National Ketchup Day is on June 5, and SkinnyFATS is celebrating by selling their special sauces for $1.
SkinnyFATS is owned by Reed Allen Slobusky, whose path to owning his own restaurant is unconventional to say the least.
Slobusky got his start in the food industry as a McDonald’s employee in Colorado when he was 13 years old. But he was forced to stop working after he visited his father in Miami, Florida, and became trapped there due to a bitter custody battle between his parents.
Eventually, Slobusky resorted to selling avocados out of a beat-up pickup truck.
“Luckily for me, my father was part of a large grower, packer and shipper of produce in Homestead, Florida and didn’t mind driving the F-150 through the avocado groves while I stood in the bed and filled it until it was full,” Slobusky explained. “We would park on the side of the road, and I would slang $3 avocados for $1 while he read a book… It was at that young age that I started to learn how to run a high-volume restaurant, manage my supply chain and sell. ”
Later in life, Slobusky found himself in Las Vegas, where the deli located two doors down from his office went out of business. That gave him the motivation to start SkinnyFATS.
“I used to get my iced tea there every day, so when they closed, I couldn't get iced tea without leaving the parking lot - which reduced my productivity,” he said. “I called the landlord and leased the space, and now I have iced tea again.”
Of course, the restaurant offers way more than iced tea. Aside from breakfast bites, tacos, soups, burgers and sandwiches, SkinnyFATS is known for their creative “Catchups.” The sauces use harvested tomatoes from small batches as opposed to concentrate, and they avoid GMOs and high-fructose corn syrup.
13 Action News asked Slobusky about what pairs well with the Catchups at SkinnyFATS. Here’s what he recommends:
- Jãlatcha is flavored with jalapeños, giving it a spicy kick that goes well with truffle fries, burgers, and breakfast items.
- Chillpotle is flavored with a smokey chipotle. Like the Jãlatcha, this one pairs best with fries, burgers, and breakfast, though Slobusky also recommends using it as a BBQ rub.
- Unipeppercorn has a kiss of black peppercorn, which goes great with anything savory.
- Porky Pineapple throws in a bit of tanginess and sweetness that complements tacos.
- Turmerica is a hot mustard made with turmeric that works well with sandwiches, burgers, veggies, and more.
