YUM Catering Delivers on its Name

Do Greek meatballs, hot truffle honey brie, and cookie dough pops sound appealing?

Creative sisters Ande and Cindi Baron, operating YUM out of Temple Emanu-El’s in-house kitchen, are known for their out-of-the-box creativity and willingness to please clients in all different hues — envision a purple mitzvah kiddish.

Cindi said, “Food is art. Sometimes people need to just allow the food to be the star. Also understanding balance and hierarchy is important. The platters, the colors, the linens, the room, the ambience are also major. We do mood boards for our clients to show visions for their events and help determine a solid budget.”

YUM’s sweet spots are kiddushes, cocktail parties, fundraising events, picnics, showers, luncheons, and especially brunches. They catered a topical clever “Downton Abbey” dinner party as a 12-course meal where guests arrived in British attire. YUM designed unique guest gifts and served on China that was used on the actual TV series. They designed the invitations, and hand delivered them to guests. Then, there’s Tuscan kiddish, “Alice in Wonderland” kiddish, and grazing kiddish. Cindi explained, “We just love making people happy. We are in the happy business.”

A kiddish for 100 would typically contain 7-10 dishes. A sample might be: assorted bagels, two types of cream cheese whips made in-house like Georgia smoked trout cream cheese whip, tomato platters that include green, red, yellow or heirloom tomatoes, onions and capers. Choice of a protein salad in several tuna formats, egg salad, fresh poached salmon salad (made with healthy homemade tzatziki, not mayo), plus two additional salads, a hot dish (quiche, macaroni and cheese plus more), and desserts.

Everything is made from scratch. Pricing ranges from $19.95 to $34.95 per person, plus tax and gratuity. They have themes/formats for Halloween, Derby Day, Mardi Gras, “The Secret Garden,” “X-Men,” and rock and roll events, disco themes with 70s foods, and fondue parties. A recent bar mitzvah at Ahavath Achim sported bright green cookies because the bar mitzvah boy is a Philadelphia Eagles fan.

Where do they get their ideas? “We read a lot of magazines like Kinfolf, unique cookbooks like ‘The Mississippi Vegan,’ blogs from chefs in New Orleans, and Garden and Gun Magazine. We pay attention to what 20-40-year-olds are trending. We follow what’s big in Europe and Israel, so we can be fresh and always evolving.”

Now devotees of Martha Stewart and Ina Garten, the sisters grew up in Atlanta until age 13, when they moved to Israel. There they were exposed to food cultures from all over the world and “daily shared sushi, marmite, falafel and peanut butter sandwiches. It was an ethnic food pot luck!” With family from Macon, they also interpret those roots in their hospitality as “Southern Jewish girls.”

At 50 and 53, Ande joked, “I’m older and definitely not the boss. I love working with the clients, and am a tiny bit weird, in a fun way. I  design the menus, branding, and packaging.”

Ande has BFA from the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, plus a degree from the Portfolio Center and taught design across the country.

“Cindi, a retired public school teacher, is ‘the firecracker,’ willing to try new ideas and is cherished as the staff manager. She is a great businesswoman and because of her, we have been able to grow and cater events I could not have done myself. She can do it all — florals, linens … we take pride in being a small, woman-owned business and treat staff like family.”

YUM offers these tips for those who want entertainer at home: “Less is more. A dish doesn’t need a million ingredients. Often, the best dishes are the most simple. Enjoy what you are doing. Do not entertain if you are not in the mood. It shows in the food. Pay attention to details. Don’t drink too much wine before the guests arrive!”

Although YUM is not AKC certified, they will prepare out of kosher client’s homes and other synagogue kitchens. For more information, please call 912-220-5558.