Raised on sweet tea & cornbread…
We are talking today with Kristen Robeson, owner or Southern Kitchen
GA: Kristen- tell us a little about yourself…did you grow up and go to school here
Kristen: I was born in Salisbury, but grew up in Lexington, North Carolina. I lived in Triad area for a while, and later moved to Mount Holly in 2006. As far as school, I graduated from High Point University, and I am working towards a MBA at Ashford University.
GA: How did you get started in food?
Kristen: I got started cooking as a very young child helping my Mama in the kitchen. She has pictures of me as a tiny thing wearing an apron standing on a a stool over a cast iron skillet frying chicken. Mama and Daddy encouraged me and my two younger brothers to help in our garden in the evenings. They taught me the importance of taking care of our garden and being thankful for our food. On Sundays after church, I would help my Mama make our huge homemade lunch which seemed to take forever because it was all made from scratch. I started making homemade meals right out of High School and selling them for gas money. I have enjoyed making meals for 30 years, even while continuing my education, career, and in businesses, all while raising 3 children. People have always reached out when they don’t want to cook or have special events.
GA: Southern Kitchen used to be a retail restaurant, is that right? What prompted the change?
Kristen: Yes, we were going into our 3rd year as a restaurant offering delicious home cooked meals. After the Governors orders on March 18th, it made sense to adapt my business model-I still wanted to continue to offer customers delicious home cooked comfort .
GA: Tell us about your pre-made Thanksgiving Meals
Kristen: We offer individual and family size Turkey and Dressing Meals, and Family Style sides as well. If you like to fry your own turkey we have you covered with all the fixings; you can pre-order on our website www.southernkitchen.us This year is tough for so many people not able to see their loved ones, so we do offer individual Thanksgiving Meals. We offer so many options!
GA: Do you offer catering for large groups, like corporate or church functions?
Kristen: We cater high school football meals, churches and corporate functions; we offer our packages and pricing on our website. Some examples include: full pans of Lasagna, Chicken Pot Pie, Chicken Casserole, Country Style Steak & Gravy, Meatloaf, Yukon Gold Mashed Potatoes, Low & Slow Green Beans, Mac n Cheese, Breakfast Casserole, Monkey Bread, Biscuits & Gravy and Fruit Salad. Don’t see it-just ask!
GA: I know your chicken pies sell like hotcakes-are they available year round? What other dishes are available?
Kristen: Yes they do-they are available year round! We sell a lot of Moravian and Chicken Pot pies. Our Moravian Pies are all white shredded chicken tenders between a buttery flaky crust and the Pot Pie has red bliss potatoes, bright green peas, and tiny carrot slices.
GA: Can you pick up meals fresh, or just frozen?
Kristen: All of our meals are made fresh to frozen with quality ingredients. Our Pimento Cheese is fresh and many seasonal items. That information is available on our website.
GA: What about desserts for the holidays?
Kristen: Yes, we offer a variety of Holiday desserts just for you. I like to choose the desserts based on the time of year and what fruits are fresh and in season. We a make a variety of fruit pies- strawberry is my favorite!! Sometimes I like to use my Mama’s recipe to make Wacky Cake and Pineapple Upside Down Cake available for customers. It brings me back to my childhood in the kitchen where I had so much influence with Mama and other family members.
GA: Your front door says “Fresh. local, quality ingredients!
”Kristen: We like to use what’s fresh and in season-we buy a lot of produce form the Mount Holly Farmer’s Market. We grow a lot of our own herbs, and love using local produce and honey whenever we can.
GA: What’s your all-time best seller- and what about Christmas and corporate gifts?
Kristen: Chicken Pie is consistently a best seller! People love to give (and get!) our pies and pimento cheese.
For more info call 704-941-7733 or www.southernkitchen.us
