Claudia’s Mesa Catering + Private Chef

Community dinners, retail products, catering, private chef, food advocacy.

I was born and raised in Barranquilla, a city bathed by the Caribbean Sea and the Magdalena River on Colombia's northern coast. When I turned 18, I moved to Miami, Florida to pursue a college degree. While majoring in Sociology and International Relations, I met my gringo, Steve Krevat, and never returned home.

In 1998, my small family and I moved to the Montana Rockies, distancing ourselves even further from the equator. To nourish and maintain my heritage and entity, I took to designing recipes and interior finishes that reminded me of my home country.
In my exuberant kitchen, two New American culinary movements come together: local food sourcing and fusion cuisine. Local food has always had global roots, and it is by no means impossible to recreate dishes from distant lands with homegrown ingredients.

My cookbook, Global Pulse, Stories and Recipes using Beans, Chickpeas, and Lentils, is currently in the hands of a prominent literary agency in New York City. As we wait for a publishing company to take over our proposal, I continue designing and testing the 128 recipes.

My recipes are a reflection of my background using this staple of peasant kitchens and deliciously highlighting the many ways this ubiquitous "people's food" has facilitated cross-cultural exchange. From lentil-masa tamalitos and Caribbean falafels to Paella Montana and Mardi Gras Pulse Jambalaya, I draw inspiration from the bounty of organic pulse crops available in my Montana foodshed as well as my diverse culinary background.