The Colors of Food is a family-owned
company dedicated to providing high-quality food to all who seek it. After
learning about Keto and Paleo, owner and Chef Melian
De Carolis (Chef Mel) decided to study these life-changing
diets and now dedicates her life to making people better, incorporating these
into great meal prep.
Located in central Clearwater
and serving Pinellas County, The Colors of Food consists of a staff of six and
more than 10 years’ experience. “We are more than equipped to create perfect
meals for your healthy diet and improve your life with delicious Keto and Paleo
meals,” states Chef Mel.
Hailing from Italy, Chef Mel
spent her teen years in England and eventually ended up in America where she
met her husband and began a family. Her passion for food began in Italy where
she would follow her Italian grandmother around asking questions about cooking.
To her, grandmother’s meals were magical, and she states, “To this day, I have
never found anything better!” Chef Mel applies her grandmother’s styles and
techniques in her cooking. “Each time I go visit her in Italy, I learn more
every time.
“When I moved to England, I
got more curious about cooking foods from different cultures and so I started
working at restaurants in the area where I made friends with the chefs and
started shadowing them. I learned a lot from them.”
Chef Mel migrated to America
from the UK to take a cooking position where they were also offering training
and certification. She was professionally trained and became a pastry chef.
As a pastry chef, however, the
more she learned about healthy diets, the stark and hard reality that refined
sugar is truly harmful to the human biome hit hard, requiring some serious
changes. Over time, she began learning
extensively about Paleo and Keto, expanding her abilities to experiment,
evolving her own signature styles and flavors of foods. Thus was born her new vocation as a private chef preparing
healthful, wholesome meals for individuals and families. She tops off her
offerings of Keto and Paleo meals with extraordinary cakes and desserts, all fit
for the Keto or Paleo diet.
“I have watched people change their lifestyles from bad to
good and physically improve immensely by being on a Keto or Paleo diet—being able to finally lose weight, get a good night’s
sleep, or have overall more energy in their life and the ability to enjoy it to
the fullest,” Chef Mel explains. “It’s eye-opening to see what eating well can
do to someone and this is why I dedicate my life to making yours better.
“My biggest challenge was to
overcome my fears of owning my own company. The stress that comes with having a
whole company on your shoulders is overwhelming for a new mom and entrepreneur,
especially right at the beginning of Covid. I had lost my job at the nutritional
company due to Covid and not much work was being offered during that time. So I
took things in my own hands, and with my family's support, I started The Colors
of Food. After seven years of being a personal chef and working in nutrition, I
knew that was the right thing to do. I had to learn a lot, and with English
being my second language, this was not easy; I had to get a license, insurance
and much more, lots of new terms. I had to put a lot of time and money into
this company at a very critical time, but I did it and now we are flourishing
and expanding fast.”
Chef Mel has very big dreams
for the Colors of Food. Not just a meal prep, Colors is offering catering,
including wedding cakes and desserts. To run the catering, she brought onboard Chef
Nicci Stokes, with over 30 years’ experience. “We are now splitting the company
into three, and with our fantastic staff, we can well look into a busy future.
As for the meal prepping side of the business, be prepared to see bus
advertisements and billboards with our logo on it.”
