couldn’t be more in love with our little community here in Arcadia and the other day Arcadia News stopped by to have a chat.
Mallory Gleich and I sat down and she got deep with me. We talked about Chestnut, being part of the Arcadia community, The Vintage and so much more.
Here’s a few of my favorite snippets from the interview. If you want to read the whole thing scroll down and hit the link.
What does a day in the life of Kirsten Steele look like?
Depends on the day. If I’m not needed on-site, I stay active and get rid of the anxious energy. I walk, spin, swim, lift, and try to squeeze in what I can. I have two kids, too, so I get them up and get them ready for school, take them to school, head to Chestnut, see what the team needs, grab a coffee, etc.
I also spend a lot of time at Costco [laughs]. These days, with all of the delivery issues, when we run out of stuff, that’s where I am.
When we’re really busy, I’m working alongside my team; we’re always working at events – on and offsite on the weekends. I’m at those usually from sun up to sundown.
Did you know you wanted to own your own business?
No. I worked for a medical office doing administration work before this. I just fell into this with my sister, thinking it would be a side gig and run itself on its own. I thought it would just be a small café, but then we moved to 44th and Camelback across from The Henry, and then Flower Child went in, and Buck and Rider and I was like, ‘well, we’re in the thick of it now.’ We had to transition and become what we are.
What does Chestnut offer?
We’re really a one-stop neighborhood shop – we like to serve everything anyone might need or want. We do breakfast, lunch, dinner, bar. We have baked goods and coffee and cocktails.
What about the recipes?
Some of the recipes came from Polly’s original café, but many of them are inspired by travel. My sister travels a lot, and I used to travel a lot, so recipes are inspired by world travel and dishes around the country or by other chefs and their dishes. We basically toy around and create things that we think people will enjoy.
My pastry chef comes up with our new pastries – she’s amazing – and our original bar manager came up with the drink recipes. You have to find people who are really good at what they do and give them creative freedom.
Here’s a link to the full article of you want to check it out.
Come drop by for a cup of coffee or maybe even a whole meal of food... I have a few copies at the bar if you want to check it out, old school style :)
With love,
KK