Personal chef/caterer Jaclyn Trimble living 'a good life'

Jaclyn Trimble loves cooking, yet she never wanted her own restaurant. She studied culinary arts at Milwaukee Area Technical College, worked at a few restaurants and then forged her own path. 

In 2010, she started Wholesome Harvest Meals, working as a personal chef for clients from Mequon to Chicago. When people started asking her to cater, she found a kitchen in Rochester, a village near Waterford. Living above her workspace puts her right where she wants to be: near the farmers who provide her with produce year-round. 

As demand has grown, she’s added Sunday brunch, monthly five-course dinners called “Winedown Wednesdays” and comfort food “take-and-bake” dinners every Friday in her space at 207A W. Main St. She also does pop-up collaborations. Look for her schedule and updates on Facebook. 

When Trimble wants to have fun, she heads to the farmers market. Her indulgence is fine dining, and she’s already planning her next trip: dinner at The French Laundry. 

Her roots

I’m actually from Twin Lakes and my mom still lives out there. I went to college in Milwaukee, at UWM for biology. I did that for about three years. I didn’t know the direction I wanted to go, and I got a job at a restaurant, Twin Oaks Country Inn in Wilmot. 

After a summer working with the chef and owner, Richard Knox, he said I should think about doing something in the culinary world. I have always loved to cook. I moved back to Milwaukee and ended up the next semester at MATC doing the culinary arts program. I graduated in 2007.

Building her business

I eventually had enough of the restaurant world and schedules. I started to think about how I could cook, but not in a restaurant. I started out as a personal chef in 2010. It was a lot of friends who hired me at first. 

Menu making

I want to know things you like and don’t like. I create the menu around that. I don’t have any set menus for anything. Every menu is different. It is a whole lot of extra work, but I’m not doing the same thing every event. 

Finding her space

In March, it will be three years I’ll be in Rochester. The personal chef thing was going well, but people wanted me to cater. You need a certified kitchen to do that. This is a small restaurant, you can fit about 20 to 25 people. The first year, I was just using the kitchen.

Now I’m open to the public a few times a month. We do a Sunday brunch. We do WineDown Wednesdays, a five-course wine dinner. (Next one is Jan. 31.) I rent the space for parties. I also cater weddings. There is a new venue in Burlington, Mercantile Hall, an old furniture store they revamped. I have about one wedding a month there from spring through fall. 

Pickups and pop-ups 

We do fun pop-ups at The Coffee House in Burlington. They renovated and just started doing pop-ups with myself and another chef. We switch off every month. My next one will be in March.

Then, a little flower shop called The Tattered Leaf in Lyons, sometimes we do a workshop with flowers and dinner. 

I also offer take and bake (on Fridays), a lot of comfort food. That allows people to try my food without a huge commitment. It also keeps clientele, because not everybody can hire me for a wedding. 

One-woman wonder

I do all the shopping myself. Farmers are my first choice. I do have a farmer I work with, Michelle Cannon. Her farm is Larryville Gardens. Both of us got started around 2000. We do these amazing dinners usually the first week in August. Everything I serve, she grew on the farm, we locally source the meat, and you get a tour.

What she’s learned 

People don’t like vegetables. Vegetables are my thing. I’m not vegetarian, but I want to promote vegetables. I think especially in Wisconsin, we eat this huge piece of meat, like a huge steak, a potato and a tiny bit of vegetables. It has to change. 

Homestyle is her style

When they come in for brunch, people say they feel like they’re in my home. That’s exactly what I want. And I still have the holidays and my nights.

Restaurant rule

I want cellphones off the table. I always yell at people. No. You’re supposed to be enjoying the food and the company.

Early influence

The chef at Twin Oaks Country Inn (in Wilmot), Richard Knox, was a huge influence and mentor to me when I started.

Favorite foods

Italian food is my favorite. I do have this brisket recipe that I always say is “my soon-to-be-famous brisket,” a bourbon and peach glazed brisket. It is super good, but my lasagna is a pretty simple dish and it is my best seller.

Deliciously simple

I appreciate restaurants where there are 50 ingredients to a plate and they’re using tweezers and whatnot. It is beautiful, wonderful. I’ve worked in restaurants that do that. The thing I like best is simple food using fresh ingredients.

People and place

I want to give a shout-out to the people of Rochester. I never knew people could be so nice. I’m my only employee and everybody in this community and beyond into Burlington is just unbelievably supportive. 

What drives her

I’m never going to be a millionaire doing this, but I’m going to live a good life because I love what I do.

Fork. Spoon. Life. explores the everyday relationship that local notables (within the food community and without) have with food. To suggest future personalities to profile, email nstohs@journalsentinel.com.