Known for creating elevated comfort food with soul, Chef Rene has grown Blackberry Soul into a respected Bay Area catering company serving corporate clients, private celebrations, community organizations, and large-scale events.

Chef Rene is also a cookbook author, entrepreneur, community advocate, and creator of several business and community initiatives. Her cookbook, From My Heart to Your Table, shares both traditional and vegan soul food recipes. Beyond catering, she is the founder of Link and Thrive, a business community created to help entrepreneurs build meaningful relationships, exchange referrals, and gain access to the resources they need to grow. Her work has been featured on television, including KRON 4’s Live! in the Bay, NBC Bay Area, and KTVU FOX 2 San Francisco; and she was honored as Powerful Women of the Bay Woman Entrepreneur of the Year in 2025.

What first interested you in your area of the hospitality industry?

For me, food has always been about much more than eating. Food brings people together. Some of our greatest conversations, celebrations, business deals, family moments, and memories happen around a table.

I became interested in hospitality because I loved creating those experiences. I realized that I wasn’t simply serving food—I was creating a feeling. I loved seeing people come together and watching how good food could change the energy in a room.

As Blackberry Soul grew, I became passionate about taking the comfort foods people know and love and presenting them in a fresh, beautiful, elevated way. I realized I had something special when it came to bringing people to the table and the impact my delicious food was making when someone took their first bite. That was a game changer for me. 

Who are a few of the people who have encouraged your career?

My family has been one of my greatest sources of encouragement. My children and grandchildren have watched Blackberry Soul grow and have also been a part of the journey.

I have been blessed with an incredible community of businesswomen, mentors, clients, colleagues, and friends who have supported me, referred business to me, opened doors for me, and sometimes reminded me of what I was capable of when I needed to hear it.

One of the things I have learned throughout my career is that you may start a business by yourself, but you do not build a successful business by yourself. Relationships and community engagement have played a major role in my career.

What challenges do you think people face in your industry?

One of the biggest challenges in hospitality is that people often see the finished event, but don’t see everything that happens behind the scenes. There is staffing, food purchasing, preparation, transportation, equipment, timing, setup, breakdown, customer service, last-minute changes, rising food costs, and making sure every guest still receives a wonderful experience.

Another challenge for hospitality businesses is cash flow. You may have a very successful business and still have to carefully manage payroll, vendors, food costs, and the timing of client payments. You also have to learn how to price your services based on the true value and cost of doing business. That is something many entrepreneurs have to grow into.

Can you cite a few accomplishments that have given you great pride and elevated your work?

There are several accomplishments that mean a great deal to me. Building Blackberry Soul Fine Catering into a business that has served major corporations, organizations, government agencies and officials such as our own Mayor of Oakland, CA, Mayor Barbara Lee, community leaders, several celebrities, and families throughout the Bay Area is something I am extremely proud of.

Publishing my cookbook, From My Heart to Your Table, was another important milestone, because it allowed me to preserve and share my recipes, including, both, traditional and vegan soul food, and bringing Blackberry Soul into homes during the pandemic. 

I have also had the opportunity to share my food and story through television appearances, including KRON 4’s Live! in the Bay, FOX, NBC and other big platforms. Being named Powerful Women of the Bay Woman Entrepreneur of the Year in 2025 was very special because it recognized not only the business I have built, but also the years of work, perseverance, and community involvement behind it.

But some of my proudest moments are also the ones that don’t come with an award – feeding children, supporting community events, mentoring entrepreneurs, providing jobs, and being able to open doors for other small businesses.

What piece of advice can you lend to others who are considering your career?

Learn the business behind the food. Learn the business behind your services. Create an experience for your customers not just a service. Being able to cook is only one part of running a successful catering or hospitality company. You have to understand your numbers, contracts, staffing, food costs, customer service, marketing, sales, operations, and cash flow.

I always say there is a business behind the biscuit. Your food may get you in the door, but understanding your business is what allows you to stay in the room. I would also tell people to build strong relationships. Your reputation and the way you treat people will travel much further than any advertisement.

Everyone who works in hospitality has a story to tell about something incredible that happened on the job. What’s one that you often tell?

After more than 15 years in catering, I probably have enough stories for another book!

One thing catering teaches you very quickly is that something unexpected will happen. An event time changes. A guest count suddenly grows. Something doesn’t arrive. The weather changes. A client makes a last-minute request. There have been events where, behind the scenes, we were solving several problems at once, yet the guests never knew anything had happened.

Those moments remind me what hospitality really means. It isn’t about everything going perfectly. It is about your ability to remain calm, find a solution, protect the guest experience, and make people feel cared for. When the client says at the end of the night, “Everything was perfect,” and you know what your team had to do to make it look that way, that’s hospitality.

But, I have to say my most incredible experience came when at the end of an event Dr. Cornell West grabbed my hand and got me on the dance floor, and the man had rhythm. 

What do you hope people understand about those who work in your area of hospitality?

I want people to understand that hospitality professionals are highly skilled businesspeople. Behind one beautiful plate or one beautifully executed event may be hours or days of planning, purchasing, cooking, logistics, staffing, organization, creativity, and problem-solving.

Catering is also very physical work. Our teams may be working long before the guests arrive and long after the last guest leaves. When you hire a caterer, you are not simply buying food. You are investing in an experience, expertise, preparation, service, and peace of mind.

Is there anything else you want Woman Around Town readers to know?

I want people to know that you can continue reinventing yourself. I became a mother at 16 years old. My journey did not begin with every advantage or a perfect roadmap. I built my businesses one opportunity, one relationship, one lesson, and sometimes one mistake at a time.

Today, I am still building. I am growing Blackberry Soul, creating new hospitality concepts, supporting entrepreneurs through Link and Thrive, developing community projects, and continuing to think about what’s next.

One thing entrepreneurship has taught me is that where you start does not have to determine where you finish. Also it is not only where you are going, but how you are going to get there. Know your ETA, know where you want to be in 5 years or 10 years. 

And I still believe one of the greatest things you can do in business is ask yourself: Who can I send business to today?

Website & Social Media
Blackberry Soul Fine Catering
Link and Thrive
Instagram: Chefrenesway
Facebook: Rene Johnson Chef
Cookbook: From My Heart to Your Table by Chef Rene Johnson

Photo Credit: Nana Kofi