Two trained chefs felt it was ‘thyme’ to launch own business — New Business

Without a lot of startup money, two Treasure Valley women are hoping they have the recipe for success for a new business they call A Table In Thyme. The two former social workers left their former jobs to attend culinary school. Now, they’re hoping to stir things up as personal chefs.

Sonja Degenhardt worked for more than 17 years in social services in California and was a supervisor on “the welfare side,” she said. She later attended the Art Institute of California in Orange County, where she is from.
Jody Slater received a social work degree from Boise State University, worked as a case manager for the Association of Retarded Citizens starting in 2000, and then worked for four years with the Women’s and Children’s Alliance before going to cooking school. She attended the Culinary Academy in San Francisco.
After Degenhardt moved to Idaho and Slater returned to the area after working in New Orleans, the women met at the Young Chefs Academy in Eagle. Slater manages the cooking school for kids, and Degenhardt helps teach there. They conceived the idea of starting their own business together.
In May, the women launched A Table In Thyme; on July 7, they formally rolled out their Web site focusing on personal chef services (including intimate events meals), meal delivery, catering, and cooking parties.
The site, www. features a variety of menus people can choose from. Slater or Degenhardt will come to clients’ homes, discuss options, do the shopping, and cook a meal in the clients’ kitchens. The women said they are keeping the service very inexpensive at $10-$14 a meal. “It’s for families or individuals, people who are busy, don’t have time or don’t like to shop, or don’t like to cook,” said Degenhardt.
The women said they want to focus on organic, natural and locally grown products, with an emphasis on “green” containers and other items used in their company.
They acknowledge the personal chef business has exploded in the Boise area, and they seek to bring something unique to the industry. Slater has experience working with people with special needs diets, for instance. “I worked with a client in San Francisco who could no sugar, no salt, and no citrus,” she said.
Locally, she helped a physician who wanted to lose weight while maintaining a healthy diet.
Slater said she finds that kind of work rewarding. “You’re helping them,” she said.
Slater is also a pastry chef, and Degenhardt specializes in Italian foods, although she is trained in all types of culinary specialties including French, Asian, and Regional American. She credits her schooling at the Art Institute for giving her instruction in a broad array of cooking styles.
Their clients so far have included business people involved in radio, cleaning services, consulting, and more. They hope to match their electic cooking skills with an ever increasing array of customers.