One of the highlights of the latest edition of the recent Music City Food & Wine Festival was the pleasant surprise of running into chef Vasisht Ramasubramanian, who has always been kind enough to encourage me to call him Chef V. He was leading a booth at the Food Faire to promote his new line of spices and sauces under his culinary umbrella, The Flavorsmith, Alchemy of Food.
You may remember Chef V from his stints running local kitchens at Chauhan Ale & Masala House, The Hook, Barcelona and Honest Restaurant. Before that, he was a high honors graduate from the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, and spent four years working in ABC Kitchen and ABC Cocina with chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten, where he ultimately rose to the position of sous chef.
These days, his focus is exploring elements of flavor, specifically international influences that have been a part of his culinary vernacular. He has created a company to wholesale his selections of brands that include the Classic Condiment Co., Handmade Collection and the globally inspired Hot Sauce range — and his big coming-out event occurred late last month an the Summer Fancy Food Show in New York.
Chef V shared that the reception and feedback at the show was fantastic — including stoking a deal for New York City distribution through Gold Coast and plenty of interest from national chains like Sprouts, Whole Foods and HEB. In the meantime, local shoppers can discover some of his brands like Hot Maple, Hot Honey, Hot Honey Mustard, Sriracha and Salsa Verde at Middle Tennessee vendors including Green Door Gourmet and Sperry’s Mercantile. Chef V’s products are also available for purchase from Amazon, if Prime Days have acclimated you to shopping without leaving your house.
If we hear about more local and national distribution for The Flavorsmith, Alchemy of Food, we’ll be sure to share the news here.
