If you’ve ever enjoyed a meal prepared by Inspirations Fork & Table (formerly Inspirations Catering), you know what love tastes like. Recently, we caught up with Sydney Toledo, daughter of Inspirations Catering founders Manny and Kristene Toledo. Sydney is Inspirations’ new Head Chef, who’s keeping it all in the family in the way only the next generation can.
AMA: Eat Your Art Out is a celebration of art in culinary forms. As an artist, how did you come to develop your own unique style and techniques?
Sydney Toledo: When creating in the kitchen, I don’t see any boundaries. I love fusion, mixing together foods that might not seem like they go together but they do in delicious and surprising ways. It was how I was raised!
The flavors in my childhood home came from my Mom’s American-Serbian heritage and from my Dad’s, who is from Mexico. Then, for four years, I was involved in the culinary arts program at Frontier High in Mansfield. I had an instructor who was my mentor. He gave me the blueprint and guidance I needed to take all that I was learning and run with it. Today, I always want and strive for a WOW factor.
AMA: You’re twenty-three years old, and you are the Head Chef of Inspirations Fork & Table. When did you know that you wanted to go into the family business?
Sydney: I’ve been helping Mom and Dad since I was 6 or 7 years old, but the first day I knew this was was my passion was when I was 15. My parents were catering a big wedding for a client, and I was working with them. The client had ordered a full protein meal for their guests plus a few plates with dietary restrictions. We bought everything we needed in advance, of course, then we cooked it on site. As we were preparing the meals, we got a request for two vegan entrees. It just so happened that a friend and I were vegans at the time, so I turned to my parents and I said, “I’ve got this!” Their reaction was everything–full blown trust–and when the guests raved about the creativity I poured into their meals, I was hooked.
AMA: For as long as you and your parents have been in the culinary business, you’ve been champions of community outreach! Why is community engagement so important?
Sydney: “Gather around the table” is more than our tagline. It’s about building community, and that’s what we believe in.
Recently, my father and I were talking about how Inspirations is a family business. We talked about “four people, eight hands” in the kitchen. Things can get challenging and hectic in that tight kitchen, just like life can get challenging. But we will always be there for each other.
(Sydney pauses, and sniffles) In 2019, when my mom was diagnosed with a brain tumor and dad had heart surgery, it changed my perspective. We are here to feed our customers, and we are here to feed our family. Generationally. We’re building something for our kids and grandkids. There are so many wonderful, family-owned businesses in Arlington that are walking the same path as us. They understand the challenges we face without even having to talk about them because they face them, too.
AMA: Why is it important for a community to support its local non-profit arts organizations like the AMA?
Sydney: School funding for visual arts, theatre, culinary arts, dance, and all of the arts is important, but our support can’t stop there. Because when art missing from the community, there is less beauty and joy.
Also, art is about inspiration, which is why our name is Inspirations! To us, food is art. Our brisket grilled cheese, for instance, is one of our most popular items because it is so unexpected. People ask us all the time, “How do you do it?” and we tell them! Because anyone can learn to be creative if someone shows them how.
AMA: Eat Your Art Out is such a fun event. What are you most looking forward to?
Sydney: We love the giant cake sculptures! They are so cool.
AMA: What do you think makes the Arlington Museum of Art special?
Sydney: While the art is amazing, it’s the people who make the Arlington Museum of Art special. Everyone at the AMA cares and is there for the community.
AMA: A special aspect of Eat Your Art Out is the participation of the confectionery artists, not only because they’re creative but because most are women-owned. You can relate, can’t you?
Sydney: Oh, yes. A woman-run, family business was my norm as I was growing up! You probably know the scene in the movie My Big Fat Greek Wedding when the mother says, “…the man is the head, but the woman is the neck and she can turn the head any way she wants.” That is my mother. She’s always been such a strong role model as an artist, a culinary professional, and an entrepreneur.
AMA: Is there anything else that you’d like our constituents to know about Inspirations Fork & Table?
Sydney: Thank you for allowing Inspirations Fork & Table to showcase what we do, and to help make a difference in our community!
