About Us

Our Story

How we got started

In 2014 I began to pray about what I could do to earn income and use the gifts and talents the Lord has given me. That fall on a date night with my husband we took a cooking class in downtown Houston. On the long drive home that evening It occurred to me that the concept of teaching cooking classes intrigued me. I am a hard worker, I love to cook, I knew I had a gift of teaching and the kitchen is my happy place. I broached the subject and my sweet man encouraged me to investigate what that would look like. I spent 6 months of phone calls, spread sheets and realtor meetings educating myself on what it meant to be a small business owner. I experienced some severe sticker shock on the price of rent in Clear Lake, Texas, not to mention the cost to build out a commercial kitchen facility. My search led me to an empty space across the street from Space Center Houston in Nassau Bay. It was none other than Divine providence that the owner of the commercial space liked my business plan and offered to pay 80 percent of our cost (answered prayer!).

We head to the Hill Country

Needless to say, we had a fun, thriving business in that location for 5 years. The Lord always provided, people had fun, many tears and stories were shared there. When our lease was up in 2019 and the kids were off at college, we made the decision to move to the Hill Country and “retire.” We bought a farm in Spicewood, built a barn, moved in the animals, planted the garden and built a tiny home for my mother on the property. And then … I discovered that I more energy and ideas that had not been exhausted and I was not as good at being retired as I thought I would be.

Dilapidated beginnings

On my drive through Marble Falls a tiny cardboard sign in the window of the homeliest little building caught my eye. “For Lease.” I went home that day and asked my (long-suffering) husband if he would mind if I checked it out. He mentioned that it looked like it needed a lot of work, and I agreed, but he gave me the green light. The building was definitely an icon in Marble Falls. For 18 years it was the place to go for fried catfish. To say that it was in need of love was an understatement, and when I took my husband back with me he was shocked at the condition of the place. In true Ginger “can-do” fashion, I boldly proclaimed that it was no problem. So 3 months and lots of sweat equity later, it was ready for paint, flooring, shelves, and some man muscle. I thank the Lord daily for such a sweet, kind, and tolerant husband!

Up and running!

Art of the Meal Marble Falls opened its doors in March of 2021. We have been met with such an overflowing of goodwill from our town and we have been very busy! We look forward to many more wonderful times with new friends and are very grateful for the opportunity to love, grow, and serve right where God has placed us.

Cheers!
Ginger