to setting the plate in front of each guest. Our serving staff, as authentic and approachable as our food, offers formality while feeling like family.”
“Chowgirls prioritizes making mindful business decisions with respect for people and the planet, to craft quality food. We use organic and seasonal ingredients, many of them sourced from about 50 local farms and purveyors; most ingredients travel an average of 37.5 miles to get to our kitchen. We’re also dedicated to diverting as much waste from landfills and incineration as possible. On average, 85% of our byproducts are composted or recycled. For example, the average wedding in the U.S. produces 400 pounds of trash. At Chowgirls, our average wedding produces only 10 pounds of actual trash, a statistic that reflects our commitment to sustainability.”
Poké Bowl Chef Station. Photo by Tiffany Kokal
Like many other small businesses, Chowgirls hasn’t been immune to the COVID crunch.
“Due to COVID-19, we have chosen to not offer full-service, staffed events up to this point. Because our main priority is the safety of our staff, our clients, and their guests, we’ve chosen to operate with an abundance of caution while COVID numbers are still on the rise in Minnesota and the U.S. However, we’ve still been catering, innovating our offerings to embrace creatively packaged, single-serve snacks and meals. We’ve had the honor of catering some intimate backyard weddings for couples who keep it small and safe via contactless delivery or by hiring our service partners Host a Toast. We also deliver this beautiful pre-packaged fare to separate homes or offices for interactive online meetings… A new partnership with Northeast’s Central Avenue Liquors allows us to offer bites and drinks delivered together, a great add-on for our client events and a new way for us to offer virtual tastings that pair beer, wine, and spirits with specialty menus… we love the notion of a shared food experience for those who can’t physically be together during this challenging time.”
Oyster bar chef station. Photo by Lucas Botz
“Pre-COVID, every Chowgirls wedding was as unique as the couple being celebrated. We’ve excelled at everything from formal sit-down dinners to fun and casual build-your-own mac-and-cheese bars. We always enjoy the opportunity to offer a fine-dining experience, and we’re also extremely proud of our Minnesota roots. Our menu ranges from creative comfort food to a wide range of inspired international fare. With the bounty of amazing local produce in our area, our signature roasted veggies are usually a colorful star of the plate; our meat options come from either local farms or ranches, and our seafood is sustainably sourced.”
We look forward to getting back to chef stations, which were also growing in popularity, pre-pandemic. A great way for guests to customize their dining experience, this live-action cooking option is perfect for letting guests choose their own dining adventures. From carving stations to make-your-own poke bowls, our culinary team excels at delicious experiences that are easy on the eyes, as well. Many couples use their wedding as a chance to throw a proper party. Intimate dinners, multiple courses, champagne pours, floor length dresses, and black ties — talk about a great way to kick off the rest of your lives in style. There are so few opportunities to get really dressed up and sit down to a formal dinner with multiple types of forks these days…
“Chowgirls loves to make things beautiful, whatever the challenges, and is this pandemic ever a challenge!”
Find Chowgirls Killer Catering at http://www.chowgirls.net/ or follow them on Facebook and Instagram.
