ANOTHER WEEK...
...Another amazing round of testing from the IZOLA Core Team: Chef Lidia, Chef Lane, Chef Joseph!... killin' it. This week we worked on refining our version of the classic jambon croissant and the team attempted to change how I feel about mushrooms.....and they succeeded! Mmmm, that smell is so fine. But alas, I'm still working on Jenny with the anchovy radish sourdough..haha.
As we do at IZOLA, we test by changing one thing at a time - this week, that included testing more kalbi beef for our bibimbap croissant; in this case, more was not better! It overpowered the house-made Bibimbap sauce, beet microgreens, and mini cukes.
It was also super fun to welcome two of our winners from the Instagram contest. Having Chaz, Kari and their guests at our chef's table was our week's highlight and reminded us how much we MISS having you all at the bakery! We cannot wait to welcome you back in soon - more news in the coming weeks on that...🤞
IZOLA GOES TO JTREE
With our smaller IZOLA Core team, it's more than a team effort to make sure our IZOLA leaven stays happy and fed! Last week it got to spend the weekend in Joshua Tree as our dedicated Chef Joseph tended to it. IZOLA Wild Sourdough now has the essence of the desert...and is even more wild!
LOVE LOVE LOVE
This Valentine's Day marks Jenny's parent's 50th wedding anniversary...what a beautiful thing. The fam got together to celebrate recently and the day was filled with fellowship and lots (and lots) of eating! Gathering around good food is a passion of the entire Chen family...Lunch at Artifact and bakery hopping to Hinar (Hi Berivan and Ceko!) and ASA (Hi Masaki and Ayaka!). Delicious! We tried going to IZOLA as the third leg on our bakery hop, but alas, we are still closed 😉.
As we approach Valentine's Day, I wanted to take a minute to talk about...love. At IZOLA we hold space for love in all its forms: no matter where you are from, what you look like, orientation, economic status, gender or race, you are welcome.
Celebrating the love of a couple who has been going strong for 50 years pulls it all into sharp focus for me.
JOBS. GROWTH. JUSTICE. NOW IS THE TIME.
Our equity raise closes in less than 3 weeks! If you've been curious about investing, have questions about how to join IZOLA on our journey. Let's talk! This Saturday, February 17th at 10a PST for a super fun, casual Google Meet.
We'll share with you why we chose to raise funds through an equity raise, how we plan to grow IZOLA's distribution and scale our justice-based mission.
If you're not able to make the call, we'll hold one additional call before our February 29th close. Or you can see a past recording of an IZOLA Future Conversation here.
*Please only invest an amount you would feel comfortable losing. Investing in private businesses involves risk. Though potential returns are designed to reflect that risk, there is a possibility that you will lose your entire investment.
CONGRATULATIONS
Wow, wow, wow, what an amazing group of ideas that came through our Instagram contest last week! We had over 800 entries (!) and I'd love to bring in about 40 winners. Great work! After multiple passes through the list, grouping, thinking, dreaming....we've finally picked (it was so hard to choose we picked three!). The winners are:
@chazzychil for keeping it local with their horchata flavor
@k_dot_her for their creativity (Savory: nduja, pepperoni, burrata, hot honey | Sweet: persimmon + cinnamon aka Persinnamon)
@mvshook for the intriguing gooseberry and champagne jam filling glazed with elderflower syrup
Congratulations!!! We can't wait to have ya at our chef's table. Just take a look at what the IZOLA CORE Chefs produced last week! YUM! YUM! YUM!
And to everyone....thank you so much for all the thinking, passion and creativity. I'm blown away by the ideas and the IZOLA Community.
RENOVATION UPDATES & EXCLUSIVE EARLY ACCESS
These past couple of weeks continue to prove challenging as we navigate the ups and downs of our renovation. 100-year-old buildings hold many surprises.....We have a lot in work right now that we can't wait to share with you soon...thank you for hanging in there with us! As soon as we can share more details on our reopening date, you'll be the first to hear right here....
We are super eager to welcome everyone back in and we've been thinking a lot about how we might best ensure a great reopening experience for everyone. Part of our reopening will include a private soft opening - this will allow our team to get their feet under them and allow us to refine our processes and hospitality, but we also want to offer a special way to thank our IZOLA investors.
If you'd like to join us at our soft opening, please consider joining us in our equity raise.
We are down to the last 30 days of our current equity raise. If you've been considering investing in IZOLA, now is the time!
As a thank you to our over 500 investors, you will be invited to our investor-only soft opening. New flavors! Meet the Chefs! Tour the kitchen! But you must invest by February 29th to get on the list!
Have questions? Want to learn more about how we plan to grow IZOLA distribution and take action on our justice-based mission, scale process, and IZOLA culture? Join us for a super casual Google Meet call next Tuesday, February 6th, at 7p. Jenny and I will provide the latest updates on our renovation, detail what your investment will help us accomplish over the next few years, and answer any questions you might have.
*Please only invest an amount you would feel comfortable losing. Investing in private businesses involves risk. Though potential returns are designed to reflect that risk, there is a possibility that you will lose your entire investment.
JOIN US AT THE CHEF'S TABLE
Missing the shatteringly crisp IZOLA croissant? Pillowy crumb? Join us for an upcoming taste test here at IZOLA. How? Just head on over to this Instagram post and follow these easy steps:
1) Follow us on Instagram
2) Like the post
3) Comment with what flavor you'd love to see on the menu at IZOLA
4) Tag the lucky friend you want to join you at the taste
We'll choose the two most creative, fun flavor ideas to join us for a taste test at IZOLA. You and your guest will have a blast trying out our exciting new flavors. Some of the flavors we've tested in the past are Baklava Croissant, BiBimBap Croissant, Blue Cheese and Walnut Sourdough, and our unique take on Blueberry Pie.
We can't wait to host you at our chef's table!
(Enter by 11:59p on Saturday February 3rd, we'll choose the winners on Sunday February 4th)
SPECIAL ACCESS
We are down to the last 30 days of our current equity raise. If you've been considering investing in IZOLA, now is the time!
As a thank you to our over 500 investors, we will be extending a pretty special investor-only opportunity as we approach our reopening, where you'll be invited to our soft opening, which will not be open to the general public. New Flavors! Meet the Chefs! Tour the kitchen! But you must invest by February 29th to get on the list!
Have questions? Want to learn more about how we plan to grow IZOLA distribution and take action on our justice-based mission, scale process, and IZOLA culture? Join us for a super casual Google Meet call next Tuesday, February 6th, at 7p. Jenny and I will provide the latest updates on our renovation, detail what your investment will help us accomplish over the next few years, and answer any questions you might have.
*Please only invest an amount you would feel comfortable losing. Investing in private businesses involves risk. Though potential returns are designed to reflect that risk, there is a possibility that you will lose your entire investment.