Boston-based food industry leader Renee Guilbault dishes on her favorite ingredients and appliances to buy now.
Growing up in L.A., Renee Guilbault was surrounded by food—but within all of the cooking and restaurants, she found what truly made it special to her. “I just always loved the gathering of food and friends and all of the community that would happen over shared meals,” she explains. Fast-forward through an abundance of dinner parties, roles across the food industry and French cooking school, this Bostonian is now the founder and principal of Essayer Food Consulting (essayerfoodconsulting.com). “I think in this particular day and age and environment, there’s a lack of hope, and there’s a lack of real understanding of what the opportunities are for young people starting in hourly roles,” explains Guilbault, who originally sought to become a chef. “I want to drive the conversation around the incredible opportunities the food industry really does off er.” Enter her new book, A Taste of Opportunity: An Insider’s Guide to Boosting Your Career, Making Your Mark, and Changing the Food Industry From Within (Page Two Press), which covers exactly that. In celebration of the new tome, we sat down with Guilbault for a bit of expertise. Here, her top five ingredients and appliances to have in your kitchen now.
Maritana Vineyards, maritanavineyards.com
“These wines are just gorgeous. We could talk about them for six hours.”
KitchenAid, kitchenaid.com
“You can make everything from doughs to dressings… but it’s really such a functional tool, and you can get them in the most beautiful colors.”
Williams Sonoma Mortar and Pestle, williams-sonoma.com
“People don’t talk about them enough, and they’re amazing.”
KerryGold Salted Butter, wholefoodsmarket.com
“Go to the gold wrapper!”
Grillworks USA Argentinian-Style Grill, grillworksusa.com
“I am a California girl, so I’m obsessed with all-season grilling. So we had a wood-burning fireplace (Architectural from Grillworks) added to the kitchen with an Argentinian-style grill so that we can grill all winter.”
Photography by: COURTESY OF RENEE GUILBAULT; DONALD PATZ; COURTESY OF KITCHENAID; COURTESY OF WILLIAMS SONOMA; COURTESY OF WHOLE FOODS MARKET; COURTESY OF GRILLWORKSUSA.COM, INTERIOR BY ELIZABETH ROBERTS DESIGN
