Today we’d like to introduce you to Mauricio Patino and Yina Patino.
Thanks for sharing your story with us Mauricio and Yina. So, let’s start at the beginning and we can move on from there.
Mao: I was a hibachi chef for 15 years at a popular hibachi restaurant. One day in 2014 I was asked by one of my regular clients to come to cook for her at her home because she had built a hibachi grill in her backyard. After this event, my wife said wouldn’t it be great to be able to have a portable grill and cook for people at their homes. She was right there was nothing like it. We started with small grills we bought off craigslist and home depot. The business was booming but the more the word spread the higher the demand became. We were unexperienced and did not have money to invest properly for our growing business. We decided to put our project on hold and save money to start the business off right.
In 2018 I quit my full time job as a sushi chef and we invested our savings in our own catering business we call today Hibachi Live. Right now we work all over Florida providing great food and entertainment in one. I am blessed to be able to work doing what I love and my wife (who is a nurse) is also part of the business by being the event coordinator and keeping the business portion organized.
Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
No, it has not been a smooth road at all for us. This idea came at a time in our lives when we were not prepared financially or mentally. We had to put the business on hold and work extra hard and save enough money to build our personal life and Hibachi Live. Also, I had been a chef for 15 years and knew the kitchen portion of hibachi but not the business portion. My wife who has been a nurse for 18 years had no idea how to run a business or even get one started. We both dedicated ourselves to learning by reading, watching videos and connecting with other entrepreneurs in the food industry that helped guide us. It was hard but we pulled through together and we are proud of what we are building for our future.
Please tell us about your work.
Hibachi Live specializes in Teppanyaki style cooking. We pride ourselves on serving fresh quality food. We do not cut corners when it comes to any of the food we serve. We believe that there is no other catering company that offers the dining experience we do. We have three styles of catering to offer our clients. The most popular is a full sit down Hibachi Live experience at your outdoor venue of choice. We provide the full hibachi dinner dining experience with your own private hibachi chef and server without having to leave your home or sit next to strangers. The second option we offer is a live hibachi buffet. This option is an outdoor buffet connected to the hibachi grill. The buffet option still provides fresh cooked food and entertainment by your own personnel hibachi chef served buffet style with a salad bar and sauce bar. The final option would be the common indoor buffet set up. The food is still cooked fresh on site by our hibachi chefs. Our clients love Hibachi Live because we offer fresh food and entertainment in one.
What is “success” or “successful” for you?
For us, I think success is when our clients are completely satisfied with the food and entertainment we provided them at their event. Our goal is for everyone to enjoy our food and come back for seconds.
Contact Info:
- Phone: 786-572-7722
- Email: info@hibachilive.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/hibachi_live/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/HibachiLive/
Image Credit:
All photos were taken by me or my team
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