Meet Jessamine Starr: Chef

We had the good fortune of connecting with Jessamine Starr and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Jessamine, we’d love to hear about how you approach risk and risk-taking
Owning ones own business is very much about risk taking. There are so many factors that can go wrong. But if that risk is backed up with hard work, sometimes stubborn perseverance and the constant reminder to adapt and be creative the payoffs can be huge. Good Food Truck has been in business for almost 11 years and for the first 5 I thought we could close at anytime but kept pushing despite the numbers, and kept changing and creating new products to try and help those numbers. Risk is 100 percent necessary but it must be held up with creative perseverance. 

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
Well I am choosing to label the role of chef/cater/truck driver/dishwasher as an artist. Creativity is the driving factor behind most of the things I do. (Ok maybe not dishwashing) As far as my food I am always trying to think of new combinations and presentations. A couple of examples – from the truck we serve savory waffle cones. So think a waffle cone made out of parmesan cheese filled with lentils, butternut squash and rice. I also serve watermelon snow at the farmers market (pre pandemic) which is just like shave ice but with a frozen watermelon instead of a block of ice. Topped with things like coconut ginger syrup and boba. And with the pandemic I decided to open my one seat restaurant in the woods by our house- ett. Not to make money but as just as a way to share food and the idea that being alone in this tumultuous time does not need to be all bad. Nature is always there to soothe us when we give it time. Coming up with creative ideas is what makes me jump out of bed in the morning and makes those pile of dishes after catering a big event seem worth it.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
Buford hwy is by far my favorite and at least one day would need to be spent there. I love roaming the isles of Buford hwy farmers market for unusual fruit snacks, fresh tortillas, Russian black bread and fresh Korean kimchee. For lunch Nam phong is my all time favorite restaurant. I could eat their lotus root salad and vegetarian crepe everyday. There are so many wild Asian dessert spots and I love them all. Matcha cafe, mango mango, and sweet spot are some of my top picks. Then it’s always fun to swing by the peach tree industrial airport and look at the tiny planes. I could honestly spend the whole week on Buford hwy. But I do love to get outdoors and the metro area has some real gems. Arabia mountain for an other worldly experience – it’s like a walk on the moon with a touch of swamp. Also for a bit of strange nature time- doll head trail on the south side is a walk through time with collections of toys left from the past. I’d suggest grabbing a Sunday soft serve cone from Big Softy or Zestos to enjoy as you walk through this urban wetland, Then an afternoon drive by the value village parking lot with a hopeful spoting of the atl boys touting their amazing tricks on fourwheelers and such, capped with a drive in movie at the starlight.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
Latisha Springer, founder of free 99 fridge.

Website: Goodfoodtruckatl.com
Instagram: Goodfoodtruckatl
Facebook: Good food truck
Yelp: Good Food Truck