FXBG Neighbors Podcast
Fredericksburg Neighbors Podcast
FXBG Neighbors Podcast
EP #43 From NYC to Fredericksburg: A Chef's Homecoming
Ever wondered what happens when culinary artistry meets hometown dedication? Chef Brittany Flint welcomes us into her world of elevated dining experiences through CBF Catering, a Fredericksburg-based private chef service that's redefining local food culture.
Starting in the heart of her childhood home's kitchen, Brittany's culinary passion led her across state lines to the prestigious French Culinary Institute in Manhattan. Despite initial nerves about leaving Spotsylvania for the big city, she found herself thriving. Her impressive career includes experience at Richard Gere's high-end Westchester County restaurant before bringing her expertise back to Virginia. Now, through CBF Catering, she delivers restaurant-quality experiences with a personal touch that large establishments simply can't match.
What truly sets Chef Flint apart is her approach to food as genuine artistry. Her catering service specializes in intimate gatherings of 100 guests or fewer, where her culinary creations become the centerpiece rather than getting "lost in the chaos" of larger events. Perhaps most innovative is her "Family Meal" prep service—inspired by the restaurant tradition of staff meals—offering busy Fredericksburg families the luxury of chef-prepared, locally-sourced meals delivered weekly. As Brittany puts it, it's "like having a personal chef, but just on a budget."
Between creating culinary masterpieces, you'll find Brittany in her garden—a passion she feels naturally complements cooking—or enjoying poolside time with her children. Her advice to aspiring entrepreneurs resonates beyond the kitchen: follow your intuition, embrace your passion, and resist the urge to compare your beginning to someone else's middle. Connect with Chef Brittany Flint on Instagram @ChefBFlint or explore her services at chefbrittanyflint.com to transform your next gathering or simplify your weeknight meals with truly exceptional food.
Brittany Flint
CBF Catering
chefbrittanyflint.com
chefbrittanyflint@gmail.com
+1 203-249-3783
Spotsylvania, VA · Fredericksburg, VA
This is the Fredericksburg Neighbors Podcast, the place where local businesses and neighbors come together. Here's your host, Dori Stewart.
Speaker 2:Welcome back to another episode of the Fredericksburg Neighbors Podcast, where we share the stories of our favorite local brands. I'm excited to introduce you to my guest today. Brittany Flint is with CBF Catering. Brittany, welcome to the podcast, Hi and thank you for having me. Well, I'm excited to get to know you and learn about your business. So let's start there Share with us a little bit about your business.
Speaker 3:So CBF Catering is so Brittany Flint. It's a private chef catering service that specializes in full service catering as well as meal preparation, based here in Fredericksburg Virginia.
Speaker 2:Awesome, awesome. So tell me a little bit about your background and your journey. How did you get into this?
Speaker 3:Of course. Well, growing up I was always really interested in food. The kitchen was kind of the heart of my home growing up my childhood home and so it only just felt right that I went to culinary school. After high school I was in art. I was really interested in art during those high school years. But after working in the restaurant industry for a year post high school I told my dad that I actually really wanted to go to culinary school and so we went up and visited one French Culinary Institute in Manhattan and I was just like in love. When I started there I was very nervous you know, I'm from Spotsylvania, virginia, going to the big city and it just felt so easy and effortless. The people that I met there are longtime friends since then. So after culinary school I did work at a very prestigious restaurant owned by Richard Gere in Westchester County. So I got a really good foundation in my culinary career. That really just kick-start, started my career from there on out.
Speaker 2:That's amazing. Fredericksburg is lucky to have someone with your experience and your education right here in Fredericksburg. So congratulations, that's amazing. I'm very impressed.
Speaker 3:Thank you, thank you.
Speaker 2:Awesome, so I was stalking your website a little bit and first of all, listeners, go check out her social media. Her food is just a work of art. Beautiful, beautiful.
Speaker 3:Thank you, I mean it, it is, it's an art. It's called culinary arts for a reason and really took a lot of pride in what we do.
Speaker 2:That's amazing. That's amazing it will. It definitely shows in in in how beautiful your food is, and so let me ask you this are there any myths or misconceptions that you're finding about whether your business specifically, or the industry?
Speaker 3:finding about, whether your business specifically, or the industry. Um, I would say that, um, in terms of like the industry itself, I feel like, um, there is a common misconception in terms of like make turning food into a commodity right, where, especially if you're having a service like this provided to you, you can't really compare it to, you know, these big corporations or what you get at a chain restaurant or restaurants in general. It's kind of an elevated experience that myself and my team are providing, but not just that. Chefs are really talented. A lot of hard work goes into just creating a dish. So I just feel like um be a little bit more kind to your local chefs and a little bit more understanding.
Speaker 2:Yeah, yeah. Well, thank you for that. That's a great tip for everyone to hear. So clearly. You're working very hard in your business, so when you're not working, what are you doing for fun?
Speaker 3:So for fun, especially now, I'm by the pool with my kids, I'm out in the garden. Gardening, I feel like, goes hand in hand with cooking. I'm just a creator. I love to work with my hands and my downtime you'll find me outside in the garden, in the yard.
Speaker 2:I love that. And so you went away and you came back to Fredericksburg. So what is it that you love about Fredericksburg?
Speaker 3:So it's my hometown. I've seen it change a lot, especially downtown. I would go there just for ballet, you know practice and then my dad would take me to I think it was Spirits still to get like a cheeseburger and milkshake and then we would go to the antique shop. You know, that was it. So it's changed a lot. It's a great place to raise a family and it's ever changing. It's ever evolving.
Speaker 2:that's what I love about fredericksburg yes, I agree, we have the best of everything in fredericksburg, you know, and we're even just everything we have in fredericksburg, but then also we're just a day trip away from culture and the mountains and lakes, and it's just it's perfect location yeah, yeah, I love that.
Speaker 2:So let me ask you this I know it was probably not easy starting your own catering business, and there's always bumps along the road. So what is some advice? Either that you wish someone had told you, or that you would like to give another entrepreneur who is thinking about starting their own business.
Speaker 3:So that I would say a few pieces of advice. I would say to do it, go for it. You'll have people that are like, oh, that sounds weird, or oh, don't do that. Just just go with your gut, go with your intuition. If you're talented, if you're passionate about something, you have something to offer. So also, don't get too caught up in comparison. Don't compare yourself to someone who's been doing it for decades on their own. You're going to stumble, you're going to fall, you're going to learn along the way, but just do it, regardless of your hearing, of your hearing.
Speaker 2:I love that you can get so caught up in the comparison and man it can put you down in the dumps.
Speaker 3:It really can. I mean it's. It's inspiring. I would feel like to follow someone or, you know, also hear somebody else's story that is doing what you aspire to do. But it can also hinder you, especially if you're nitpicking yourself. That's, that is the hardest part, yeah yeah, I get that.
Speaker 2:So tell me what is something that you wish the business? The listeners knew about your business.
Speaker 3:So I just hope that the listeners know from just this interview that you are going to be getting an elevated service from start to finish, whether it's from a consultation, phone call, through email. From the moment you inquire or are reaching out about meal prep or an intimate event, you're getting a higher level of service. And then, from start to finish, it's high end of old service. And then from start to finish, it's high end. It's high quality ingredients. You're paying for not only my experience but my team's experience and expertise. So it's just high level, quality, quality above and beyond expectations.
Speaker 2:That's just what I hope people take away from this. I love that and tell us what. What is kind of your specialty? Is it you know small events? Is it you know bigger events, like weddings, or is it all? What's kind of your?
Speaker 3:specialty. So my specialty is, I would say, smaller events, like 100 and below. I feel like above 100 people, the food is it gets a little bit lost in the chaos. This way, 100 people and under, I can really focus and actually challenge myself to do things that people don't only do, you know, in terms of parties or sated services. All of that. Smaller events are my specialty, for sure excellent and tell us about your um.
Speaker 2:You said you have the meal prep. Tell us about that.
Speaker 3:That's very interesting so meal prep um was born with my husband and I. We called it family meal, which is a meal that we have both prepared for kitchen staff before working in restaurants. That's what you call staff meals, family meal, because we are with each other between 10 to 12 hours a day. We're a family, so we wanted to share that with our community. And it's just, you know, you pre-order your meals in advance, you get it the next week. It's very, I wouldn't say, unorthodox, but it is. It's not like you order it and get it right away. It takes time to locally source the ingredients, cook cool and then also deliver all of that. So it's kind of like having a personal chef, but just on a budget.
Speaker 2:I love that. Yeah that's a really special experience that we get here in Fredericksburg, so thank you for offering that. That's really cool for especially busy, busy families. I love it.
Speaker 3:Yes, especially for that, that's why we started yeah.
Speaker 2:I love it. So if the listeners want to learn more about you or connect with you, where can they find you?
Speaker 3:They can definitely find me on my Instagram page, which is at chefbflint , as well as through email, which is chefbrittanyflint at gmail. com. But if you want to know a little bit more about me, my story, my background, you can go to my website at chefbrittanyflint. com.
Speaker 2:Amazing Brittany, thank you so much for joining me and being my guest on the podcast today. Thank you so much for having me.
Speaker 1:Thank you for listening to the Fredericksburg Neighbors Podcast. To nominate your favorite local businesses to be featured on the show, go to fxbgneighborspodcast. com. That's fxbgneighborspodcast. com, or call 540-534-4618.