BASSETERRE, St. Kitts - Mmm, mmm, mmm is all you would say when you first taste the deliciousness of Shauna Farrell’s Cook-up. Your eyes will roll to the back of your head when you bite into a slice of her delectable Pizza and you would never forget the sensation you will feel once you ‘chow down’ into some of her Rice and Chicken or for the “Factory Girls”, her ‘special’.
Seems too good to be true? You better believe it! Hungry Zone, as she calls her business, is under the same roof with Rozzy on the Corner, another business entity owned by her mother, Roslyn Anthony.
Anthony, Farrell explained, runs Rozzy on the Corner which is the beverage department of Hungry Zone, located on Douglas Street, Newtown, while she concentrates on food, which she also sells from her car.
Farrell’s menu includes her famous Cook-up (with or without pork); Curry Chicken with Rice; Salt-fish with Rice; Fish with Rice; Soup; Roti (chicken and conch); Green Banana, and Macaroni. Her special includes Chicken, Macaroni Pie, Corn Pie, Vegetable Pie and Stir-fry Vegetables.
If you are feeling a little on the ‘junk’ side, Farrell also sells Hotdogs, Hamburgers, Pizzas (cheese, pepperoni, vegetable, salt-fish and ‘garbage’) and Bread Pudding.
Her pastry items include Sausage Rolls, Raisin Rolls and Patties. She also sells a variety of beverages including mauby, Passion Fruit and Lemonade.
Farrell mainly plys her trade in the Basseterre area, but regularly travels as far as the Peninsula in the southeast and Beacon Heights in the west.
In response to effects the current global economic crisis has on her business, Farrell said, “I in no way affected by the economic situation, because I been catering for the everyday man with low prices, and I also learn over the years to make adjustments when necessary.”
She further explained that “money is tight all around and people always looking for cheap place to buy well prepared and tasty food”.
“When people get pay, after they finish paying bills...they broke. They would figure, ‘Okay Shauna food for $5, let we hold pon a Shauna food...stop a gap.’ So, I make out good,” Farrell said.
The young entrepreneur said that the business stemmed from her passion for cooking and it is not all about making money. She however boasts of purchasing all of her household amenities with the money she makes from it.
Hungry Zone has been a booming business since it was established in 1995.
Giving brief details about her transition from selling quarters and drinks at Amory’s Pool Hall to the food industry, Shauna said that one day a friend asked her to sell a number of potato puddings, which she did with ease. From that moment she was encouraged by a neighbour, who was also a chef and from whom she learned many secrets of the catering world, to become an entrepreneur.
Farrell said she started out with breakfast goodies and eventually ventured into the lunch arena.
Farrell also explained that she originally started with the intention of catering to those who work at the different factories at the Industrial Site, but she soon became a household name.
Hungry Zone’s prices range from as small as $5 to $18, the maximum.
