Today we’d like to introduce you to Shaquille Palmer.
Hi Shaquille, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
My journey as a young entrepreneur started the day my family and I migrated to the United States. I always had a passion for cooking. In fact, I started learning how to cook at a very young age. My mom would always have my sister and I accompany her in the kitchen while she prepared dinner for the evening. We weren’t allowed to stir the pot but we peeled and sliced all the necessary ingredients like potato’s, carrots, bell peppers and onions. It wasn’t until I turned six years old that I was allowed to prepare what I like to call supervised breakfast for my family and I. I had a blast, it was just something about seeing uncooked and raw food become essentially delicious. As the years went by, I started learning and growing my skills and eventually moved on the cooking dinner. Meals like rice & peas, brown stew chicken and curry chicken was my favorite recipes. Can you guess who’s house my friends loved to come to after school? Yes, it was our house, Mom didn’t mind as long as there was enough for her when she got home from work. I must admit after high school I stop cooking as much as I use-to. This was right at the time my family and I moved to the United States. So to understand how we got to where we are as business owners and when I say we, I’m referring to myself and my lovely wife/ business partner, I’d first have to tell a little bit more about us. I wouldn’t be who I am today if it wasn’t for her, she’s been by my side for the entirety of our business. I’m from the beautiful Island of St.Maarten and my wife is from the gorgeous island is Trinidad.
After high school, I had no idea what I wanted to do in life. I hadn’t really given it any thought throughout the years, so when it came time to choose a major/career, I defaulted to business administration. It was the closest thing to a career I knew because all my life, my father had been a businessman. Just before I graduated college, my dad asked me if I wanted to partner with him and open a food truck. In the beginning of this interview, I spoke about cooking alongside my mom but I also did so with my father. My father is an amazing cook. He was the one that taught me the importance of taste and flavor. He would not serve a plate of food if he himself didn’t find it to be tasteful. So when he asked if I can contribute to the food truck, I said yes without hesitation. After giving him what I had at the time which was two thousand dollars. He set out to find the perfect truck, a blank canvas that we’d eventually convert into a food truck. After about two years of hard work, the truck was completed and KetchAFire Jerk and Seafood was born. Ready to serve up some good jerk chicken, jerk pork and oxtails. It was exciting. And the early response from customers inspired us to continue our mission.
My dad eventually turned over the business to my wife and I. Between me and you, I think that was his master plan from the beginning. He knew I was great at cooking but he also knew I had a lot to learn if I was to ever make cooking a career. So he taught me everything he knew. About a month after doing so my wife and I got married March 17th, 2017, it was the best day of my life. This is when I knew God had a plan for my life and I wasn’t going to disappoint. So despite all the trials and tribulations that came with owning a business our faith never wavered. We’ve worked at events, caters, a wedding and various locations throughout the St. Lucie County creating and connecting with our community building a strong online presence and using our daily work lives as inspiration for others to pursue entrepreneurship. It’s safe to say we’ve came a long way. But we’ve got so much more to give. KetchAFire has become a staple in our community. We hope to one day build it to become a staple to the entire country. Today it’s a food truck tomorrow, it’s the next Golden Crust.
Alright, 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?
One of the most advanced perks of being a food trucker is having mobility. Mobility allows us to move to different locations and reaching a more board clientele. With that mobility can also be crippling. To this day, we encounter bumps in the road, one being maintenance. Every now and then, we’d have mechanical issues arise that would hinder my team and I from getting out on the road and doing what we love.
Appreciate you sharing that. What should we know about KetchAFire Jerk And Seafood?
Here at KetchAFire Jerk and Seafood, we strive to combine A modern flare to the delicious Caribbean food scene. We stand firm on our traditions and culture but with a twist of blended spices and lightly salted seasonings, Taking what my mother and father taught me and turning into something we all can get excited about. This is what drives me, nothing feels better than to hear one of customers say hey that food yesterday was delicious.
We are a family-owned business. We specialize in jerk seasoning primarily. Our customers love our jerk pork, jerk chicken, jerk salmon well as we call it the “Yah Mon!! Salmon” and also our Fire Garlic Shrimp which is also a jerk based recipe.
I’m most proud of the cultural aspect of our brand. I want others to know that your destiny, your true life’s purpose can be found in your heritage, culture and ethnic background. Tapping into that culture can bring you so much satisfaction. So much so that it can be one day become tradition, which will then be passed down for generations. I can proudly say that as KetchAFire continues to grow and reach more people that my children’s children will know who they are and where their family is from no matter where they were born.
We’d be interested to hear your thoughts on luck and what role, if any, you feel it’s played for you?
Well, I’d say that as a business we’ve been lucky enough to be blessed with resilience. For example, we’ve been working out of this amazing location every weekend for the first three years of our businesses existence. Up until the year 2020, the most unpredictable year we’ve had thus far, we were forced to relocate due to zoning laws and parking complaints. These weekends were the most crucial for us. It’s where we made the most money to continue moving forward paying our bills etc. So when we got that letter, you can image how helpless we felt. It wasn’t disappearing but it was a bit overwhelming, mostly because this was where majority of our loyal customer knew where to find us and because we’ve been there so long they became comfortable with the idea of finding us there when they wanted some of that good jerk chicken. But like I said, we are resilient. After months of searching, we ended up finding a new location that was more spacious and comfortable. Just the right fit.
Luck plays a major role in our live but I believe that with great intent good luck is inevitable.
Contact Info:
- Email: legendscatering933@gmail.com
- Website: www.ketchafirejerkandseafood.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ketchafirejerkandseafood/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ketchafirefoodtruck
