Meet Maxine Rostolder of Unicorn Kitchen in Ocean Beach

Today we’d like to introduce you to Maxine Rostolder.

Maxine, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
I feel like a lot of people that have gotten started in a food career grew up with a family that cooked together. That is most definitely how I became interested in cooking. I became further interested in cooking related to nutrition later in life. This is where I really began experimenting with different types of food especially those foods that weren’t very commonly used.

Grains can be a large part of someone’s everyday diet, wheat being one of the number one grains used in the US. This is where I began experimenting with cooking grain-based products without using wheat. I found it to be fun and a way to challenge myself in the kitchen. I wanted to create foods with a different nutritional profile than what you may find outside your home in a grocery store or restaurant. Then I met my boyfriend who cannot eat wheat. I started creating more and more products, and the birth of Unicorn Kitchen came shortly after.

Currently, Unicorn Kitchen is taking orders selling various products of frozen topless pizza crusts, breads, bagels, and waffle mix. The business is a home business run out of my apartment in Ocean Beach. We are still small trying to grow and get our products to those many interested consumers looking for a different healthy alternative.

Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
It has been everything but smooth. However, I can not imagine any start-up going smoothly. I have learned a ton along the way. Our biggest struggle has been getting the consumer to know that we exist and we are willing to try.

Being a home business can make it difficult finding consumers. It is a lot of word of mouth that makes things happen for Unicorn Kitchen.

In the beginning, I worked in various farmers’ markets. At this time we were only making pizza crusts, making individual ready to eat pizzas at the market, or frozen pizza crusts to customize at home. The experience was great, the feedback we received was invaluable, and the customers we gained from the markets was amazing. The struggle was keeping up with the volume of products needed and trying to convert our customers’ to purchasing our products to cook with at home rather than only eating the ready to eat product at the market. I was not looking to become a full-service restaurant. I believed that the business was going in a direction I didn’t want it to. I had to leave the markets and revamp the business.

I know that people are looking for convenience in their foods, which is why I created the pizza crust and sell it frozen. So easy, all you need to do is pre-heat your oven and top the pizza. Pizza is ready in 10-15 minutes. I also learned that I need to have time to create new products. I took the time away from the markets to do just that. Now with more products, Unicorn Kitchen can really create a name for itself.

Please tell us about Unicorn Kitchen.
Unicorn Kitchen makes pizza crusts, breads, bagels, and a waffle mix with various flours from scratch. The most popular item is our pizza crust. Made with whole grains, our crust offers a delicious flavor that is very unique. I try to make products that have a healthy nutrition profile while adding in tons of flavor. Our products are great for those that have a soy, dairy or gluten allergies, but the creation of the products is really about health and convenience.

Do you look back particularly fondly on any memories from childhood?
I’m not sure if I have a favorite childhood memory, but many of my memories are surrounded by food and family. Like on the weekends when my mom would make waffles or banana pancakes. During the holidays, when my grandma would make pizzelles, covered in powdered sugar. Or my dad making his famous chicken noodle soup.

Winters spent making pizzas with my aunt. Late nights making panookie with my sister, our creation of sugar cookie and syrup. My brother and I learning how to make fresh pasta for ravioli. These are some of my childhood memories.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.unicornkitchensd.com
• Email: info@unicornkitchensd.com
• Instagram: @unicornkitchensd
• Facebook: https://m.facebook.com/unicornkitchensd/

Image Credit:
phoDesigns

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