Kristina Savage — A passion for pasta

  KRISTINA Savage learnt how to prepare a variety of pasta dishes while she was training to become a teacher of home economics, a dream she had since she was a child. Though she never got to really show off her cooking skills in college, an opportunity presented itself while she was on the student work and travel programme in North America.

“In my final year of the student work and travel programme I was employed at a Mexican restaurant in Michigan. My employer owned four restaurants, and she lost her head cook at the Italian restaurant,” she told All Woman.

“She approached me one evening asking me to be the head cook there. So I worked Mexican by day and Italian by night.

”It’s at the Italian restaurant where I got hands-on experience in making pasta dishes and sauces. She told me the basic steps, and I made it my own.”

When Savage returned to Jamaica, she tucked her chef’s hat away and focused on utilising her newly acquired teaching degree in food, nutrition and health. She had no intention of using her pasta-making expertise beyond the occasional plate for close friends and family, but her extraordinary talent could not stay hidden in the cupboard for long.

“I was asked once to do two pasta dishes for a friend who was having a customer appreciation. I made the pasta and we received the most unexpected feedback from the customers — they loved them and couldn’t stop asking my friend where she got them,” she remembered.

But even then she did not plan on selling her pasta. After constant prompting by friends and relatives to make them pasta, however, she decided to just go for it.

“When I arrived at the location with the pasta, my friend, who had a large Instagram following, took out her phone, went on live, and said, “guys my friend is starting a new pasta business”. At that moment we created the name @pawsta_ja, and the page got 250 followers in one day. So on August 28, 2018 PawstaJa was born,” she said.

She had no business plan, no logo, and no idea how to run a business, but she decided to give it at shot and try her best.

“At first I did it all on my own, but I soon realised it cannot be done alone,” the home restaurant owner said.

“I operate PawstaJa from home; we have riders that do the deliveries and there is someone who manages the social media page and takes orders or responds to any concerns. At first we only sold two types of pasta, delivery was done on Tuesdays and Thursdays, and I personally delivered them. We have now added seven more pasta dishes and we now open Tuesday to Saturday.”

Savage’s favourite pasta dish from her menu is a dish called ‘Island Veg Pasta’.

“It’s made from pumpkin and coconut cream. I’m not vegan, but the pasta is vegan, and it has a really nice smell. It has a lot of flavour.”

Her Molynes Road kitchen now serves up tasty pasta meals to various business places and individuals daily, and the 24-year-old does not plan to slow down.

“I am absolutely in love with food and cooking and I’ve always known that my purpose was going to be embedded in the love I have for food. Cooking is my number one hobby,” she laughed.

“The vision for PawstaJa is to one day be a dine-in restaurant, providing tasty, diverse and creative pasta dishes that people would not even have thought about. I’m constantly trying to improve our products and the quality of the service and I’m determined to see PawstaJa excel.”