Today we’d like to introduce you to Christine Parra.
Hi Christine, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I have always enjoyed cooking, as a kid I would page through my moms Betty Crocker cook book just to look at the pictures. I started “cooking” by opening a box of blueberry muffin mix, probably at the age of 8, that was the first thing I ever made.
My sister and I were alone a lot growing up with our mom working shifts all around the clock so we got creative most nights making dinner or snacks out of what was in the fridge. I still pride myself today with having the skill to open the fridge and make something great out of what we have. A very common question I get asked is “what is your favorite dish to make?” or “do you have family recipes you use?” I used to struggle with these questions as I don’t have a inspiring family story full of culture and recipes. Now I own it, my story started with an interest in cooking, opening a box of blueberry muffin mix and making it. I began cooking dinners and got to know what I liked and what flavors went together, that became my culture, cooking things I like to cook and making them exceptional. From there the sky was the limit, learning seasonal ingredients, different cooking techniques and experimenting with new to me food!
I joined the National Guard at the age of 17 as a truck driver and quickly transferred to a “92G, Cooking Specialist”. It was where I always fit in, cooking. There I got a ton of experience cooking for large groups, working with outside kitchens and became a Sergeant at the age of 19.
I began working in a local deli at the age of 18 as a breakfast cook. I was going to school for psychology at the time and always cooked for my job to pay for school. After a busy breakfast service on Mothers Day my mom stopped in to visit me. I told her “I could do this the rest of my life!” I had no idea how true that would be!
I moved to Minneapolis, ditched the psychology degree and went to culinary school. I have been a chef in Minneapolis for nearly 20 years and in kitchen management for 15 years. I finally found myself at a point in my career where I needed to change something, I wasn’t too excited to start in a new kitchen again, I am really over walking into a place and being immediately underestimated. I am not sure how many times I have been asked when walking in for an interview “are you here for the hosting position?” I started to pursue an associates in accounting thinking I would start doing restaurant book work.
Once I graduated I realized I had just took another step towards getting ready to open my own spot up plus I was having a hard time thinking if I never tried to open my own place I would never know if I could have made it or not! Opening a food truck has always been something I wanted to do when I started my career as a chef. It appealed to me in that I would get the opportunity to travel and see what areas my food sells best in and to create a customer base by going to the customer. A food truck also seemed a LOT less risky than a brick and mortar with a higher over-head plus I like to start things small, get it right and go from there. In June of 2020 the opportunity was presented to me to buy one of the Chef Shack food trucks and I felt like it was time to finally take the plunge. I worked for Chef Shack for that summer and purchased the truck early the next year, it was a nerve wracking wild ride to start my own business but I figured if I am going to work this hard for someone else why don’t I do it for myself? I am constantly grateful that it is successful and busy!
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
I would laugh if any chef could say it was a smooth road! It most certainly is not. I truly love cooking, it is my hobby as well as my career so I feel really lucky, but it is another beast starting in kitchens when there is competition and no rules. A big struggle along the way would be getting brushed aside as always a pantry cook or desserts. It takes great talent to work those stations but it was hard to get to move around to other areas of the kitchen to learn. A big struggle in kitchen management was establishing myself as someone who was the leader. I have been fortunate to spend most of my management career with mostly great employees but I will never get over all of the repair people that would come in and look past me trying to find the largest man in the kitchen to talk to about what they were there to repair.
Great, so let’s talk business. Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
Parralilly is a food truck in Minneapolis. We specialize in Sandwiches and hand-cut fries. Our Catifsh Po’Boy, Sweet Potato Po’Boy and Dill seasoned hand-cut fries are always on the menu and customer favorites.
We offer a seasonal sandwich that changes as the summer goes on and gourmet hotdogs. I make all of our seasoning blends from recipes I created and try to have a “cheffy twist” on menu items, such as “roasted poblano tartar” on the poboys instead of regular tartar.
We serve to the public at local breweries and farmers markets but also offer private catering for just about any kind of event!
So, before we go, how can our readers or others connect or collaborate with you? How can they support you?
Contact me! I am always up for something new. Visit my website at www.parralily.com, check out our social media on instagram @parralily_foodtruck or facebook at Parralily or email me at [email protected]
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.parralily.com
- Instagram: @parralily_foodtruck
- Facebook: parralily
