Creative Dining by Angie delivers comfort
Takeout and catering business specializes in family-style fare
When Angie Scott dove headfirst into the culinary world two years ago, it was a matter of taking the plunge into her side job of catering home-cooked meals for clients across Fort Erie.
Takeout service was almost an afterthought, only added to her business model once she found a bricksand-mortar location for her fulltime entry into the catering game with Creative Dining by Angie. Turns out, it was a good move. “I did some catering on the side, focusing on pre-made meals for other people,” Scott said. “I decided that I wanted to do this full time. When this building came up, there was no room for tables so I decided to add takeout.”
And as March came about and the province went into pandemic lockdown, restaurants were left with only takeout and delivery service to keep going. For Scott, the takeout service helped keep things going as catering jobs became fewer and further between with more people staying and/or working at home.
“It’s been a challenge,” Scott said. “But people want to eat.”
And, as the province has gone through the stages of reopening, that has meant an upswing in the catering business again.
That has meant there has been more demand for Scott’s array of Italian favourites such as chicken and veal Parmesan, lasagna and various other pastas. Coupled with that are other comfort items, such as roast beef and gravy, deli sandwiches and specialty gourmet sandwiches.
Large catering orders can be accommodated on the same day, Scott said.
Born and raised in Fort Erie, Scott is largely self-taught in the kitchen, with the majority of her dishes coming from inside her own head or via traditional family recipes.
“Stuff my mom taught me,” she said with a smile.
She also learned the ins and outs of the restaurant business working at the now-closed Keystone Kelly’s for a number of years.
“We received a lot of cross-training,” Scott said.
So, what are people craving? “The hot roast beef and parm sandwiches and flatbread pizza are popular. Things that aren’t available around here. It’s stayed consistent since the day we opened.”
As the business continues to grow, the next step is adding delivery to customers. To that end, Scott recently unveiled a brightly coloured delivery van that will soon be hitting the road.
Scott is offering different familysize meal specials every day of the week. Tuesdays are lasagna and taco night while Wednesdays feature roast beef and gravy. On Thursdays, the featured items are chicken, veal and eggplant Parmesan while Friday is set aside for pasta and meatballs.
For takeout, customers are asked to call 905-871-4545 to place their orders in advance. All family size meals are available either cooked or uncooked.
Creative Dining by Angie is at 336 Central Ave., Fort Erie.