Lisa Freeman – Sporting Friend
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Lisa Freeman – NASCAR® Chef
Website:
Hooks & Horns Catering
Co-Authored Cookbooks:
The Hunter’s Table
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Lisa on The Sporting Chef
Lisa has served as the executive chef for NASCAR, Inc. since 2002. In 2009, her position with NASCAR had evolved into a lesser schedule for the NASCAR Sprint Cup season. Lisa and her sister, a career restaurateur, then decided to start another exciting food adventure.
Their idea of a mobile restaurant – the – was born. An upscale food truck serving the Northern California countryside.
Soon after, they began to notice a demand from hunters and outdoorsmen for their services. That is when the the division of Hooks & Horns Catering was born. Specifically specializing in wild game cooking and urban cowboy cuisine.
The native Northern California sisters were born and raised in Linden, a small farming community in the San Joaquin Valley. Their grandfather, George Di Carlo, emigrated from Sicily to California where he began farming and eventually went into the restaurant business. Orval Freeman, their paternal grandfather, raised livestock. It was only natural that the sisters gained an appreciation for seasonally harvested produce, freshly made cream, homemade butter, and free-range eggs.
Jamie has extensive restaurant and catering experience. She was selected as a finalist for “The Best Bartender of San Joaquin County” by the Stockton Record in 2005.
Jamie had “front of the house” position with the famous Waterloo California Restaurant at the age of 15. Growing up there, she learned all aspects of the business including cooking and bartending. She also worked in the culinary department for the world renowned winery, Wente Vineyards in Livermore, California. Today, Jamie is bar manager for The Waterloo Club.
Lisa specializes in outdoor cooking. She worked at the El Rancho Steak House and Waterloo Restaurant while studying culinary arts at Columbia College where she graduated in 1994. She has received certificates from CIA Greystone, Napa and UC Davis.
In addition, Lisa has worked on television cooking shows, including a position on the culinary support team for Michael Chiarello’s Napastyle and has been a spokesperson for several national media tours. Lisa has also been with NASCAR as executive chef since 2002 and is still touring the country with the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series.
Lisa recently co-authored her first cookbook, The Hunter’s Table, for Ducks Unlimited, which was released in August by FRP Books.
All of this was perfect preparation for the formation of the Grateful Gypsy Bistro and Hook and Horns.
Both the GGB & Hook and Horns is a passion for the Freeman sisters. They serves the greater Northern California area and Sierra Foothills of California, but are likely to travel just about anywhere.