TOP 15 ENTREPRENEURS Sometimes in life you have to make your own breaks.That’s what these enterprising residents of Queens are doing, taking matters into their own hands and following their dreams; whether its creating a food market or opening a restaurant or making world-class guitars. This issue, The It’s List presents 15 entrepreneurs who are making their dreams a reality.
Chic-a-Pea chicapeas.com
15. DAVID LEVI & DARREN SHLISKY
Inspired by their love of healthy food and Mayor
Bloomberg’s “War on Junk Food,” SUNY Albany graduates David Levi and Darren Shlisky realized that there was a serious shortage of healthy, ready-to-eat snacks available for supermarket shoppers. Now, after closing a successful round of crowd funding last September, Chic-a-Peas are gaining recognition as a worthy product around the nation. Dave and Darren discovered chic-apeas by “snack-cident,” as they like to say, when
14.TIM CAVARETTA BitterGreen Catering eatbittergreen.com
Chef and owner of Bittergreen Local Harvest Catering Tim Cavaretta hails
from central Massachusetts, however he has lived in Queens on and off for the last 10 years or so. And now, he has finally found a niche in the borough he calls home. In the past, Cavaretta has dabbled in everything from forensic investigations, to real estate and university administration; but he has always carried a passion for entertaining and an appreciation for working with regional, small-scale farmers for his work. Now at the helm of his very own catering company, C avaretta has carried his focus by working with local farms as well as incorporating ecological principals into everything that they do, regardless of the budget, as he explained. “There is such a thriving improvisational entrepreneurial culture here, unlike what you find in the other boroughs,” Cavaretta said of the borough. “People around here always find a way to make things work. It doesn’t hurt that you can usually find a parking space, either.” (Andrew Shilling) 24 • Summer 2014 www.itsqueens.com
they burned some chickpeas while baking up a quick snack, and they found them to be crunchy and delicious. Their no frills, no filler recipe is simple and straightforward, so snackers can feel good about scarfing down a handful of chic-a-peas. Currently available in Sea Salt and Falafel flavors, the ingredients in both are chickpeas, safflower oil and spices. And that’s it. (Chase Collum)