Spotted Hen: Seasonal Produce Takes Center Stage
Written by James Berenback • April 18, 2018
While catering all-star Spotted Hen is just a year old, chef/owner Terri Wahl has been serving Los Angeles diners for over twenty years. After a successful career running her beloved Eagle Rock restaurant, Auntie Em's Kitchen, Terri transitioned to full-time catering. Today, she continues cooking with only the freshest local ingredients Spotted Hen can find. We spoke with Cindy Larimore, catering manager at Spotted Hen (and former waitress at Auntie Em's Kitchen), to learn more about this catering powerhouse.
How would you describe Spotted Hen’s food philosophy?
Terri was one of the first people out there who was really dedicated to only using seasonal, fresh, locally sourced produce and meats, and that is something we've really held onto throughout the years regardless of whatever food trends are out there at the moment. We focus of creating simple, delicious meals that allow the food to do to the talking. Our aesthetic is rustic yet refined, and our food is somewhere between what you'd find at a health food store and a comfort food restaurant, with only the best of both intermixed into amazing seasonal menus and recipes.
How often does your menu change and what factors go into that change when it happens?
Our menu changes usually four times per year along with the seasons. However, if there's a long summer or a bad crop then we will change our menu to reflect that even if we just switched our menu for the season. The seasons and local crops are what inform our menus, so we change with the seasons and with the crops to make sure we are only offering the best and freshest produce we can find.
We are SO excited that spring is here, because that means so many amazing fruits and vegetables are coming into season! We are really excited about fresh summer corn, pineapples, summer squash and zucchini, and all the amazing recipes we can make with these items! Oh and also WATERMELON!! But it's not ready quite yet ;)
What’s Spotted Hen’s specialty?
Our specialty is anything that's in season. Honestly, we do so much catering and in so many capacities that it is difficult to say what we are most known for. We make incredible cheese and charcuterie platters, our hot food is extremely popular, our sandwiches are ordered by the hundreds, and we have an award winning bakery. So I guess our specialty is making amazing food for any- and everyone.
Spotted Hen offers food for all kinds of occasions from sandwiches to sweets.
CaterCow's Favorites from Spotted Hen:
