February 2023 pt.1

We're almost back!! Classes are open for February and March.

Hello Friends!

We’re back!!!! Well. Almost.

Thank you all for sticking around, I’ve been a bit quiet as we make some changes at Bolita. In short, we’re moving into our own production kitchen in Berkeley. I signed a lease to a beautiful, airy light-filled kitchen in West Berkeley. Exposed brick, large windows, light-wells, and it’s mine.

As some of you know, I was working out of a shared commercial kitchen in downtown Oakland. When I joined this space in late 2020, it was the peak of the pandemic and the catering company that owned the space needed tenants to help offset the cost of their rent. They had a big, unused kitchen and they rented it out to small businesses. At one point there were six small business running out of there. It was lovely. I got to interact with other small pop-ups and businesses going through similar pains and successes. We were a little community of makers.

As time went on, and the catering company needed more space, some tenants were asked to leave, it became overcrowded with gig workers, and the space lost it’s charm. To be fair, there wasn’t much charm in the kitchen to begin with. I had graveyard hours; I had to get all my cooking done between 6pm-9am. I would get up at 4/5am regularly just to avoid being in someone else’s way when I arrived at the kitchen. The entire kitchen was in a basement. No natural light, low ceilings, sometimes 15-20 people working at once.

It was hard to be inspired when I had to make myself as small as possible every day. I told myself that this year I would not let myself be made to feel small. I am taking up space and owning it.

Our new Berkeley kitchen is too big for me alone, so I asked a few friends to come along for the ride. Mainly this is a financial decision as Bolita is currently too small to take over every inch of the kitchen, but we will grow into it. I invited people I trust and feel inspired by. I want to create an inclusive, safe and humble space for others to thrive in and outgrow. Hopefully some fun collaborations will come from this.

I am reminding myself that I am running a business. This is not some hobby or thing I am trying out. Bolita is THE thing I set out to do and I am doing it. I have been doing this with so many constraints and other people’s considerations holding me back. This year is when Bolita is finally allowed to be itself. I will not make myself small or ask permission to exist. Bolita is here and we are fucking going for it.

So, what can you expect? Being in our new space means we can do more. Starting on March 11th, we will be at the Saturday Foodwise Farmers Market in the San Francisco Ferry Building. We have a new 10 hp (!!!) molino on the way— this means way more masa, like 10x more masa in a fraction of the time. Classes in our kitchen; come see our space, learn some things and ask questions. Private dinners in our kitchen coming this Spring. And, more pop-ups.

I am working on a new website, but in the meantime here are some things for you to check out.

Our POP-UP / EVENT CALENDAR I made a Google calendar with all of our upcoming Workshops, Pop-Ups, Market dates. Hopefully this will help everyone asking where they can find us. We do a lot, and it’s hard to post about it all the time or send a weekly newsletter, so just remember, it’s in the Calendar.

CLASSES ARE BACK!!!! Our Masa forms class is back and I added a Tamal class. Our masa class explores how to use masa by showing how to make tortillas, tetelas, tlacoyos, sopes, gorditas and more. In our Tamal class, we will make three distinct types of tamal masa (using our fresh masa) and make tamales. As always, I still offer private classes, great for birthdays, group building, family gatherings, or just to learn with your friends. Email me at hola@bolitamasa.com

Later this Spring, I am debuting a paid Substack subscription with a recipes and more content. This free subscription will still exist and keep you up to date on all things Bolita, but as new paid version will give you access to a plethora of Bolita recipes and other goodies. Stay tuned.

Thank you for supporting Bolita! We hope to see you soon and can’t wait to feed you!

Rosie was napping behind me as I wrote this.