Makers & Shakers: Street Food Social FanFav Winner

This past year we introduced our first-ever foodie event, Street Food Social! This summer event series took the traditional food hall experience al fresco at Downtown Lakewood every Friday and to Park Hill monthly. There were tasty bites from Colorado's favorite food truck and street food vendors, happy hour sips, live music, and of course, the FanFav competition! At every market, food vendors entered one dish to be voted on by attendees as their favorite of the evening. After almost 70 events and 200 votes, Joanna's Kitchen won this year's series! Keep reading to learn more about Joanna Stein, her cuisine, and what's next for her business!

Where are you from/what is your background?

I was born in Ghana. I came to the United States when I was eight and lived in Minnesota for most of my life. I’ve been living in Colorado for just about four years now. 

What brought your family to the US from Ghana?

My dad got an engineering scholarship and wanted a better future for his family and to give his kids as much opportunity as possible. When I first came here, I did not understand English at all and I had to go through so much adapting to a new culture and learning how everything worked. It was really frustrating for a long time, but now my passion and what I love to do centers around my culture. 

“Since I started Joanna’s Kitchen I have done numerous events and have taught classes within the special needs community. That is a big part of my mission and my plan, to be there for people with special needs.”

Was it difficult when you were growing up to find the ingredients for the more traditional Ghana dishes in grocery stores in Minnesota?

Yes, but compared to cooking when I was growing up to now, because of my style of cooking, it's a little easier. My style of African food is infused with Asian flavors. I use a lot of lemongrass and ginger. Those items are easy to find. Some ingredients I need I have to order from Amazon and there are a couple of African markets around Denver that I can shop at. I would say that it’s getting easier to find ingredients. When preparing for an event, sometimes I have to go to six different stores to complete a meal.

What motivated you to start Joanna’s Kitchen?

I started Joanna's Kitchen about two years ago. I had gone through a negligence lawsuit regarding my son, we fought for 6 years and at the end of it we ended up losing. I am a mother of three and my oldest son has epileptic seizures and is non-verbal. After I went through the lawsuit, there was a period where I was really depressed and felt like I had let my son down. I have three kids altogether, two that have no issues and my oldest son's issues mainly happened at birth, and I feel like he didn't get the justice he needed. So when I started Joanna's Kitchen, it was a way for me to create more safety and security for my son. He will always need help, at every phase in his life and I wanted to create a workspace where perhaps I could hire people with special needs. Since starting Joanna's Kitchen, I've hosted numerous events and taught classes within the special needs community. That is a big part of my mission and I plan to be there for people with special needs. 

Why did you choose Joanna’s Kitchen as the name of your business?

My son is 10 now and he's gone through different phases of physical and speech therapy and I have constantly been his caregiver. When I created Joanna's Kitchen, it felt good that people loved the flavors that I made and it really felt like what I was doing was important for me. I especially like my logo because it has my name and a drawing of Africa in my three favorite colors, gold, blue and black.

Did you go to culinary school or take any cooking classes?

I did the year before I started my business. I always cooked, so I knew how to make my flavors stand out, but I wanted to learn more about food temperature and commissary kitchens. Cooking for your family is much different than cooking as a passion or cooking as a business. I did classes through the Emily Griffith school, which was challenging because it was virtually. Despite the challenges of learning certain skills that way, I finished it and then moved on to another Denver-based business program to help me figure out where I wanted to go with my business. They talked about creating a company based on things I was accustomed to, and it clicked for me to focus on my culture. As I did more research, I realized there aren't a lot of West African, gluten-free, and vegan options around here, and that had to be my niche. I want everyone to enjoy it (my food), and that's why I specialize in creating food for those with dietary restrictions.

When did you first fall in love with food?

I've always loved food. Growing up, my Mom cooked a lot of cultural food. I was able to adapt to American cuisine but also know a lot about cultural dishes. Becoming a mother at a very young age made me want to experiment with many different cuisines because I wanted to nurture my kiddos so we didn't have to eat fast food all the time and they could enjoy more wholesome meals. I found myself in cooking more than others might because of my role as a caregiver.

What three words would you use to describe your food? 

Bold, fun, and exciting. When people usually try African food it's on the spicier end, and that is totally fine, but my food is medium and it's intentional because that's how I like my food. I used to eat spicier things when I was younger, but now my body is like, no! The fact that my food is Asian-infused makes it a little more familiar to people trying it for the first time. I've also had a lot of people who are either Hispanic or Indian really enjoy my food because I use ingredients familiar to their cooking styles - so my food is really for everyone!

What is your favorite thing to cook?

That's a tough question! I enjoy cooking a lot of savory and sweet and just challenging what those flavors and combinations can be.

What was your favorite part about Street Food Social?

“I enjoyed being able to talk to different vendors. I think as small business owners we give ourselves a hard time and being able to see that it's not just you that is learning and making mistakes feels really good.”

I love the competition aspect. This was the second food competition that I won. Last year I won Taste of the West in Lakewood. I am a very competitive person - I love presentations and going all out. I am excited to see what else you will have next. I also enjoyed being able to talk to different vendors. As small business owners, we give ourselves a hard time. Sometimes, I'll forget my serving utensils in the commissary kitchen, and being able to see that it's not just you that is learning and making mistakes and that we can learn and do it together feels great.

What question did you get asked most about your food at Street Food Social?

The question I get asked most is if I am really Ghanaian. Also, people are generally curious about why I want to sell the food I do.

How are you planning to invest the FanFav Winner scholarship into your business?

I am looking at doing a lot of collaborating. I am researching graphic designers and content creators. Now social media is everything. I want to have longer lines for my food next year, so right now, I will be working on getting content together for my social media channels to get everyone hype about my food. I am working on creating cooking instructions. I would love to have my own dry spice mix - so you can watch a video of how to make a meal and then have the spice to do it right at home.

What’s next for Joanna’s Kitchen?

When I started, I thought that a food truck was where I wanted to go with my business. My son went from birth to 7 years old without having any seizures, and then the last two years, when COVID was happening, he has had seizures mostly at night which is stressful for me. So, it made me push away from the food truck idea because of how much work it would be up front. Also, not being able to work every day because I have to take care of my son, it made more sense to drive my business growth towards getting my products in stores because I can do prep and drop off in my own time. I would like to open a restaurant in the next two years, but right now, I am trying to take it slow because I don't want it (the business) to blow up too big and become overwhelming. I want to spread my name to different stores first. When I have my restaurant, I want it to be open Friday, Saturday and Sunday and when you step in you're in little Africa. There will be unique dishes, local African musicians playing music and just a whole vibe.